Calder Community Mosaic: Neighbourhood Pattern Workshops

In June 2016 we had the pleasure of spending time in the Calder neighbourhood of Edmonton, part of Treaty Six territories in Alberta. We met with community members through pattern-making workshops, generating ideas for a large mosaic which will be installed at the new Calder Branch of the Edmonton Public Library.  Ultimately, a wide variety of different repeating patterns will be artfully meshed together into one whole.

The free pattern-making workshops focused on using a triangular base.  Triangles have been used in patterns across cultures for millennia.  Geometrically, equilateral triangles have many shape and pattern possibilities; they create both linear and radial patterns, and can be arranged into hexagons, stars, diamonds, zig-zags, curves, and other shapes.

We had the honour of conducting these playful, open-ended workshops at the North West Seniors Society, the Edmonton Aboriginal Seniors Society, the Africa Centre, the Al Rashid Mosque, Calder School, and the existing Calder Branch. We sincerely thank all of the incredible participants – we are so grateful for the beautiful, diverse, and intriguing contributions.

Special thanks to Robert Harpin from the Edmonton Arts Council, Julie Woods and Raquel (Rocky) Mann from Calder Branch, and Cathie Bush from Calder School.

We certainly felt welcome during our stay in Edmonton, and it was great to learn about Calder through visiting vibrant neighbourhood nodes.

Stay tuned for more over the coming months!

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Photos taken with permission by: Raquel Mann, Calder Branch staff, David Gregory, Rebecca Bayer

This project is made possible through the Edmonton Arts Council.

Rebecca Bayer (artist) & David Gregory (photographer)