Okotoks' art wall project scrapped due to abundance of racist, homophobic, and sexual material

Okotoks' public art wall, located under the Northridge Drive bridge, is being discontinued.

It was a pilot project launched in July of 2022 as a way to give local artists an open and collaborative area to express themselves, especially with the rise in graffiti seen in town over the last year or two.

One year later, the project showed up on town council's agenda with a recommendation to scrap it.

As Parks & Recreation Director Christa Michailuck told council, it didn't have the intended effect.

"We have had it be an ongoing source of racist, homophobic, sexual, and hateful text and graphics that largely park staff have been trying to clean off so that we don't have that image in our community. It has been a bit of an ongoing maintenance and upkeep to keep that clean."

Culture & Heritage Team Leader Allan Boss was also on hand to discuss the project.

According to Boss, while there were good intentions behind the project, the concept clashes somewhat with graffiti culture.

"Grafitti is often seen as counter-culture. Folks that put graffiti on facilities, onto buildings, are often doing it because they're trying to make a statement against the culture... What we've found, and other communities have found this as well, that open graffiti walls tend not to work. There's creep, and it doesn't really suit the community in a great way."

Boss recommended council create an opportunity for a collaborative mural, as curated murals often see better results in terms of dissuading vandals and facilitating a place for local artists to express themselves.

Michailuck and Boss made mention of removing the paint through an eco-friendly process, painting the wall in either a solid colour or a pattern, and treating it with anti-graffiti coating.

Council voted in favor of discontinuing the wall and considering an outdoor community project involving youth artists during the town's next budget talks.