NEWS AT THE REACH

CITI/SEEN Public Mural Launch in Historic Downtown Abbotsford!

May 29, 2019 5:30 pm

Abbotsford, BC – Art in public spaces isn’t just pretty decoration, it brings us together and invites us to reimagine the everyday. The Reach, the Abbotsford Downtown Business Association (ADBA), and participating artists invite our community to gather for the launch of Abbotsford’s
newest piece of public art: a mural adorning the back of Hemingway’s Books in Historic Downtown Abbotsford. The launch will take place on Thursday, May 30, 2019 at 5:45pm in the lane off Montrose Avenue, and during the ADBA’s ever-popular Art + Wine Walk.

“I think that public art can position artists as agents of change in our community,” explains Laura Schneider, Executive Director of The Reach. “The CITI/SEEN project is a new initiative for us this year. We have enlisted the help of mentor-artist Tara-Lynn Kozma-Perrin to lead a team of emerging artists to design, plan, and create this public mural in Historic Downtown Abbotsford.”

The talented pool of emerging talent includes Abbotsford’s Madeline Hildebrandt, who recently completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree at the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) with a Visual Arts Major. Josh Koole is a 21-year-old self-taught artist from Langley, who will attend Emily Carr University this fall. Alayna Tam is an 18-year old artist from Abbotsford who, over the past year, travelled to Tijuana, Mexico and Kathmandu, Nepal working as a photography intern. Rio Zapata is a self-taught illustrator born in Medellín, Colombia, who came to Canada as a refugee in his childhood. He now attends the University of the Fraser Valley as a student of the
Bachelor of Fine Art program.

CITI/SEEN is part of Emerge, a program at The Reach that acts as an incubator for creative talent in the Fraser Valley by supporting the professional development of aspiring artists and arts professionals between the ages of 18-35. The Emerge program is generously supported by the
RBC Emerging Artist Project. CITI/SEEN is supported by several community partners including the Abbotsford Downtown Business Association, Abbotsford Downtown Real Estate Collection, Cloverdale Paints, City of Abbotsford, and UFV.

Image credit: Artists Tara-Lynn Kozma-Perrin, Rio Zapata, Josh Koole, and Madeleine Hildebrand work on the CITI/SEEN mural behind Hemingway’s Books on May 22, 2019. Photo by Connie Hackett.