Everything's coming up roses in Markham garage to uplift community after COVID-19

Revitalized Morgan Park Pool showcases mosaic tributes to Markham's historical rose garden

Yorkregion.com
Sept. 13, 2022
Irene Wong

When you come to the revitalized Morgan Park Pool, you can hardly take your eyes away from the 60 square-foot giant mosaic of a historical rose garden hanging in the foyer.

This commemorative artwork “Coming Up Roses” was created by 20 members of the Markham Group of Artists (MGA) during a self-isolation period in the summer of 2020, a challenging feat due to its collaborative nature.

“The fact that the art was being completed during the pandemic makes it that much more special. The project offered hope for the future as we used our collective talents to create something beautiful for the community which would uplift their spirits once the city opened up again.” Linda Ruscio McIntosh said. She is project manager and designer at the helm of the group of artists doing a collaborative project while apart.

The installation is composed of 60 individually painted 12” x 12” canvases created by individual artist, with six feet apart during the pandemic.

Judith Livingston has been a member of the MGA since 1983. It is the third mural in which she has been involved. But this time, it was a unique challenge when the actual painting was scheduled to start just as COVID-19 hit.

“Since we were all in lockdown by April 2020, receiving my two 12" x 12" canvas tiles and reference images initially was a challenge," she said.

“Linda delivered them, along with two tiles for artist, and friend, Nancy Leonard, who lives in Mount Albert. The next day Nancy and I met in my driveway to pick up her tiles. My driveway became our meeting place with Nancy dropping off her completed tiles. This gave us the opportunity for a visit and 'fitting' of our work for colour, value and images. It gave me a chance to adjust my rose colours to match Nancy's before Linda retrieved our completed works. By taking images and emailing as we worked, we were able to offer support and suggestions.”

The challenge is to bring together a variety of artistic styles, so they work seamlessly into the overall image.

Linda converted her garage to a workspace for the large project and became the meeting point for artists to pick up and drop off materials and check in on how their tiles fit with the surrounding pieces.