Overview
Park 535 is a new park that is being developed by the City at the southeast corner of Elm Drive West and Kariya Drive. It will be an exciting public space in close proximity to Mississauga’s downtown and Kariya Park.
The park has been designed as an urban civic space, with play structure(s), a recreational trail, seating, and a shade structure. Just south of the park, there will also be a fenced, off-leash dog parkette.
As part of the Section 37 agreement for the development of Edge Tower Condos, permanent public art will be incorporated into the park design. Solmar—the Developer of Edge Tower Condos—in collaboration with the City of Mississauga, has commissioned an artist team to develop permanent integrated public artwork for the park.
In 2021, the City’s Public Art Program issued an open call for Expressions of Interest and four artist teams were shortlisted by an art selection committee. The four shortlisted artists developed proposals and design concepts, which were then shared with the public for feedback and voting. The survey closed on February 27, 2022.
Public art finalist
The Public Art Selection Committee, along with a public vote, selected the work “RAYYAN: A COSMIC BLOOM” by Javid JAH and Quentin VerCetty as the winning proposal. 800 respondents participated in the public voting process, which made up two votes out of seven in the art selection process, with 81% of respondents selecting RAYYAN: A COSMIC BLOOM as their favourite submission. Installation is anticipated for the fall of 2023.
RAYYAN: A COSMIC BLOOM is a dynamic gateway sculpture that explores the symbolic connections the community can share and exchange with the cosmos through the language of sacred geometry. The art piece offers a cultural exchange through the incorporation of Islamic architectural design elements and Afrofuturistic concepts represented through West African Akan adinkra symbols. Rayyan is a layered public art experience designed for people from all walks of life as it revisits traditional principles of the cosmos through contemporary innovations in technology.
About the artists
As long standing community-oriented interdisciplinary artists and designers, Javid JAH and Quentin VerCetty are joining forces to design and fabricate visually and culturally rich, inclusive public interventions. Their partnership started from mural productions in 2010 evolving to their first public art installation collaboration being Rayyan: A Cosmic Bloom. The artistic structure blends Javid JAH’s inspiration from Islamic architecture and Quentin VerCetty’s Afrofuturistic symbolism. Together they explore ways to honour the metaphysical relationship between humans, the elements and the cosmos.
View the other shortlisted submissions here
Green Light, Yellow Light, Red Light, Blue by LeuWebb Projects
The HA HA People by Jennifer Marman and Daniel Borins
UP by Studio F Minus
