Hi everyone. My name is Amir Akbari and I'm the lead artist for the Susan Street Mural in partnership with Street Art Toronto‎ and Boys and Girls Club of East Scarborough. This mural was also painted by artists Leyland Adams and Senthuran Kanna.

So, when we were creating this mural we wanted to create a design that would really pop and grab the attention of local residents. As you can see, this 14 story mural features two larger than life figures. One is a lady who represents mothers and caregivers. She is standing on a map of the world representing that she came here from somewhere else. And the next is a young boy who represents the next generation. There's an interplay between these two characters. The young boy is holding up a chunk of the earth with the tree of life on it which was passed down to him from his mother. So, he's holding it and as he's holding it the mother is actually washing her hands in the river that flows off of it.

Now if you look down below you'll notice that the young boy is standing on a stack of books‎. This symbolizes the power of education and knowledge to lift you and elevate you. Underneath the books and by his feet you'll notice there's some tools of creativity. There's a microphone, film reels, ink, paper and a pallet of paint. These represent the tools the artist needs in order to create a better world for everyone.

A lot of these projects and murals that we've done in this community really are about the idea of giving a voice and representation to the residents of Scarborough. This community, like many other communities in Toronto, is very diverse. It consists of a wide range of newcomers and older Canadians that have been here for a while. And many of the residents do not feel that they're represented, especially within the arts. So we wanted to create an opportunity for the residents of Scarborough to have a voice and be part of public art, to be part of artistic and creative discussions and to feel engaged in the arts.

So, if you notice on the scroll there's a quote by an ancient Persian poet, called Rumi, and it says that, "Love is the bridge between you and everything". This quote was actually selected by the community members because they felt it really expressed what it took to create a better tomorrow and how to work together. So, we wanted to create a landmark, create a bold message and a bold statement that art is here and there are creative individuals here and there's a passion and an interest for the arts. So we wanted to represent that.

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