Take a tour of these amazing murals in Rutland

Dormant parking lots and alleyways might not be the first things you think of when it comes to arts and culture.

But if you’ve walked around parts of Rutland, you’ll have noticed an inspiring vibe.

Many of the blank walls are being converted into vibrant art pieces, and there are more on the way.

The array of murals are all part of the Uptown Mural Project, which is brining a splash of colour to again infrastructure, artistic director and co-founder of the project, David Doody, told Kelowna10.

“It brings a lot of dynamism and excitement to a community that really has a vibrant pulse.”

The inspiration for the project came when Doody and his partner Jorden moved back to the Okanagan, and saw the community was full of boring blank walls.

“Being a painter and artist myself…we felt like the one thing that was really absent from the Kelowna art scene was a really vibrant street art project,” Doody said.

“We thought, 'okay. This is a cool opportunity, there's lots of great buildings and blank canvases. Let’s see if we can get the city and some businesses on board, and see if we can bring some public art to the Rutland community.'”

Doody said there are a lot of unique restaurants, thrift stores, and small businesses around Rutland, and the project creates a walking tour that brings people through the whole community.

Artists selected for the project are both local, and from the larger mural community across Canada.

“It really brings a sense of community pride,” Doody said. “It brings a sense of exciting action that this is a growing community, that we’re kind of in a position that this is an old community that’s going through a real rebirth.”

Local artist and avid mural painter Kristin Urbanheart created a mandala mural for the project, which was inspired by the colours of the Okanagan Valley.

“My favorite thing about painting murals is that I get to see other people post photos of [my] walls from all over the world,” Urbanheart said. She has created over 100 murals across the world, including in Asia and Europe.

“It really connects me with a lot of people and I think it’s really inspiring making art that has good vibes, and makes people feel really good when they look at it.”

The project clearly shows the passion the artists have for their craft, Dooby said.

“What kind of motivates me to be so engaged and involved and put so much of my personal time in to [this project], is that I’m a painter, too,” Doody said. “I love art. I love that art can step outside of the gallery and it can be shared in the community.”