The Hidden Tapestry Project is a mural project taking place in the Queenston Street Community in St. Catharines Ontario.
Mission
The Hidden Tapestry Project brings to the light the beauty, prosperity and life of the Queenston Street community through large mural paintings on the walls of local buildings and storefronts.
Objective
- To paint a mural on a building wall in the next year with the goal of painting more in following years.
- To increase awareness about the life and prosperity of the community.
- To increase the business appeal of the Queenston Street community in preparation for its changing landscape.
- To empower the local community to contribute to beautifying their community.
- To engage local youth in community improvement.
What will the Hidden Tapestry Project accomplish?
- Builds community pride and enthusiasm
- Develops community partnerships
- Provides opportunity for youth engagement and contribution
- Encourages growth for the local community
- Helps beautify the community
- Enhances the reputation of the community
- Encourages community watch and ownership
- Deters vandalism and unwanted graffiti
- Provides opportunities for local artists
- Keeps businesses in the community and attracts new ones
The Hidden Tapestry Project is a mural project that came out of community conversation and observation in the Queenston Street community in the summer and fall of 2010. Suzanne Veenstra, Community Animator in St. Catharines, went on the streets of Queenston and asked residents what suggestions they had to make their neighbourhood a better place to be. Many residents made comments about the reputation of the community and how it is inaccurate and misinformed. Residents had a strong desire to see the reputation of their community changed. Others added to that desire by talking about cleaning up the community, picking up garbage and beautifying the neighbourhood. Many mentioned community watch programs and the desire to have neighbours looking out for neighbours. And for some there was a strong desire to see businesses stay in the neighbourhood and a need to attract new ones.
There was one suggestion that stuck and that was to bring local artists together in painting murals on the walls and windows of vacant and abandoned buildings. After hearing this idea Suzanne began to do some research and found many communities who have used murals to revitalize and rebuild run-down neighbourhoods. She quickly began to see the power of public art to bring communities together and transform the identity and the reputation of communities. It started to be clear that larger than life murals may be the jump start to bringing prosperity into the Queenston Street community.
Currently Suzanne is in the process of working with local community groups, organizations and individuals to see this project off the ground. She is looking for financial support as well as moral support from the community to make the dreams of Queenston a reality.
Behind the Name
Each community can be likened to a unique piece of fabric made up of many different strands- cultures, people, backgrounds and talents. When the many threads are sewn together, they form a beautiful tapestry displaying the uniqueness and strength of the community. Within some communities, however, the beauty of their identity is neglected and slowly the community is no longer seen as a unique piece of fabric but is seen as a holey rag. For the Queenston Street community, this has become their reality.
With a desire to restore what has been forgotten and bring to light what has been neglected, the analogy of a hidden tapestry has been used. The idea is to resew a tapestry that has been trampled on, torn a part and neglected. The idea of the project is to bring that hidden tapestry to the light and show the public what the true identity of the community is.
