Duncan
Weller - Guildford Public Library mural project
(Please scroll down to see all the photos)
The Jungle Mural project at the Guildford Public Library in Surrey, B.C.
was completed in August, 2001.
Duncan won the Call to Artists competition created by the Surrey Public
Arts Program.
The commission required the painting of a mural around the proscenium
of a puppet theatre, the creation of a
reading throne for the librarians and guest authors, as well as required
the artist to work as
an artist in residence for the duration of the painting project.
This is the proposal for the project that won the competition.
The
librarians wanted a jungle theme and Duncan chose to paint a South American
rainforest using
photo references from the children's book department where the mural is
located. Duncan altered the
images from the photo references to make them original. Most of the painting
is straight from
his own imagination.
Complete mural with monkey in a post.
Duncan
painted a dressing room for a few animals on a ramp way that leads into
the puppet theatre
opening and then exits on its opposite side. The suggestion is that the
animals are turned into actors and
the actors into whatever puppets the librarians use during their shows.
The
reading throne was constructed by Scott Prieb, a North Vancouver carpenter.
The curtain and cushion were designed and made by Jean Weller, an award
winning quilt maker
who lives in Prince George, B.C., and happens to be Duncan's mother.
Duncan
heard creative suggestions for the mural from librarians, the Surrey Arts
Council, parents and
children who use the library, and many others. The work became a community
project and the process was very democratic.
The Jungle Mural may or may not be great art, but it serves a number of
functions important for children's
growth and learning. It is primarily entertainment and decoration, but
has the potential to be so much more.
This
is Duncan's attempt to incorporate the fire alarm. The fire alarm was
later covered with a plastic case
operable by adults only. Fire trucks and firemen came roaring to the library
on three seperate occassions
due to children being attracted to the firebird. Patrons and staff of
the library had evacuated the library.
Duncan apologizes to anyone who had to stand in the rain.
An owl monkey and a Tamarin Emperor Monkey.
A squirrel monkey in a post.
During
the painting, Duncan came up with the idea to paint a vine from one end
of the mural to the
other, effectively turning the painting into a maze. He then added a story
idea to the maze by having a
lazy male love bird deliver a letter to his girlfriend with the help of
an ant. The story is called The Love Ant.
Duncan photographed more than fourteen images from the mural, wrote text
for the story, and made
a dummy copy that he has submitted to publishers for consideration.
The
mural actually contains two children's book stories. The Love Ant was
a happy accident, but Duncan
originally planned a story using a snake that changes colours. Throughout
the mural a snake can be seen
here and there about eighteen times. The snake also appears on the front
and back of the reading throne.
The story is called The Chameleon Snake, but is not complete. It needs
a few more illustrations
to make the story more cohesive, and the writing of the text continues.
A very relaxed jaguar.
Veronica and Jessica posed to be in the painting.