Mural artists bring a splash of colour to the Halifax waterfront

The Halifax Waterfront got a little brighter this week – as artists make their mark with a 300 foot long treasure map.

Halifax’s beautiful boardwalk just got even more colourful thanks to mural artist Robbie LaRiviere.

“This project was something that I feel like the waterfront definitely needed,” said LaRiviere.

“It had these really cool games all the way down. But it was a little bit minimalistic and needed a little bit more life, a little bit more colour. So, I kind of pitched an email to Halifax saying, ‘I’ve done this in my hometown.’”

From the Ottawa area, LaRiviere has converted pavements in the Byward Market.

“I sent them a few photos of what I’ve done, and they were like, you know, this is great, but let’s try and make a nautical theme. Let’s try and make it all about Halifax and we brought that to life,” said LaRiviere.

The artist says he considers Halifax a second home.

“My wife works here, and, you know, we’ve been walking this strip for years now. So, she flies in and sometimes I join,” he explained.

“And because, you know, as artists, as creatives back home, we’re constantly looking for that next plug. So, we’re happy to do it and this is such a large project for me. It was like the largest floor mural I’ve ever done. There’s nothing close to this back home.”

Build Nova Scotia commissioned LaRiviere to paint a 300-foot path leading towards Saltyard.

“I had to fly in a pal,” he laughed. “With the help of two of us we were able to conquer it in four days. So, we started on Monday. Today, Thursday, we’re just going to wrap up some of the detail and make it look, complete.”

“I agreed to help Robbie on this project, and, only had a couple weeks of prep time,” said Jesse Albert, his partner on this project.

“But, knowing his work and having worked with him before, I knew it would be a fun experience and an opportunity to travel to Halifax for the first time. So, I got to see a little bit of the city and, helped create a big, beautiful artwork that the people here will get to enjoy for a long time.”

Albert said the city and the people inspired most of the design.

“We have taken a lot of inspiration from the city’s history, architecture, and wildlife and, ocean setting that we have here,” he explained.

“So, we have a lot of nautical themes, a lot of, sea creatures. The color scheme we’ve used has some of the Nova Scotia flag colors as well as some of the themes that you see in a lot of nautical flags as well, to keep it tied to the area that it’s in with people walking by.”

There is also an element of fun involved in the new design.

“Everyone’s been saying that they love the games that were here originally, and we did want to keep that theme going,” explained Albert.

“So, we’ve upgraded some of them and included some activities that children can enjoy. But everyone should be able to have some fun with this thing.”

For both artists, leaving an interactive impact is important in their work.

“It’s really significant for me as an artist that has worked on public projects before and been able to create things that sort of become part of the community and something that you will treat as a landmark,” said Albert. “You feel like you’re in a way connected to the cities that you work in, and you helped contribute to the local community pride. So, it feels like I have a little bit of a hand in some of the part of Halifax that people are going to be proud of.”

“When murals are interactive like this, it’s something else,” added LaRiviere. “It’s a whole other level. Like, you’re playing, your on top of the of the art, the physical art. It’s a whole other layer, you know, like murals that we all stare at and obsess over is one thing, but to be able to actually use it, is it next level.”

Albert adds his favourite part of the mural is some of the sea creatures.

“Personally, I think if I had to choose one, I really like some of our crustaceans,” said Albert. “We have some lobsters and crabs that have a lot of personality.”

Both hope that Halifax can find some fun in the design as well.

“The energy, you know, kind of just uplifts the whole environment,” said LaRiviere.

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