More murals to discover in the West End neighbourhood of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
There are over 600 murals in my home city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The centrally-located, culturally diverse West End neighbourhood contains a high concentration of these murals. In the post Mural Tour in Winnipeg’s West End, I showcased murals explored on the mural walking tour offered by West End Biz in summer months. There are many other murals to be found in the area. This post showcases a sampling of those other murals.
“Where The Wild Things Are” by Brian Gasenzer (as Cash Akoza), painted in 2016
“Connected by Play”, painted by Kadi Badiou in 2016, features native and popular games from the different cultures represented in the West End
“earth to table” was painted in 2012 by Amanda Abrahams and 95 community youth
The West End is an ethnically-diverse neighbourhood. It has become home to many immigrants over the years. It seems fitting, therefore, that the Folklorama 150 mural should be located in that neighbourhood. Many of the other murals in the area showcase its diversity. The earth to table mural celebrates that diversity by focusing on food: the sharing of meals at community gardens, park spaces, and around the kitchen table.
“Thunderbird Woman by Daphne Odjig (Tribute Mural)” painted by Mike Valcourt and Peatr Thomas in 2018 recreates a painting by indigenous artist Daphne Odjig. For more information, read this article which contains Mike Valcourt’s original mural proposal and additional notes.
“Helping Hands”, painted in 2005 by Erica Holloway and almost 20 kids from the neighbourhood as part of the West End Mural Mentorship Program, wraps the building on three sides and features the theme of helping others
“Costa Rica” on the side of a building housing a travel agency was painted in 2003 by Mandy van Leeuwen and Jennifer Johnson
“Cue the Beat” was painted in 2019 by Antoinette Baquiran and Rachel Goosen
The mural Cue the Beat is located at the edge of the parking lot for x-CUES Billiards & Café. It is a celebration of the business’ 50th anniversary and a celebration of the culture of the community. It features images of the café as well as images of musical instruments from many of the countries represented in the West End.
“Common Ground” was painted in 2019 by Antoinette Baquiran and Rachel Goosen. The mural imitates aspects of the Canadian landscape and represents the diverse cultural backgrounds in the West End
“Migration of the Mennonites” by Annie Bergen depicts the first major wave of Mennonite migration from Russia to the prairies in the late 19th century when they came via the United States on massive paddlewheel steamships. The mural was unveiled in 2007.
“Northern Portugal” by Mandy van Leeuwen and Jennifer Johnson was painted in 2002 on the Casa do Minho Portuguese Centre
Mural featuring William Wallace, an icon of Scotland, Sterling Castle, and the Scottish Highlands was painted by Jennifer Johnson in 2005
Mural painted by youth from Art City, a not-for-profit community art studio dedicated to providing people of all ages with innovative and professional art programming free of charge, on the side of a community centre
“Mosaics” by Ursula Neufeld
“Prairie Spirits” painted in 2015 by Brian Gasenzer (as Cash Akoza) who describes the mural as a “Woodlands Mural – an Aboriginal Style of Art”
“Nation of Ethiopia” painted by Jennifer Johnson in 2006 features three Ethiopian runners (Adebe Bikila who won Olympic gold running barefoot, Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele), a female Ethiopian runner (Olympic gold-medalist Mesera Dafar), the Nile Falls which originates in Ethiopia, and the most popular flower in Ethiopia
If you want to seek out the murals in the post for yourself, here is a map that might help.
There are more murals to be found in Winnipeg’s West End. Find more information on the West End Biz site. For information on murals in other neighbourhoods and throughout the city of Winnipeg, see The Murals of Winnipeg site.
Ken, it is impressive how many murals have been created in the city over the last few decades. So many of them tell stories about the city and its people.
600 murals! The whole city is an art gallery. My favorite here is Migration of the Mennonites. Mural realism.
Ken, it is impressive how many murals have been created in the city over the last few decades. So many of them tell stories about the city and its people.