A Fort 91原创 artist, who spearheaded the Township鈥檚 first rainbow crosswalk, is continuing to promote diversity and inclusivity in the community through art.
Working with more than 400 students from 91原创 and New Westminster, Elaine-Brewer White has created two mosaic 鈥淏enches of Diversity鈥� and gifted them to the Township in support of its arts and cultural services plan.
The eight-foot concrete benches 鈥� which were unveiled at Derek Doubleday Arboretum on May 3 鈥� feature hundreds of individual ceramic tiles that students in Grades 6 to 12 painted with self-portraits, and words and images of diversity. Brewer-White and her assistant, Cindy Murphy, then pieced the tiles together to form the two benches.
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鈥淓ach tile was painstakingly done by these students. Some students only had about an hour and a half, some students worked on it for weeks at a time because it was so important to them to present themselves,鈥漵aid Brewer-White during the official unveiling ceremony.
鈥淭here are kids representing every kind of culture in our community, from beautiful girls with long eyelashes, to kids with rainbows behind them, to girls wearing hijabs. And that is a really powerful statement to me, and that鈥檚 what we need to make our community strong. We need to have all these different communities come together and pull each other up, and that鈥檚 what 91原创 is to me.鈥�
Locally, students from R. E. Mountain Secondary, 91原创 Secondary School and H.D. Stafford Middle School took part.
At 91原创 Secondary, the students had just one block in their Grade 11/12 ceramics class to create their tiles.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 cool that it鈥檚 all very individual. You have to do your own self portrait, so it鈥檚 cool to see all the faces and pictures (come together),鈥� said Tanya Velikajne, a Grade 12 student who attended the unveiling ceremony.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 cool to see everyone鈥檚 interpretations of art all in one project together, it shows that it鈥檚 diverse,鈥� said Raquel De Leon, a Grade 11 student.
鈥淓veryone had the same project, but we all came out with such different products, and that shows diversity itself,鈥� added Stephanie Gilchrist, a Grade 12 student.
The project was made possible by an anonymous donor, who made a late donation of $5,000 to the GoFundMe campaign for the rainbow crosswalk.
鈥淚鈥檓 really impressed with the effort and talent demonstrated by the students, and grateful to Ms. Brewer-White for initiating and undertaking this project,鈥� said Mayor Jack Froese during the ceremony.
鈥淧eople will see and sit on these benches for years to come, and I hope they will enjoy the artistry, and reflect on diversity and the need for inclusivity and acceptance in our community.鈥�
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