Whether it's on the belly of the Canada Line, on your iPod or in a park washroom - expect to see artwork in very unexpected places this year in Richmond.
Thanks to an idea stemming from the city's Public Art Advisory Committee, a new exhibition called Art in Unexpected Places looks set to kick off around Richmond in the fall.
"Blossoming" - by Leong, Leung and Santillan - could see large-scale cherry blossoms painted onto the underbelly of the Lansdowne Canada Line station.
While "Chan's Cabinet of Curiousities", by Vivian Chan, is an art/social experiment that could involve members of the public actually modifying an exhibition of ceramic objects in a mall by substituting an item with a piece of their own and sharing the history of that object.
And a yet-to-be-named glass mosaic, by Elizabeth Wellburn, would make artwork from recycled glass - sourced in the city - using kiln-forming and mosaic techniques. The finished pieces could then be displayed above doorways or in park washrooms.
A report that went before city council's parks and recreation committee last week stated that a total of 39 proposals were received last summer for the proposed exhibition.
Six artists were chosen from the submissions by a panel of experts at a cost $45,500, which will come from the city's Public Art Program fund, should the plan be endorsed by city council next week.
"The program is based on the belief that, through the arts, communities can explore ideas, issues and concerns, voice community identity, express cultural spirit and create dialogue," wrote the city's public art planner, Eric Fiss, in his report.
For the full list of artists chosen for the exhibition, go to http: //bit.ly/XSQav2.
acampbell@richmond-news.com
