Capturing the Spirit of the Thorncliffe Community at Laird Station
Over three months in the spring of 2017, our contractor, Crosslinx Transit Solutions (CTS), worked in partnership with the Thorncliffe Neighbourhood Office (TNO) and the PATCH Project (a social enterprise operated by The STEPS Initiative) to develop a mural for the Laird Station construction site. On Friday, July 7th, the last brush strokes were added to complete this gorgeous mural.
The beauty of this initiative is that it was community-led and youth-inspired. The mural’s design was informed by the youth in the community through engagement sessions held at the TNO Youth Centre. During these sessions, youth explored what Thorncliffe Park means to them. Curtia Wright, the local artist who mentored the youth on this project, took everything she heard and came up with the mural’s concept – Community Spirit – meant to capture the diversity and family-like nature of Thorncliffe Park.
From July 4th to July 7th, youth of all ages gathered in the hub of Thorncliffe Park to paint the mural together. Over these four very sunny days, the youth of Thorncliffe brought the boards to life, taking them from blank to bursting with colour! The best part of this initiative was seeing the youth actually paint the boards, knowing that a bit of each of them will forever live in the mural.
Holly Beth Lievonen, TNO’s Youth Centre Program Lead said, “for them [the kids], it was so cool to be a part of something bigger than them and bigger than their school and bigger than their community, and I think they’re really taking pride in it. They’re really proud of themselves.”
The work highlights the area’s abundant access to nature and pays homage to local landmarks, both old and new – from the Thorncliffe Park Raceway to the future Eglinton Crosstown station, and everything in between. So next time you walk by Eglinton Avenue and Laird Drive, pause a moment and take in the rainbow.
Check out the Laird Station Mural Project photo album on the Crosstown's Facebook page.