It is amazing what you can learn about public art by simply accepting an invitation to tour a fabrication plant in Calgary’s Foothills Industrial Park.

Recently, Heavy Industries’ President Ryan Bessant invited me to tour their facility where they are creating humongous public artworks for internationally renowned artists with commissions in Los Angles, Boston, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Saskatoon.

And yes, Calgary too.

I learned that Calgary developers love to include public art as part of the branding and creating a unique identity for their new communities or new condo developments. And, It was a real eye opener to learn Calgary is becoming a hub for public art fabrication.

Boney in SETON is just one of dozens of public artworks commissioned by Calgary housing developers as part of branding their new community or new condo development as fun and unique.

East Village has numerous whimsical public artworks throughout the village to help create a more pedestrian friendly community.

I loved this “LIV” sculpture at the entrance to Brookfield’s new community called Livingston at the northern edge of the city. It is a fun piece that is a play on the community’s name, as well as a call to action ie. “live at Livingston.” It also al… — I loved this “LIV” sculpture at the entrance to Brookfield’s new community called Livingston at the northern edge of the city. It is a fun piece that is a play on the community’s name, as well as a call to action ie. “live at Livingston.” It also allows the public to interact with the piece by adding their lock to the piece as a symbol of their love and connection to the community.

You could easily miss this sculpture that is at the entrance to the Xenex condo. If you go up close the piece is full of miniature figures and elements that create an fun fairytale like narrative.

Also in the Beltline are these two horses at the entrance to Lamb Development’s 6th and Tenth condo.

Harmony vs Carrington vs SETON

For example, Bordeaux Development commissioned Heavy Industries to manufacture and install “Cultivate” by Seattle-based artist Dan Corson for Harmony, their new community west of Calgary. “Cultivate,” is three large steel sculptures with a rusted patina which makes them look like abandoned pieces of farming equipment at first glance. While inspired by the shape of an old plow, they are ambiguous enough to also be seen as a crown, a harlequin hat or depending on the viewing angle, the wings of a bird of prey. Walk up close to discover the steel has hundreds of intricate thistle-shaped cut outs, that remind me of Matisse’s playful cut outs. It is a simple, yet sophisticated piece that creates a unique and welcoming entrance to the community.

Link: Cultivate: Making An Entrance

Cultivate glows at night like a campfire.

During the day Cultivate creates an inviting entrance to the Harmony a new estate community just west of Calgary.

A second example is in Carrington, Mattamy Homes’ new community in Calgary’s northeast. Mattamy partnered with NAK design who created and Heavy Industries who fabricated and installed an aspen tree-inspired sculpture that provides a fun canopy over the community’s skate park and playground, a popular community gathering place. At night, its special lighting creates a warm welcoming entrance to the community.

Entrance artwork for Carrington a new community in NE Calgary. photo credit: Heavy Industries

At the base of one of the Carrington's public art pieces is a skatepark. credit: codaworx

Thirdly, Brookfield Residential has made a huge commitment to enhanced urban design as part of branding, their new master-planned community at the southeast edge of Calgary - SETON. The striking white pavilion-like structure at the entrance to the community from Seton Boulevard at Seton Way shout out to everyone that this community is different. It is futuristic! There are several other public art works completed or in the works for SETON. “Boney,” a whimsical purple nine-foot dog that looks like a balloon animal kids get at festivals welcomes everyone walking through the small plaza at the entrance to the EFW Radiology building. And, if you look up to the roof-top, you’ll see Boney’s bone.

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Calgary: A Public Art Fabrication Hub

Travelling Light aka Giant Blue Ring is a street lamp installed in the middle of a bridge on a busy highway away from any pedestrian traffic.

Heavy Industries are the guys responsible for fabricating the controversial “Travelling Light” (aka Giant Blue Ring) by Berlin, Germany-based art collective Inges Idee, as well as “Wonderland” (aka Giant White Head) by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. As a result of working with these famous international artists on Calgary projects, Heavy Industries have become their “go to” guys for building their artworks for other cities.

Over the past 15 years, Bessant and his team have become more than just public art fabricators, they have become turn-key public art managers, working with clients from early concept development, to choosing the artist through to final installation. From a two-person business in 2003, they’re now at 70 full-time employees, and growing.

Currently, Heavy Industries is working with the artists and city administrators in Calgary, Edmonton and East Chicago to create new artworks as part of their public art programs. In addition, they are working with developers like Westbank Corp. (two pieces, one in Vancouver and one in Calgary), Mattamy Homes (new piece for the new Yorkville community in Calgary’s deep southwest) and Bordeaux Development (another piece for Harmony) and two pieces for Halifax developer Amour Group.

Heavy Industries, along with Calgary’s two other public art fabricators - F&D Scene Changes and Studio Y – they are making Calgary a North American public art production centre. This means public art is generating tax dollars, not just spending them.

One of the many huge work spaces at Heavy Industries.

Working on Wonderland at Heavy Industries

Another work in progress Heavy Industries

Vancouver Condo Art

It is not just Calgary condo developers who love to use public art to enhance the curb appeal of their buildings. While flaneuring in Vancouver, I discovered many condos with interesting public art at their entrances including one of the most ambitious pieces of public art I have ever encountered.

On the side to the 43 floor The Charleston condo is a 416 foot tall and 30 foot wide painting by Vancouver artist Elizabeth McIntosh by developer Onni Group. The colourful artwork looks like a huge abstract lightening bolt. Titled “Finger Paint” the piece does have the innocence and playfulness of a child’s painting which is kinda ironic as their is a childcare facility in the building.

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Last Word

With almost every city around the world actively trying to become the next great design city with spectacular architecture, urban design and public art, the potential for Calgary to become a growing centre for public art design and manufacturing is huge. Creating public art has become a high tech industry. Long gone are the days of starving artists hand-crafting sculptures in their loft studios.

While some might think Calgary’s public art program adopted back in 2004 has been a huge failure due to a couple of controversial pieces, overall it has been a huge success. Today, public art is attached to almost every major new project in Calgary – public and private, inner-city or new community in the burbs.

Be it Harmony, Carrington, SETON or East Village, Calgary developers are integrating public art into their master-planned communities as a means of creating a more welcoming, unique and attractive sense of place. That wasn’t the case 20 years ago.

Note: An edited version of this blog was published in the Calgary Herald’s New Condo section on Saturday April 27th 2019.