Jessica Barbour is known throughout Langley as a singer/songwriter, but her latest artistic avenue has taken a turn from music.
Murals Medical Clinic in Murrayville received a makeover after Barbour painted a large mural of Langley and the Golden Ears mountains on the office’s walls.
Barbour explained she wanted to capture the essence of Langley, and said some common themes appeared.
“The mural is definitely small town-ish,” explained Barbour.
“It’s the marriage between the country and the city basically. The mural is not necessarily a modern day depiction of the way things are. It’s kind of a re-imagining. It’s more whimsical and my art style is more ‘children’s picture book style.’ It’s simplistic. I’m inspired by folk-art with a cartoon twist.”
Barbour said she worked on the mural for just over a month, racking up at least thirty hours of painting and designing.
Professional mural painting is something Barbour hopes to get more into in the future, although she’s been painting as a hobbyist for most of her life.
“I’ve only recently started doing art professionally and I didn’t study it, it’s just something I’ve always done for fun. I never dreamed of doing it professionally, but I’ve been very fortunate in the last two years doing window art, commissioned artwork, and murals,” explained Barbour.
Some familiar landmarks and businesses such as Porter’s Bistro can be spotted on the mural, which is Barbour’s favourite part of the piece.
“That section around Porter’s looks so nice. I did some hanging baskets and little plants and I feel like the art looks really clean there. The sky took me the longest. It was definitely a challenge because I’ve never done mountains that big,” Barbour added.
And mural painting is something Barbour would like to continue with, as she aspires to travel in the future.
“It’s something I’d love to get better at for sure. I’d like to do some travelling in my life and do murals along the way.”
Barbour explained that her work ethic while painting is very different than her work ethic while creating music.
“When I make visual art, I have to work alone. I’m very meticulous in the way I do things, and if I don’t like something I will paint over it. I trust people more with music. I’m a singer and a songwriter, but I’m not a producer and my main instrument is my voice so I need other musicians to come in and help me write parts, musically. But with art, I like to have total control.”
But singing is still a large part of her life, and Barbour is releasing a six-song extended play album in late January.
“It all comes out of my brain, which is cool. I feel just as proud finishing a mural as I do an album,” added Barbour.
To view more of Barbour’s artwork visit her Instagram account @artbyjessicabarbour and for more information on projects, contact her by email at: art_byjess@hotmail.com.