Another Maltby

Here's another mural by local artist Jeff Maltby. This one is on one wall of Ellice Recycle Ltd., a recycling company near Point Ellice. At 152 feet (about 46 meters) wide this is probably Maltby's largest work. Even with my wide angle lens at its widest I wasn't able to get the whole mural in though the photo above has about 90%. (Of course I never thought to use the panorama function of my camera, which would have been perfect for this!) As usual, the artist offers us a historical perspective, looking at recycling in the Victoria's past. I like everything this artist does and I hope that more of our city's firms will commission him to decorate their buildings with our history seen through his eyes.

New Maltby Trompe l'Oeil

I must first thank regular visitor and commenter here, Dean Lewis, for alerting me to a new work by local muralist, Jeff Maltby. I have featured some of his remarkable trompe l'oeil in the past where it is located in Chinatown. Above is one panel of a new Maltby triptych that graces the wall of the Siam Restaurant near the corner of Fort and Langley Streets in downtown Victoria. Below is a wider shot showing all three panels. Victoria is lucky to have an artist so talented and to have patrons intelligent and generous enough to sponsor such works and share them with the public. They are a delight to the eye and I can only hope that ever more of Victoria's walls will be so beautifully and interestingly decorated in future.

Maltby Trompe l'Oeil Mural

Victoria's Chinatown continues to offer some splendid street scenes. This one, a mural by Victoria artist, Jeff Maltby, is on Fisgard Street very near the Chinese Public School and the Lee's Benevolent Society Building, both of which are pictured in earlier posts on this blog. I love the way this mural is so beautifully integrated into its environment. It's actually on two walls, at right angles to each other and I have included a wider angle shot below that shows the mural in context.This mural is not only remarkable for its visual slight-of-hand but for its historical contribution to our appreciation of Chinatown and for its many charming details, one of which is below.

Chinese Public School

Another visit to Victoria's Chinatown, starting with two paintings by Victoria artist Jeff Maltby. The painting above depicts a Chinese Immigrant family in 1905. The painting below of the children arriving at the Chinese Public School is like a fast-forward through the decades for this family. The little boy on the left looks like he's dressed 1920's style. The little girl in her saddle shoes and pony tail is from the 1950's and the boy on the right, with his skateboard and crash helmet is definitely 1980's.The Chinese Public School, below, has been a part of these changes since it was built in 1909. The two paintings grace the outside walls of the Victoria Police Station, directly across Fisgard Street from the Chinese School.

Public Works Through the Years

I think Victoria muralist Jeff Maltby's works are wonderful and here's another one I haven't shown you before. This one, entitled "Public Works Through the Years", graces an outside wall of the City of Victoria Public Works yard on Bridge Street. It shows city works crews engaged in various jobs throughout the history of the city from the past (on the right) to the present. If you click on the photo above you will see a much larger version of this mural, should you wish to see more detail.