The balcony of the Fine Arts building at Grenfell Campus is now adorned with a significant piece of art.
The work was created by visual artist Melissa Tremblett.
Tremblett is of Innu and English heritage from the community of Sheshatshiu, Labrador, and is currently based in Elmastukwek, Ktaqmkuk territory (Bay of Islands, Western Newfoundland).
Her work is multidisciplinary: installation, performance and photography, as well as traditional techniques such as doll-making and beading.
Tremblett graduated from Memorial University with a bachelor of fine arts (visual arts) in 2015 and a bachelor of science (behavioural neuroscience) in 2011).
Her work has been exhibited nationally and abroad.
The balcony mural, titled Caribou Coat Continuum, launched on Nov. 1.
It was created through a residency with the Grenfell Art Gallery in the summer of 2023, resulting in a re-envisioning of the balcony as a public art space.
Tremblett’s piece is inspired by the traditional Innu caribou coat.
Caribou coats, worn during hunting season, are decorated with intricate patterns that often continue along the tail of the coat.
“Each woman, as she designs a coat pattern, has her own style, using fringe or border on all the jackets.”
The mural wraps the balcony the way the motifs wrap around a sleeve or the bottom of a coat, she says.
“Each woman, as she designs a coat pattern, has her own style, using fringe or border on all the jackets, and I considered that as I created the mural.”
The installation brings a warmth to the face of the Fine Arts building, and fosters a connection to students and their futures as artists in the community, says Jane Walker, director of the Grenfell Art Gallery.
“From a personal perspective I am especially proud to see Melissa’s work as the first outer balcony mural,” said Ms. Walker, who graduated from the visual arts program with Tremblett in 2015. “It is a joy to see my peer’s work evolve over 13 years, from first-year student to billboard muralist!”
Creating a public art space on the Fine Arts balcony is an exciting opportunity for the coming years, as the gallery plans to update the balcony artworks annually or biannually.
Diana Chisholm, who managed the project for the School of Fine Arts, says as a Grenfell Campus fine arts alumna herself, it was a “very special” experience to work with Tremblett to support the public presentation of her work.
“Public art such as this creates an alternative exhibition space for the gallery and makes the experience of such thoughtful and considered work more accessible to the public,” she said.
The creation of the mural for the exterior of the building was made possible with support from ArtsNL and Year of the Arts funding.
