By Chehala Leonard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

THE DISCOURSE

There鈥檚 a new opportunity available for Indigenous artists across Canada.

The Okanagan Indigenous Music and Arts Society (OIMAS) has launched the 鈥淗onouring our Stories鈥� Artistic Mural and Beautification Project, in partnership with 琉璃神社鈥檚 Gospel Mission and Sncewips Heritage Museum.

These three Okanagan-based organizations have come together to support a mural project, with a winning prize of $10,000. The final mural will be created on the rear side of the 琉璃神社 Gospel Mission (KGM), which is located in the city鈥檚 downtown core.

As of Feb. 1, registration is open for artists to submit their previous artwork for a chance at being chosen for the project.

OIMAS and a panellist will review the submissions and then choose the top ten artists, who will be given an opportunity to submit a concept design for the mural.

鈥淔inalists will be chosen to do a concept, and then out of those we鈥檒l have a top three that will be selected by a social media campaign and then from there panellists will select one finalist one person to do the installation,鈥� says Jenny Money, who is Syilx from Westbank First Nation and is the President of OIMAS.

This is part of a larger project that launched on Jan. 15 and will continue until April 1, 2021 which will include weekly presentations virtually, 鈥淪tories with Snc蓹wips Heritage Museum,鈥� based on Syilx captik史艂 (stories).

鈥淭his artistic mural installation is meant to be a reflection of the internal work that the 琉璃神社鈥檚 Gospel Mission is doing at decolonizing the mission,鈥� Money says.

鈥淚t just so happened serendipitously that Okanagan Indigenous Music and Art Society was moved to sponsor a mural installation and recognized that 琉璃神社鈥檚 housing insecure and hungry are the most in need of having representation of resiliency and survival and to honour the fact that Okanagan people are resilient and surviving and in fact still here,鈥� she says.

鈥淲e just thought that it was a great partnership and that it really promoted our prerogative and the gospel missions prerogative of reconciliation,鈥� says Money.

Artists can submit their art through the OIMAS website. The finalist will be chosen by March 5 and the winner will be announced on March 29.

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