Installed in summer 2019 as the fourth mural series along the Jack & Jean Leslie RiverWalk, Bridge by Calgary artist Katie Green was a powerful mixed-media installation that explores identity, transformation and connection through community collaboration.
Created as part of CMLC’s Art in the Public Realm program, Bridge engaged 13 East Village residents—ranging in age from 13 to 65—in a series of hands-on workshops. Each participant selected a portrait painting and worked alongside the artist to reimagine it as a custom mask, expressing something deeply personal and symbolic. These masks were then worn by the participants and photographed in meaningful spaces around East Village.
The final installation weaves together these portraits and photographs into a striking public artwork that reflects the neighbourhood’s diversity and evolving identity. In Bridge, Green creates a visual dialogue between self and place, inviting passersby to consider the stories and spirit of those who live, work and grow in East Village.