'Mitosis at the Forks' is a mural commissioned by Museum London to launch the construction of the new Centre at the Forks. The 26' x 8' mural covers construction hoarding, behind which, workers are busy building the exciting new learning centre.
London’s own Billy Bert Young created the piece with the assistance of H. B. Beal Secondary School arts students Izzy Avola, Jacob Mallet, and Olivia Toth.
About the mural
'EOA buffering', shown on the top right corner of the mural, is a little joke for residents of the ‘forced city’; forest city Londoners ever looking for downtown renewal such as on the Dundas Street strip East Of Adelaide. At the opposite end of the mural, an art patron plunks away at his typewriter sending streams of thought rippling out through the community. Behind him, red cells appear and begin to divide in long, slow mitosis across the scene. Something new is being conceived at Museum London. Inside the ring of museum ropes a lighthouse illuminates the rush of new activity while a baby lazily uncoils the scene.
On May 7, visitors helped paint the mural during the Hard Hat Art Party. Children contributed to the mural by adding swirling lines and colours to the ‘New View’ portion in the bottom right corner. A window cleaner reveals their work by wiping the surface clean. This window references the massive glass wall being installed at the back of the Museum overlooking the forks of the Thames River.
Hiring local artists, mentoring young arts students, and encouraging community participation are all models for the kinds of programs envisaged for the new creative space. The Centre at the Forks is set to open in spring of 2018!