Artist hopes for miracle to save Jesus mural

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This article was published 25/07/2019 (2291 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Barring divine intervention, a towering mural depicting the face of Jesus Christ will soon see its last day overlooking worshippers who enter Tabor Baptist Church in Transcona.

The mural’s creator, artist Charlie Johnston, is holding onto faint hope his work will last a little longer than a few more days.

“I hope they change their minds,” Johnston said. “It’s sad when pieces, their lives, get cut short prematurely.”

Beginning next week, the Madeline Street mural will be painted over as the church transitions to new leadership, incoming pastor Brad Williams said.

“Being a new church, (we wanted) to have the building look like something new was happening,” Williams said. “That means a new name, a new look, and of course, that naturally led to a conversation about the murals.”

On Sept. 8, Williams will take over as one of the new pastors, and the space will be renamed CityLight Church.

The building also has another of Johnston’s murals — a depiction of a young woman’s devoted face, called The Worshipper — on the back, which will remain untouched during the renovation, Williams said.

He said the decision to paint over the mural wasn’t taken lightly.

“We know that there’s certainly people that feel really connected with that mural, so we took time to think about that,” he said. “But we had the support of the church and of the current pastor.”

Johnston is also the artist behind dozens of other iconic murals in Winnipeg, such as the Adam Beach and Valour Road murals on Ellice Avenue, the Welcome to Downtown mural on Main Street and the Manitoba Hydro mural on Portage Avenue.

“These are becoming my legacy pieces around the city, so I don’t like hearing they’re going to meet the symbolic wrecking ball,” he said. “They’re markers of a time, and they can become iconic. They become locations or destinations.”

When word got out about the Transcona mural’s fate, Johnston said he received an outpouring of support online.

“A lot of them are saddened and disturbed to hear that the piece is being painted out,” he said.

Johnston said he doesn’t want to take away from the mural’s legacy.

“Usually, when a piece reaches a certain level or status, the idea is to find ways to preserve it, or keep it going, keep it alive,” he said.

“The mural was done in the best of spirits and intentions, and I wouldn’t want controversy to detract from that… But I would like to see the piece last longer.”

caitlyn.gowriluk@freepress.mb.ca

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