Celebrating Burlington’s Twin Cities

More than 1000 communities throughout the world foster twinning relationships with one another as a way to advocate for world peace and global understanding. The City of Burlington is fortunate to have twinning agreements with the City of Itabashi, Japan and the City of Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. To celebrate this unique relationship, the public art program commissioned two Ontario artists to create mural wraps installed on electrical boxes located in Spencer Smith Park.

Ann-Marie Cheung

Harmony Across Horizons serves as a visual celebration of the unique bond between Burlington and Itabashi, promoting the values of peace, unity, and global understanding. The design encapsulates the essence of Itabashi’s meaning, “plank bridge,” while celebrating the beauty of cherry trees, swirling water energy, and employing a woodcut-like style. The mural’s focal point is a gracefully arched plank bridge, symbolizing the connection between Burlington and Itabashi.

This is mirrored on the back of the design, with a representation of the Burlington Canal Lift Bridge. The bridges serve as a visual metaphor for the cultural ties that unite the two cities.

Julia Prajza

My concept showcases the beautiful and harmonious relationship our two cities have formed through the representation of nature. The artwork includes illustrations of the Tulip ‘Apeldoorn,’ the Ontario trillium flower and other flora that is native to Ontario.  Although you would never see these unique flowers blooming together, as they grow in different seasons in different conditions, here they are paired together organically as a symbolic representation of the friendship between Burlington and Apeldoorn.

This design is a continuation of my stained-glass series, where I deconstruct an element and put it together with various organic shapes, outlining it for contrast. This stylization brings visual interest, intrigue, and a modern-meets-traditional feel to my work