The five years Jean Reagh has lived in Corner Brook have been good to her and her kids.
In particular, she loves how accessible it is for any child to participate in a wide variety of sporting activities in the city.
So, when the opportunity came knocking to create a public mural depicting the theme of unity through sport for the upcoming Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada celebrations in Corner Brook, she was immediately inspired.
The visual artist’s proposal was accepted by Sportsnet, the event’s television broadcaster which commissioned the work. Weather permitting, the finished product will be revealed for all to see when it is installed on the old post office building on Main Street Wednesday.
“If you were in a big city, you might have to be better at a certain sport just to be allowed to try it,” she said. “Here in Corner Brook, everybody has the opportunity who wants to do it and I love that. I also love that Corner Brook supports its kids, whether in sports, music, theatre or anything else.”
The mural she created is kid-centred, but doesn’t just focus on hockey. The series of panels depict young boys and girls involved in a variety of other sports too, including soccer, curling, skiing and basketball.
Within each image, there are subtle reminders that these are Corner Brook’s youth. The junior high school logo is on the basketball court, while one of the payers is wearing the senior high school team’s colours.
The ambiguous skier could be going downhill or maybe cross-country and logos representing both disciplines are incorporated in the image.
One image also shows the wide range of spectators who support kids, including parents, seniors and even one youth who may be more of a fan of sport than the athletic type.
Reagh said it’s going to be a great honour to see her work publicly displayed and quite likely included as part of the national broadcast next Saturday.
“To have a chance to do something that is a community art piece is very exciting to me,” she said.
