Warm welcome

Visitors to  George Pearson Centre are being greeted by a colorful marine landscape thanks to a new mural done by local artists Katherine Neilsen and Megan Mattocks.

Local painters Katherine Neilsen (left) and Megan Mattocks.

Spread across three walls at the entranceway, Katherine and Megan painted images of orcas swimming in the deep blue sea and of spawning pink salmon in a rushing river.

“I hope that it will help to create a sense of wonder and escape for the residents,” Katherine says of the project that took four days to complete. “Since it is the entrance way, I wanted to create an inviting space for both visitors and residents.”

Ron Stedman, supervisor of recreation therapy at George Pearson says the mural has really brightened up the area.

“It’s much better,” he says. “It’s so much cheerier. This is the residents’ home so we want to do anything that will it make it a more comfortable and pleasant environment.”

Katherine says she really believes in the therapeutic benefits of art in spaces like George Pearson Centre where people with disabilities reside.

“I think that art offers a valuable space for escape and reflection,” she says. “Creating another world through art allows the mind to be exercised gently through imagination.”

Katherine says she learned a lot working on the mural.

“This project was the largest I have done so far and was an exciting learning experience.  I very much enjoy the magnitude of painting on walls.”