Peterborough artist Kathryn Durst has been chosen to create a public art mural in downtown Peterborough commissioned by the First Friday Ptbo Art Crawl.
The mural will cover the two interior walls of the alleyway of the Commerce Building, at the northwest corner of Water and Hunter streets, which is home to the studios of many of the artists who have participated in the monthly art craw (currently on hiatus due to the pandemic).
The mural project is supported by the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA) and Ashburnham Realty, which owns the Commerce Building.
The First Friday Ptbo mural selection committee reviewed proposals from 20 local artists before selecting Durst’s proposal for the mural.
Born in Peterborough, Durst graduated from St. Peter Secondary School and then studied animation at Sheridan College. She was an intern at Pixar Animation Studios and worked at several animation studios before launching a career as an illustrator for children’s books.
She achieved international media coverage for illustrating the New York Times best-selling children’s book Hey Grandude!, written by Sir Paul McCartney and published by Penguin Random House in 2019.
The 30-year-old Durst lives in Peterborough with her dog Chili.
To see samples of her art, visit her website at www.kathryndurst.com or her Instagram account @kathryndurst.
Durst receives a $3,000 award to create the mural, which must be completed using exterior latex paint only by the end of August.
When the mural is completed, First Friday Ptbo will be host a mural launch in September (date to be confirmed).
