Fort 91原创 resident Molly Gray stepped out of her comfort zone when she designed a piece to submit for the jazz fest banner contest.

Her work is typically influenced by animals and nature, so it was an unexplored challenge when she had to design something related to jazz music.

鈥淲hen I read the criteria, I was like, 鈥榳ow, how do you fit all of that together cohesively?鈥� It was such a vast challenge, and that鈥檚 what drew me to submit,鈥� Gray shared.

Gray credits her niece for the piece鈥檚 inspiration, who is enrolled at the local fine arts school majoring in music.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been so amazing to watch her musical skills grow over the years. Her dedication and passion are inspiring, and the way she speaks about how the different types of jazz emote different colours and the importance of each instrument really brought my submission to life,鈥� she explained.

Along with the festival banners, Gray鈥檚 work will be featured in all festival-branded materials including posters, programs, the website, social media, and T-shirts.

鈥淢olly鈥檚 original piece was selected by the festival art committee for its creativity, originality and bold colours,鈥� said Dave Quinn, artistic director. 鈥淗er layering of instruments and colours gives the piece depth, and we鈥檙e excited to use it in our materials.鈥�

Now, Gray is working to convert her digital art piece into a physical painting.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a reverse situation where the original is digital and now I鈥檓 painting it. It鈥檚 such a fun challenge and something I鈥檝e never done before. It鈥檚 really good practice for my colour-matching.鈥�

Gray has been a full time artist since 2016. Her current work, titled 鈥楢vifauna鈥� features to-scale, limited-edition, and lino-cut relief prints with watercolour. The series features birds of the Pacific Northwest, and she currently has 56 completed.

鈥淚 have barely scratched the surface of species within the regional area of the Fraser Valley.鈥�

Her goal for the series is to create a hybrid book that is part field guide, part journal, and part colouring book, she said.

Gray shared her many thanks to the festival, and said she is excited to participate in this year鈥檚 events.

The Fort 91原创 Jazz & Arts Festival is scheduled for July 25 to 28.

Tickets for the Cool Blues Show are on sale online at .

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