The Wayfinder Project ( LEGACY ART HIGHWAY) is the innovation of award winning Master Artist Michelle Loughery. World renown Canadian Master Artist and art educator, community creative designer, who has created hundreds of iconic murals and projects.
The concept for a bold initiative that touched communities across the West and beyond was launched in 1995 and rebranded to Wayfinder in 2008. Loughery applied her unique talent for involving youth and marginalized people to create an inclusive training employment event that gave all who worked with her a sense of purpose and belonging.
The connected projects under this overarching narrative with funding from municipal, provincial and federal governments in a unique design build infrastructure model that leveraged public art, art trades training and social change with the power of people to create community legacy projects.
Loughery studio work is sought after by global art collectors. In addition to her obvious talents at producing awe inspiring work, Loughery has developed a unique process of a P6 creative asset procurement model that engages and includes community residents young and old alike.
Loughery has created numerous connected community public mural art projects that inspired communities, engaged youth with life and employment skills, connected people and left monumental public art around the globe.
Michelle Loughery’s Wayfinder Programs have been connecting communities for over 30 years through the creation of community murals. These award-winning programs emphasize inclusion, art education, and harnessing the power of community art for social and economic legacy projects worldwide. As an internationally acclaimed artist, Loughery has been a trailblazer in art placemaking, with her Legacy Projects establishing safe spaces, nurturing art communities, and driving social change, leaving enduring legacies for all involved.
Loughery’s philosophy, the Wayfinder AR:T Model (TM), emphasizes using skills taught through public community art to bridge the gap between youth and seniors. This approach not only fosters inclusive community building programs but also produces Wayfinder public art and event placemaking signage that defines and advances communities.
The infrastructure asset model advocated by Loughery is vital for communities to construct infrastructure by effectively connecting various resources. This collaborative approach harnesses the true power of community asset building, promoting grassroots inclusion and leaving a lasting impact.
Loughery’s WAYFINDER AR:T aims to enhance the beauty of communities, aid non-profits and small businesses, and foster inclusive connections, helping individuals navigate life through creative community interactions and art. Loughery played a pioneering role in the mural movement, and her impactful work and projects significantly contributed to the success of mural tourism and art education. Her award-winning Wayfinder Projects forged invaluable partnerships that continue to yield immeasurable economic and social impact, sparking tangible ripple effects and driving meaningful social change.
Wayfinder ARTWORKS digital and place making programs, connect people in our sense of place for social and economic growth in an inclusive legacy
The SUNFLOWER PROJECT is a campaign for a global unifying theme and has been successful in bringing people together through public art trails that everyone can participate in.
The involvement of federal grants, sponsors, and public installations around the sunflower theme has likely had a positive impact on many people during the COVID-19 pandemic, providing them with an opportunity to connect with others, experience the beauty of public art, and be inspired by the positive message of hope, peace and growth embodied by the sunflowers. The use of public art as a tool for community building and uplifting people during difficult times is a powerful and important aspect of projects like the Michelle Loughery Wayfinder Sunflower Art Project.
WAYFINDER ART ROUTE GALLERY
Social change happens when communities go outside their own walls and find creative ways to connect their youth to their seniors and their past to their futures. A unique community mural art training program for youth, artists and creative communities.
Empowering Communities through the Michelle Loughery Wayfinder Program
The Michelle Loughery Wayfinder Program is not just a mere employment skills and community support initiative, but a transformative force that has been shaping the lives of youth and communities for over 25 years. At its core, the “Passport to Employment Program,” established in 1995, equips young individuals with essential life skills and a sustainable employment plan, paving the way for a brighter and more secure future.
Societal Impact:
Master Muralist Michelle Loughery’s Youth Mural Program, implemented across North America, stands as a testament to the incredible power of public art as an economically viable endeavor. Beyond empowering at-risk youth with vital job and life skills, this program has a profound social and economic impact. It serves as a catalyst for restoration and unity, fostering a sense of pride and belonging within the community. As marginalized youth actively participate in the revitalization process, the program effectively diminishes negative perceptions and behaviors associated with this demographic, leading to a decrease in vandalism and crime.
The Michelle Loughery Wayfinder Project goes a step further by intertwining community-based mural art with essential life and employability skills, effectively breaking down barriers faced by youth and seniors. The results speak for themselves: a substantial reduction in public property crimes, enhanced connections between at-risk youth and the wider community, and an impressive 80% success rate in participants either returning to education or securing gainful employment. Yet, the program’s impact extends beyond these immediate outcomes. Notably, it equips communities with the tools to drive long-term economic growth and diversity through a successful cultural tourism initiative. Over the past 25 years, the Wayfinder Project has not only contributed to communities raising millions of dollars, but has also played a pivotal role in uplifting local youth, offering them the means to pursue their aspirations and break the cycle of poverty.
