Giant birch tree mural

                                                                                       By Hedy Korbee

It may not be the tallest birch tree in Birch Cliff, but it’s certainly the most unusual and, in many ways, the most spectacular.

Birch tree mural, Warden and Kingston Road

A giant birch tree mural was installed today on the rather drab exterior of the apartment building on the southeast corner of Warden and Kingston Road.

It was designed by artist Rob Matejka and painted by a dozen young people who are hoping for a future in the arts.

“The goal was to bring birch trees back into the Birch Cliff community as well as make a monument to the birch tree and something for people to see when they drive east or west on Kingston Road,” Matejka says.

Artist Rob Matejka installing the mural. Matejka is Program Director, Youth Programs at Mural Routes

Mural Routes project

The project is the latest attempt to beautify Kingston Road by Mural Routes, an organization with an international reputation whose work is familiar throughout Scarborough.  The idea for the project came from members of the Birch Cliff community who wanted to replace the sense of neglect that exists on Kingston Road with a sense of pride.

Mural Routes executive director, Karin Eaton, says the idea to “reforest” the community with a series of birch tree murals gives the community a unique identity and improves the streetscape.

“When you have those empty stores it begins to look derelict.  People start to tag.

Karin Eaton, Executive Director of Mural Routes

The way to stop that kind of thing is to look as though we are paying attention,” says Eaton, who has lived in Birch Cliff for more than 30 years.

Three murals this year

It’s expected that three murals will be finished by the end of summer. The first was painted last week on the side of Win A Mart Variety and is of a much smaller scale, which Eaton says is deliberate.

Win A Mart Variety mural

“It’s a real little gem.  And that’s the kind of thing we want, a few of those popping up that people will be surprised by.  It’s not in your face so much, but just charming.  They take such good care of their store.  The flowers look so pretty.”

The final mural will go up on wall of Wimpy’s that faces Manderly in September.  It was designed by artist Sarah Collard.

The mural installed today was painted on MDO high density exterior plywood using weatherproof paint and varathaned.  It was painted in a workshop donated by the Toronto District School Board.

Installation of birch tree mural

Funded by grants

The project has been completed with the help of grants cobbled together by Karin Eaton and Mural Routes.  The city of Toronto provided grants through the economic development stream as well as stART (StreetARToronto).  The young painters were funded by TDSB Focus on Youth, Tropicana Community Services and the federal Canada Works program.

How many murals wind up adorning Birch Cliff is not clear at this point as Eaton says it depends on future funding.  A community meeting is being planned for September and anyone who’s interested in the program is invited to attend.