Star Blanket
AGO Art Educator and contemporary artist Rebecca Baird’s new mural on Toronto’s King-Liberty footbridge was recently unveiled.
Rebecca Baird, Star Blanket (2022).
The City of Toronto has recently erected a much-needed bridge connecting the interior of the West Toronto neighbourhood Liberty Village directly to King Street. Running between Western Battery Road and King St. West, the three-storey pedestrian and cycle bridge is adorned with vibrant mural works by three Toronto-based artists – one of whom is Rebecca Baird, an Art Educator, Indigenous Programming, here at the AGO.
Cree artist Rebecca Baird is an established Toronto-based contemporary artist who has been practicing for several decades. Her large-scale, multicoloured mural, titled Star Blanket, has been added to the glass exterior of the footbridge. The other two murals decorating the bridge are design concepts by Toronto artists Kreecha and SJ Okemow. Both submitted their work in response to a contest organized by Street Art Toronto in May 2022, in search of mural concepts designed from an Indigenous perspective.
The artwork was officially unveiled on Saturday, September 24, with an event at the Western Battery Road entrance of the bridge, including artist remarks, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, live music and food provided by the Indigenous food sovereignty support group, Dashmaawaan Bemaadzinjin (They Feed the People).
Baird emerged in the Toronto art scene during the 1980s and ‘90s. Her works have been featured in public and private settings throughout Canada, including the Royal Ontario Museum, Canadian Museum of Civilization (now the Canadian Museum of History) and Lester B. Pearson International Airport. The King-Liberty bridge marks her most recent commission.
Baird currently works as an Art Educator, Indigenous Programming, in the AGO’s Virtual Schools Program. If you find yourself on King St. West, be sure to visit the bridge and check out her vibrant mural, Star Blanket.