Organizations partnered with include: City Of Vernon, Vernon Museum, The Downtown Vernon Association, Province of British Columbia, Ministry of Tourism, National Route 66 Federation, The City of Merritt, Merritt Walk of Stars, Viva Cuba Route 66 Mural City, Golden BC Art Council, BC Government, National Crime Prevention of Canada, County Music Capitol of Canada, First Nation Steering Committee, SFU, UBC, Surrey School District, The Government of Canada, First Nation Educational Steering Committee, CDIT, Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, and CCMA Award Show, Current North Okanagan Artist Alternative.
Loughery Mural Artworks philosophy is dedicated to the preservation, education, and advancement of public art in the social economic Official Plans in communities in an inclusive and respect for the arts model.
Loughery’s Murals serve as contemporary visual narratives, preserving the past, reflecting the present, and illuminating the path to the future. Since its inception in the early 90s, our approach has been trailblazing, courageous, and innovative, transcending traditional boundaries by bringing skills from the confines of a box to the expansive canvas of walls—encouraging people to step out of their comfort zones and embrace change.
“It is our collaborative ancient and generational wisdom knowledge and creative skills that will create discovery and foster a strong People, Place and Planet renewal. Art is the mechanism to learn the skills we need. “ Artist Michelle Loughery
Using community art and the Michelle Loughery signature Wayfinder AR:TWORKS (TM) philosophy to engage youth and communities to learn transferable relevant life, trade, digital and employment skills while helping to build sustainable partnerships and strategies from within people and rural communities.
The community reaps immense benefits from the creation of community murals and events. This endeavor aims to not only foster historical and cultural education and engagement but also to establish a tourism destination in the “Wayfinding” sense of place.
Visionary Michelle Loughery draws on the wisdom instilled in her by her immigrant Canadian roots. With the resilience and unity vital for Canada’s development coursing through her veins, she emphasizes the significance of cross-cultural communication in community building. These roots form the foundation of her multifaceted artistic, social, and economic endeavors, including innovative community arts programming and the charitable initiatives perpetuating her legacy.
This inclusive, art-centered initiative operates within a multi-partnership social and economic framework, leveraging street and community art trends to engage both youth and elders. Simultaneously, it aims to leave behind a lasting tourism legacy through its assets and programs.
WAYFINDER AR:T SOCIAL- ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE Solutions:
Loughery’s “WAYFINDER AR:TWORKS Solutions” Community WAYFINDER community art programs have helped many communities create their branding, development, and marketing Art in Action plan using the inventory and themes of history and uniqueness and an innovative “WAYFINDER AR:TWORKS” philosophy to achieve several goals:
Result examples
Merritt BC Canadian Country Music Mural Project 8 million dollar renewal program with unmeasurable tourism growth capacity.
Wayfinder ART murals in Merritt, BC, are considered to be vitally important to the indigenous youth of the area. Murals serve as a form of public art that can inspire and engage young people, especially those who may not have access to traditional art forms or institutions. The mural project was and is a source of pride for the local community and its youth, as they showcase the area’s culture and history. Additionally, the process of creating and participating in mural projects can be a valuable experience for youth, as it can provide opportunities for self-expression, skill-building, and community involvement. Loughery’s Wayfinder murals have had an impact on youth and their community in immeasurable ways
ROUTE 66 Mural City 20 million revite catalyst and small town model emulated USA Wide.
Community Consultation –Wayfinder RURAL CREATES
In community workshops to discover relevant rural infrastructure rebuilding needs in terms of social and economic inclusion and infrastructure potenials through creative wayfinder systems. The underlying value proposition- Wayfinder project enters the communities, has dialogue within the community and includes the communities from the ground up.
Loughery consults with communities and non profits with individual community needs in mind with the invitation to use community art to bridge education, government, industry, community and people in an engaged community building project.
The most prevalent challenges for government and industry in regards to providing skilled training and social license are finding relevant employment for people as they progress through skills -training experiences. Wayfinder and Michelle Loughery Mural Art in Action signature programs provide these relevant grass root connection strategies that are unique in the tourism, economic and social strategy legacies that are left behind.
30 years of proven project and programming success, this unique P6 (TM) formula of inclusion and networking has helped support the creative economy industry.
Duplicated in numerous government and educational and community systems, this visual bridging pathways program has been the catalyst for thousands of students life and career paths, numerous high impact global community infrastructure builds, generating millions of economic and social benefits, as well as many Legacy Mural Projects around the world.
As Wayfinder and Michelle Loughery ART Murals moves forward: the programs have developed into digital story telling three dimensional murals to build national and global pathways to partnerships, skill paths, and relevant social change.
Caetani Mural on WAYFINDER BC Legacy Highway in partnership with the City of Vernon and the Downtown Vernon Association
ARTIST MICHELLE LOUGHERY 