A massive mural will soon take Okotoks back in time.
Stoney Nakoda artist Gordon Wesley is currently painting a mural depicting the Sheep River as it looked before colonization, complete with bison and tipis along an expansive natural landscape.
"Art runs in my family," said Wesley, whose uncle Roland Rollinmud is also an acclaimed artist. "I'm just lucky enough to stick with it."
Hailing from the Big Horn reserve, Wesley's project at the Arts & Learning Campus Plaza is one of many he has publicly exhibited: he has had his art displayed at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary as part of a year-long rotating art exhibition series from the City of Calgary and his murals are permanently on display at the Canmore Civic Centre.
"Right now I'm working on my landscape here, and eventually I'll put some bison, and as time goes by, [the finished mural] will slowly appear as what it actually is," he said.
Wesley is one of 19 artists commissioned by the Town of Okotoks to paint murals throughout the community.
With its focus on an Indigenous perspective, his piece supports the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action 83, which encourages Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists to produce works that contribute to the reconciliation process.
Community members are welcome to stop by the Arts & Learning Campus Plaza, located beside Ethel Tucker Centennial Park play space, to meet Wesley and observe his work on the project. The mural is set to be completed by the end of September, and Wesley will be at the site most days during the month.
Learn more about Wesley's work and follow along with his progress on his Instagram page.
