Artist 'honoured' to make Canadian art history in Edmonton

Artist painting Edmonton's largest mural The mural is being painted on the side of a downtown Edmonton building. CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson has more.

Edmonton's art scene is about to get bigger.

B.C. artist Grady Wallace is painting the largest stencil mural ever created by a Canadian, and he's doing it here in the capital city.

"This is definitely Edmonton's biggest mural to date, and we're excited to have our team on it," Wallace said.

The artwork was commissioned by Great West Life Realty Advisors. When finished, it will cover the west facade of the 20-storey Jasper One Eleven building on 110 Street and Jasper Avenue.

A self-taught spray paint artist, Wallace has two other murals in Edmonton and said it's a great city for creators looking to use existing infrastructure.

Erin McDonald, of the Edmonton Arts Council, said the mural is impressive in its detail at such a large scale and will invite conversations on art and architecture in the city.

"We're always excited when we can bring projects such as this to the city," McDonald said. "They enliven the space. . . and it may be an opportunity for somebody who isn't actively seeking out art, to stumble upon it."

A self-taught spray paint artist, Wallace has two other murals in Edmonton and said it's a great city for creators looking to use existing infrastructure.

"Those 80s architect buildings definitely make Edmonton a good playground for artists," he said, adding the new mural was designed to incorporate the building's colour to create a more naturalistic feel.

"It's definitely made it more challenging," Wallace said. "But I just want the image to flow within the building and make it feel like it's always been there."

The scale has also presented a challenge, with Wallace and two associate painters taking daily trips up their 20-storey canvas. To ensure everyone's safety, the team is working with a local construction company.

"Everyday you've got to keep your head on," Wallace said. "We want everybody coming home at the end of the day."

Wallace estimates the mural will be finished sometime in August. It's been a long time in the making, he said, considering it was started just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

"It's been three years of prep and at this point I don't really care how long it takes," Wallace said. "At the end of the day it's the quality that goes into a piece.

"I really think this is an incredibly detailed piece, and this is also the first time a Canadian artist has ever stenciled a mural this big, so that's definitely something that I am honoured to be doing."

Despite the challenges, Wallace has remained excited about the project and how it's coming along. At first, he said not many people looked up high enough to spot the work, but as the mural creeps further down the building, passersby started to notice.

"We've started to reach a point that we've got it low enough that people are starting to see it," Wallace said. "But, that's the great thing with art – you want to explore the world around you and look up every now and then and see what's up there."

Edmonton has three mural art festivals, and McDonald said the medium is a great way to introduce art into the day-to-day lives of Edmontonains.

The new piece is no different, and will add another layer to the city's ever-changing urban landscape.

"Mural art in particular is ephemeral and doesn't last forever, it's subjected to the elements, and so what you see today and the finished product, may not look the same in a few years and that's intentional. That it will weather with age, just like the city," McDonald said.

Wallace recently secured a grant from the Edmonton Arts Council for a documentary about the mural and a crew has been working with his team as they work to finish the piece.

There is no timeline yet on when the film will be released.