CONCRETE MUSEUMS What if parking lots walls were used to host art? That’s what the P.ART.KING project is all about, it brings art where we park.
By Alizé Honen-Delmar
P.ART.KING collaborates with local artists that create colorful art pieces conveying a positive message of connection, togetherness and hope. The first production of this project, the urban jungle Underground parking lots are usually quite dull and only seen realized by Caitlin McDonagh in the lobby of Place Ville Marie for their utilitarian purpose but P.ART.KING decided to embellish parking, transformed the entire customers experience of this them with murals from local artists to enhance the customers’ property. Likewise, Place Montréal Trust parking lot benefited experience and democratize arts. from the P.ART.KING project with the addition of 3 impressive murals on the top walls of its ramp This project emerged in the fall 2020 in Montreal P.ART.KING entrance. This series created by Julian Palma, has when it won the public prize of the QI_Connexion completely changed this parking lot and people COLLABORATES contest organized by the Quartier de l’Innovation started mentioning it as the parking with the WITH LOCAL and SDC Montréal centre-ville. Since then, in impressive bird mural. ARTISTS THAT collaboration with LNDMRK, underground parking lots are transforming into P.ART.KING with stunning CREATE COLORFUL This new marketing asset for these proprieties murals added onto their walls, all produced from all made them stand out thanks to this unique ART PIECES local and emerging artists. Simply put, this project experience their customers lived as soon as they CONVEYING A uses the enormous potential of the large white walls entered their parking lot. Montreal underground of parking lots as its canvas! POSITIVE MESSAGE parking lots are becoming more and more colourful with the stunning pieces of arts that have been OF CONNECTION, Landmark buildings of Montreal such as Place Ville realized in the last few months. All of these TOGETHERNESS Marie, 1000 de la Gauchetière and Place Montréal properties that enhanced their parking lots with arts AND HOPE. Trust got their underground parking lots embellished are connected through the P.ART.KING Parcours that with unique colorful murals and the feedback has keeps growing month after month. been astonishing! Members of these properties and the users of their parking lots were impressed by this added value The ambition of P.ART.KING is to change the way we see that was brought by this project. It felt like a “ray of sunshine in parking thanks to arts, soon we might all think of parking as their day”, a customer said. concrete museums!
14 PARKER | 2ND QUARTER 2021