Layla Folkmann & Lacey Jane Wilburn, Pillars of the Community, 2016
Location: Rogers Place Arena * 10220-104 AVE
Exterior, Northeast Corner of the Downtown Community Rink on 102 ST – Exit Rogers Place through the Community Rink or down the long corridor and escalator.
Pillars of the Community mirrors the diversity of Edmonton’s population and its realities. Placed close to Rogers Place Arena, this artwork is intended to celebrate “…the unsung heroes, the daily faces, the less heard or under-praised that make up the majority of Edmonton society.” The faces depicted represent the generations of women who nurture youth; Elders who share wisdom; the homeless who represent the toils of urban life and social responsibility; artists who observe and reflect the world back to us; youth who represent the future and hope. The use of colour and lines draw connections and help to highlight Edmonton’s reality – urban, vibrant and yet still connected.
Biography: Both born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta, Lacey and Layla met studying Fine Art at Grant MacEwan in 2007.
Their passion and dedication to artistic practice formed an inseparable friendship and a professional collaboration. They currently reside in Montreal, recently graduating from Concordia University with great distinction and studying at the L’ecole d’Enseignement Superieure d’Art in Bordeaux, France.
They currently paint murals with A’Shop inc. as well as independently. Since 2010, they have painted over 40 murals all across Canada as well as Honduras, France and Northern Uganda where they volunteered with an orphanage and an artistic centre for the reintegration of former child soldiers.
Collection: City of Edmonton Public Art Collection
Media: Mural – Paint
Sources: Edmonton Arts Council
Photo Credit: Susan Pointe