The first of four art installations around the RM of Ritchot was unveiled on September 8 at Perron Park in St. Adolphe.
Residents were invited to a pop-up party to witness the debut. Similar parties will take place in Île-des-Chênes’s D’Auteuil Park on September 10, the Jeannot Robert Trail in Ste. Agathe on September 16, and the Grande Pointe Park on September 18.
Each event will begin with an introduction of the artist and the official unveiling at 6:30 p.m.
Jason Bodnarchuk, councillor for Ward 2, opened Monday’s event with a few words describing the project’s inspiration.
“The Signs of Belonging project is an initiative by the municipality of Ritchot’s recreation department to create more welcoming and inclusive spaces in our parks while celebrating the diversity of our community,” Bodnarchuk said.
A special thank you went out to Southern Health-Sante Sud for funding through their Healthy Together Now grant.
Emma Dequier, Ritchot’s recreational program coordinator, is a big part of the reason this project came to life. Earlier this spring, she was inspired by a similar initiative that took place in Minnesota.
A call was sent out to the communities and local art collectives, asking for designs in virtually any artistic medium, including painting, drawing, and digital art.
Nine responses were received. Dequier and her team reviewed the various portfolios and narrowed the submissions down to four.
“After meeting with the artists, we kind of had an idea of where we saw each piece come to life,” Dequier says. “We tried to pick a variety of different [styles] of artwork. Each park has a very different take on what belonging means.”
The artist chosen to create the Perron Park art piece is Kiran Sran, a student of the University of Manitoba’s School of Art. She’s also a Winnipeg resident.
“We worked collaboratively and kind of guided her, but it really was about what made her feel like she belonged in a park,” Dequier says.
The only prerequisite Dequier had for Sran was that it should include the community’s famed bird, the Chimney Swift. The rest of the inspiration was Sran’s to discover.
“I really wanted to include the native flowers, the sunflowers, and the corn maze,” Sran says. “And then there’s the river, because there’s a lot of bird-watching along this river. Intentionally, there are no humans [in it] because I’m coming to a park and I’m trying to connect with nature. I am the human.”
An electronic copy of Sran’s finished piece was sent to Dequier, who had it transferred to an aluminium panel for longevity in its outdoor setting.
Beneath the art piece is a written feature describing the artwork and its maker, along with the title Belonging and Heritage. It includes a QR code that will take readers directly to the RM website to access more details about the program and the artists.
“I feel so honoured, and I feel so connected to the community,” Sran says. “I feel like now I’m a part of it.”
All four of the artists to be revealed in the coming weeks hail from either Winnipeg or Lorette, since Dequier says the RM received no qualifying submissions from their own communities.
As for Monday’s event, she’s glad for the turnout and hopes the upcoming events in the other communities will result in similar interest.
“We’re thankful to the community for coming out and engaging, because that’s really what helps drive us to create a sense of belonging wherever we go.”