Ep 32: Musing Murals in Mount Pleasant

At this point, all my friends call me “walkative” and can’t resist sending me anything walking-related. So when a close friend invited on a “Mural Tour”, I was of course intrigued.

We met up at Jonathan Rogers Park one afternoon, coffee in hand, joining a small group gathered for one of Vancouver’s popular Mural Festival Walking Tours.

The Vancouver Mural festival (VMF) itself began in 2016 and has transformed the city with large-scale art installations covering buildings throughout Vancouver [src], though most, I think, are concentrated in Mount Pleasant (often dubbed the city’s coolest neighourhood).

One thing I love about the festival is its commitment to publishing a map pinpointing all the mural locations for anyone to check out. This year’s version is available on a custom Google My Maps page, making it easy for you to explore at your own pace.

They’ve even developed a dedicated app. However, I keep thinking it would be even better with a scavenger hunt or geocaching feature to add some structured play to it (I might be biased, having included similar features in my Gogomi side project: Ep 10: Measuring Quest Progress).

Our tour guide led us through the neighbourhood’s streets and hidden alleyways, revealing stunning artworks we might have otherwise missed. They shared fun historical context, telling stories of the murals, their artists and their creations.

Rather than attempt to describe these masterpieces in words, I’ll just share some pictures. If you ever find yourself in Vancouver during the mid-to-late summer, you’ll enjoy the walking tours!

The tour conveniently ends at the City Centre Artist Lodge, where we enjoyed delicious, sacrilegious food alongside live music.

It was exactly the kind of day that earned me the “walkative” nickname, haha. A lovely hang with a friend, filled with art, exploration, and plenty of steps!