With the current pallet of colours used and the clues contained within, Powell River artist Luke Ramsey’s murals are becoming increasingly recognizable as part of the urban landscape in Vancouver, Victoria, Toronto and even Drangedal, Norway.
Ramsey has what he calls a toolbox of different shapes to place in murals, such as the orca and the line of a mountain range. He always references ball caps, he said, and as a chess player, pawns are also incorporated into his work.
“People who know and follow my work see the connections,” said Ramsey, who moved to Powell River in 2014.
Ramsey describes himself as a visual art maker. His illustrations have been commissioned by The New York Times, Mountain Equipment Co-op and Patagonia outdoor clothing and gear.
“I do illustration, but illustration is taking someone else’s idea, conceptualizing it and drawing it out,” he said.
Ramsey’s murals are getting more exposure because of the nature of them being public art. He recently returned from Victoria, where he spent what he describes as five long days completing his latest mural, Fuel and Empathy.
The piece was one of six murals for Victoria’s Create Community Colour Mural Program, which is a partnership between City of Victoria and United Way of Greater Victoria.
“This mural was super fun because I went in with a vague idea of what I wanted to do, but ultimately it was just freestyle,” he said. “It was so much fun to go into a piece of art and be surprised by what comes up.”
Depending on the project, Ramsey’s clients might want to see sketches of exactly what will be painted on the wall, while others will trust him and go with what he wants, he said.
Ramsey describes those projects, including the Victoria mural on a rundown area of Cormorant Street, as the most fun.
“The wall totally spoke to me, because it was a graffiti hotspot, so it had all of the tags and graffiti all over it,” he said. “The premise of the project was to cover it up, but because that neighbourhood had a lot of homelessness and drug addiction, I picked up on that energy. Looking at the graffiti I said to myself, ‘You know, I don’t want to just cover up the history.’”
Ramsey used those previous pieces and textures of the wall to introduce into the mural, something he did not think about until visiting the neighbourhood and looking at the wall.
“It’s really nice to create art in the moment like that,” he said, “just pick up on the moment and energy.”
Ramsey will return to Vancouver this summer to work on office murals, which he also wants to do locally. He also sees many walls in Powell River that he would like to paint.
“The wall I really like is the one behind the Scotiabank,” said Ramsey. “I haven’t approached anyone yet, but that would be an amazing wall.”
