Fabric of the City

The artwork is the fifth and final Paint the Rails mural. The piece aims to share the local moments that matter to the identity of Edmonton’s Chinese, Sri Lankan, Latin American, and Filipino communities. The mural is inspired by textiles, fabric, clothing, blankets, and woven cultural items shared from each cultural community’s diverse traditions.  This mural seeks to represent local stories that we don’t get to hear, bringing joy, beauty, and storytelling to our public spaces.

While each of these communities is vibrant and varied, they have key themes in common: stories of migration, hope, and belonging. Participating community partners shared diaspora experiences of second, third, fourth generation roots; recounting the importance of restoring connections with ancestral knowledge, reclaiming cultural traditions, and revealing journeys of perseverance, courage, and resilience. Animals and images from nature, such as mountains, rivers, and forests were also common elements, evoking the beauty of the natural world and visions of ‘back home.’ 

Our Lead artist AJA Louden working with two youth artists, Dana Belcourt and Matthew Cardinal, dug deep to create the final piece. We honour and extend so much gratitude to all those who contributed and worked with us on this project. We would not have been able to embark on such an ambitious vision without the support of ETS, they have been great partners and PTR’s biggest supporter from day one. You made it easy for us.

“These inspiring murals highlight our city’s history and show our commitment to collaboration with our community. ETS is proud to support this initiative and to be the home of five murals that enhance the stories of our community.” Eddie Robar, Edmonton Transit Service