The Weyburn Arts Council and volunteers from the community are nearly finished painting the second of the two mural projects chosen for this summer on the dugouts at Jubilee Park. This will make five murals so far out of the six chosen and planned.
"It's a multi-year initiative in partnership with the City of Weyburn and the Weyburn Arts Council. We held a public interest for people that wanted to design murals, and we did that two years ago. The top three murals are being painted first, and then we'll select from the pool of pictures that are remaining to paint the rest of the murals," shared WAC Acting Chair Tasha Hill.
"Between our board and volunteers, we had approximately 40 people volunteer over the month of June, and we had to postpone painting for two weeks. So when you factor in the fact that we actually only painted for two weekends and the executive of the Arts Council did all of the outlining prior to that, we made some pretty good progress in the amount of time that we had."
The perk of painting ball diamond dugouts, she noted, makes the project more accessible.
"We don't need scaffolding. We don't need a scissor lift. We can just paint."
She said while they won't require any more help from volunteers, they have enjoyed involving members of the public this year. Last year's mural was too intricate to involve volunteers, as is the one they've slated for the summer of 2026. However, volunteer opportunities with WAC are always posted on their Facebook page.
Hill noted public art installations like these murals add value to the community, ranging from $6,000 to $12,000, give the typical industry rate for artists, for painting, as well as the intricacy of the design.
"The more intricate designs are worth more, and the more 'simple' designs have a lower value."
Not only that, the public can enjoy the murals for many years to come.
"The people that are walking through Jubilee Park appreciate the public art so much because Jubilee Park isn't just about ball, it's about the community. It's about the walking trails. It's about everything that is part of our community that can be done in that beautiful green space, and we wanted to make people more at ease with using that public space if they're not there for sports. So creating this beautiful walk through the park with public art installations is huge."
Hill added that it has also been proven that public art reduces vandalism.