The amount of public art created by Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) Calgarians does not represent our city’s diverse population. We want to support BIPOC artists and creatives by making public art opportunities in our city as everyone deserves equal opportunities and representation. The Black Lives Matter murals aim to do exactly this.
To ensure the art is genuine to the lived experiences of BIPOC artists and voices, it’s imperative that this project not be managed by the municipal government. By deliberate design, Pink Flamingo, Calgary Arts Development (CADA), and The Beltline Urban Mural Project (BUMP) are facilitating this project. The City’s public art program’s role will be to provide support and guidance to the facilitators and to help move this initiative forward in a constructive manner.