A Collaborative Art Project by The National Capital Network of Sculptors and the Boys and Girls Club  of Ottawa, Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse

It took almost a year from the moment the National Capital Network of Sculptors pitched this idea to the new Boys and Girls Clubhouse at 1770 Heatherington Avenue, to the day we officially unveiled the finished mural.

We spent most of the summer of 2023 collecting beads, glass, bits and pieces of ceramic, polymer clay, stone and wood as well as painting and prepping round wooden plaques for the kids to work on. Jim Lawrence collected and cut over 100 natural wood rounds as well as pieces of bark and drift wood. Rosemary Breault Landry built and painted the base design of the 4 x 8’ panel and Maria Saracino put together a team of artists to run the 5 workshops we held at the Boys and Girl Club. Each session was assigned to two artists who were responsible for a particular colour theme. The kids who joined the workshops made at least 2 mosaic rounds each and several BGC staff joined in the fun too.

Once the workshops ended and the children’s work had dried, another team of NCNS members began working on assembling the mural. Using the underpainting as a guide we colour-coordinated the rounds to the colours on the painting. This process took 3 weeks to complete. The final step was pouring the resin coating. The resin gives the work a protective glossy finish and locks all the bits and pieces together. We let the resin rest and cure for several weeks before the mural was installed on the cement block wall in the lobby area of the Boys and Girls Club.

During this time Bernadette Alcock took pictures, designed and created two interactive books that the kids use to identify and find some of the hidden treasures in the mural.

The official unveiling took place on May 22, 2024 and in addition to covering all the costs of this mural, the National Capital Network of Sculptors continues to show our support of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Ottawa with a donation of $500 as well as ongoing workshops at two clubhouses.

Participating Artists: Rosemary Breault Landry, Maria Saracino, Patrick Imai, Olga Kay-Grigoriev, Carolyn Sandor, Maggie Wesley, Bernadette Alcock, Paula Fraser, James W Cook, France Grice, Hengameh Kamal-Rad, Jim Lawrence, Sandra Marshall, Helen Rogers, Ljiljana Stojanovic

We would also like to acknowledge the many artists and volunteers outside our group who donated their time and supplies for this project.