This art project explores and celebrates Bowen Park, inviting curiosity about the life and relationships in the park– plant, animal, and human. To ignite the imaginations of park visitors, artist Sean Anderson has created a series of colouring pages and a line-drawn mural.
Working with emerging Nanaimo-based artist Sean Anderson, the Bowen Park Creatures Project illustrates flora and fauna found along trails the trails of Bowen Park or in the waters of the Millstone River, which runs through the park. Bringing the vibrant life of this beloved park into individual homes is both an opportunity to reach a community safely during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to offer fun game-like “seek and find” activity to spark a curiosity about local ecology.
Bowen Park is part of an interconnected network of urban parks in Nanaimo, reflecting the coexistence of our community with centuries of plant and animal life on Vancouver Island. With attention to our surroundings, we look forward to years of connections among the guests in the Park who cherish and care for the land. See what creatures you can spot on your next walk through the Bowen Park trails!
Seek and Find
Three “seek and find” colouring pages are available to be shared widely to be downloaded and printed at home. These black and white pages are made for any standard 8 1/2 x 11 inch printer paper.
Bowen Park Complex Mural
The wall mural is installed in the Pine Street entryway to the Bowen Park Complex, where the Culture & Events offices are located. This area of our building is not open to the general public, and currently, because of safety protocols to prevent the spread of COVID, we are not welcoming guests or hosting in-person meetings. We look forward to sharing the installation in a more public way once office doors can be safely opened again.
About the Artist: Sean Anderson
Anderson grew up on Vancouver Island, Canada and lives between Nanaimo and Tasmania, Australia. He studied at the University of Tasmania and Vancouver Island University earning a Bachelor of Arts with a major in graphic design. Anderson is also a trained tattoo artist under the mentorship of Russ Morland. His artwork is inspired predominantly by the natural world.
Anderson shows his work both in Canada and in Australia. HIs most recent exhibition was held at the University of Tasmania, where he showcased the possible genetic mutations of Tasmanian marine life. in 2019 he had an immersive exhibition at The White Room in Nanaimo where guests were able to experience food, drinks and sounds along with visuals depicting a culture from another time and place.