This article written in french by Corinne Prince was automatically translated using AI.
For the past few weeks, a mural by Toronto artist Jacquie Comrie has adorned two facades of the Saint-Martin Towers in the Chomedey neighborhood. While many people are pleased with the colorful addition to the urban setting, others are questioning the cost of such an installation and the choice of an Ontario-based artist.
The gigantic work, titled *Inner Child Healing*, enhances the City of Laval’s public art collection as part of an initiative led by MU, a charitable organization specializing in mural development.
The municipality states that it invested $306,100 in the creation of this 11,000-square-foot artwork. This amount was included in the city’s public art budget.
Mixed Reactions
On social media, citizens are questioning the use of public funds.
“How much did this ‘magnificent’ mural cost?” wrote a Laval resident, addressing Alexandre Warnet, Laval-des-Rapides municipal councilor, who shared photos of the work on Facebook. “I imagine this Toronto artist was the only one available and the cheapest compared to Quebec or Laval artists? The planting of trees in certain places (like Kraken Square, for example) must surely blow the city budget, preventing the creation of green spaces… Let’s paint the walls and viaducts and leave public spaces without shaded areas. We don’t need them!”
“It’s beautiful, but if we’re going to spend on visual art, it would be nice to support local artists,” added another resident under the same post.
Regarding the artist’s selection, Nesrine Saci, public affairs advisor for the City of Laval, said, “The artist selection was made by a committee composed of experts, building owner representatives, and city representatives,” following a “pre-selection of artists with experience in creating large-scale murals from Quebec, Canada, and abroad.”
Saci also noted that “the artist’s practice needed to have a significant impact in public spaces, particularly through the use of color.”
This is not the first time a public art project has sparked debate in Laval. One can recall the mural under the Concorde viaduct, completed in August 2023.
The Artwork
Since the beginning of her artistic career, Jacquie Comrie has based her creations on the science and psychology of color.
For her, it is clear that colors are connected to our emotions and can influence our mood and mental health.
The creation of the Laval mural *Inner Child Healing*, one of the largest in her career, is tied to this issue.
“People are suffering,” observes the Toronto muralist. “The world… it’s chaos right now. People are hurting, and there’s a mental health crisis. Why not use this space to create a therapeutic environment for citizens?”
It took Jacquie Comrie a month to complete the Saint-Martin Towers mural, finished in early September. Back home, she hopes her work will brighten the neighborhood.
“All the colors used in this mural are intentional and were placed in a way to evoke a feeling of joy in people,” she explains. “What do you see when you look at the mural? How do you feel? The artwork encourages introspection. It’s a piece that fosters mindfulness through color.”
