New 4-storey mural unveiled in Vanier pegged as city's tallest

There's a new mural towering over Ottawa's Vanier neighbourhood one that's purportedly the tallest in the entire city.

Saturday marked the unveiling of a four-storey mural,approximately 15 metres tall, that now adorns the side of a private building at the corner of Montreal Road and Bgin Street.

The winning design was chosen from a shortlistof four proposals released earlier this year. Apublic vote saw Vanier residents cast more than 1,000 ballots for their favourite.

"This one's the one that spoke to most people. This was the one that resonated," said JamieKwong, the executive director of theQuartierVanierBusiness Improvement Area.

The mural's colourful patterns are a reflection of the vibrantlocals and businesses from markets and restaurants to nail salons and toy stores that call the east Ottawa neighbourhood home, said Mique Michelle, a Vanier artist and half of the duo whose proposal was chosen for the space.

"My goal is just to make sure everybody who's in Vanier or in general can communicate what they're feeling, what they're living," she said.

11-year-old 'consultant'

As part of their proposal, Michelle and her partnerKalkidan Assefawanted to mark the fact that Ottawa is home to the largest Inuit population outside of Nunavut.

So they got help from 11-year-oldMarcus Kisa-Gaudreau, originally from Iqaluit. Kisa-Gaudreau started off as a "consultant" but soon graduated to becoming a fully-fledged member of the team, Michelle said.

"After giving him a can, I'm scared for my job!" said Michelle. "He's going to take over soon. His skills are so good."

Kisa-Gaudreausaid he'd shownthe pair some sketches that he'd made in his notebook beforehand,based on life back home.

"The seal and the narwhal aregood!And the lady's face is very good," he said, when asked what he thought about the mural. "I saw [those] in Nunavut."

Special exemption required

Kwong said the BIA had to get a special exemption from the city to install the mural, as Ottawa bylaws only allow for murals up to two storeys tall.

The mural will remain in place for at least five years, she said. Aprotective coating will soon be added so that if the workends up being defaced, it can be easily restored.

The funding came from a neighbourhood campaign, as well as the House of Paint hip-hop festival. The BIA also offered up a significant portion of its budget to fund both the mural and Saturday's concurrentstreet party, Kwong said.

She said the mural perfectly captured the BIA's two goals for the project: to erect something that would be "as bold as possible" and would reflect a neighbourhood that has a significant number of both francophones and new Canadians.

"We knowVanieris a cultural mosaic. We knowit'sdiverse with different languages, different cultures, different backgrounds of all sorts," Kwong said. "And we wanted that represented in some way."