Stunning new mural helping to raise climate awareness in Yaletown (PHOTOS)
Vancouver-based multidisciplinary artist Jean Huang loves how art invites people to have deeper conversations.
“When people look at art, everyone has a unique perspective to share. Each person sees something different depending on their individual life experiences,” Huang told Daily Hive. “And with public art, it’s exciting how colours can transform a space and encourage people to be more inquisitive and playful. Being an artist challenges me to be more observant and present.”
Huang latest artwork in Yaletown is challenging others to be the same. Her mural Handshake with Kelp is part of the revamped Helmcken/Mainland Street plaza that is now filled with new murals, painted tables, and hanging art installations raising awareness about climate change and the ocean.
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“Handshake with Kelp was inspired by walks along the shores of the Salish Sea and seeing bull kelp and giant kelp floating in the waves, which appeared as if they were waving from the water,” explained Huang, who created the mural in collaboration with the Yaletown Business Improvement Association. “It also explores the idea of reciprocity. Taking care of nature and allowing natural ecosystems to thrive in turn allows nature to take care of us.
For Huang, climate awareness is understanding that we are all a part of an interconnected ecosystem.
“Handshake with Kelp” by Jean Huang/Submitted
“It’s realizing that my actions and decisions have a direct impact on others,” she added. “It is also about having empathy and a sense of care for those disproportionately affected by climate change, including other species. Climate awareness is about moving away from a human-centric view and creating space for biodiversity to thrive.”
Huang describes her work as being deeply influenced by the landscapes of the ancestral and unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
“Handshake with Kelp” by Jean Huang/Submitted
“Towering forests, powerful mountains, and endless ocean. I’m also inspired by the feelings I experience when I am outside: nostalgia, curiosity, and calmness,” shared Huang. “These are the places and emotions that I try to translate back into my artwork.”
The Vancouver artist also hopes to instill powerful emotions in those who discover Handshake with Kelp in Yaletown.
“Handshake with Kelp” by Jean Huang/Submitted
“I hope people experience a childlike sense of imagination when they visit the mural,” said Huang. “The mural takes on a three-dimensional form, as you can either walk above or beside the walls. When above the mural, waves spill over the ledge onto ‘land,’—giving the impression of sea levels rising.”
“Walking down the stairs of rockweed, the mural invites the viewer to imagine diving into the depths of two kelp forests and swimming with playful otters. I hope the mural creates wonder and encourages people to learn more about the ocean and climate change.”
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