The City of Pickering’s West Shore Skate Spot will have an exciting new look shortly, as artist FATSPATROL will paint a community mural on the skate surface from October 1 to 19, 2023.
The City of Pickering’s Cultural Strategic Plan (2014) outlines the City’s commitment to collaborate with the community to celebrate our cultural diversity, heritage and the arts; to sustain our natural environment; to foster a creative economy; and to strengthen our vibrant neighbourhoods.
The popular new West Shore Skate Spot first opened in Fall 2022, and soon after in 2023, Council endorsed the funding to carry out the design and installation of a new Public Art mural on the skate surface. Through the Public Art Policy process, artist FATSPATROL, in collaboration with Mural Routes, was selected to create this community-inspired public art piece. Community consultations and paint workshops were held with residents over the summer to assist with the creation and execution of the design.
“The subject matter for this artwork, (the pike, the walleye, the water, sunsets and sunrises, the heron, the swan, trail patterns, foliage, ripples on the water) all came from two community consultations where local members stressed the significance of West Shore as an area of natural abundance and diversity. I interpreted these in the style of using bold colours, patterns and black lines that have featured in my work since the start of my creative practice. The use of bold black lines comes from a study of mark-making and my early influences of comic books, tribal Indian art (e.g. Kalamkari) Middle Eastern Textiles and later graffiti. The intent was for this artwork to be bold as a graphic style favoured by some local youth, and to visually enhance the features of the Skate Spot to allow users of the park to differentiate its surfaces.”
To read the story of the artist, click –> ARTIST
