The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) has unveiled the first two in a series of collaborative community murals that will decorate construction hoardings outside two subway stations while they are made accessible.
The City on the Move – Young Artists in Transit project began in 2013, when 15 young people from communities near the two stations—Coxwell and Woodbine—worked with artists Jim Bravo and Andrenne Finniken to create five murals. To ensure the artwork would be outdoor-durable, they primed, painted and varnished medium-density overlay (MDO) plywood panels.
Then Toronto’s poet laureate, George Elliott Clarke, wrote poems in response to the artwork and contributed words to one of the pieces. All of the murals were shown publicly in 2014 and the first two were installed late last month at Coxwell station.
“The collaboration between community groups, the city, the TTC and the talent of young people shows how public art can be inclusive and accessible,” said Janet Davis, a local city councillor.
