What’s up with that newly-painted house on Dundurn? We have answers
For decades, a nondescript, two-storey home on Dundurn Street South was anything but noticeable.
Its pale grey exterior oozed a kind of neutrality mirroring the look of neighbouring dwellings. And sure, it sat in a high-traffic area across from a busy commercial plaza just off Highway 403, but millions of drivers likely passed it without a second thought.
That is, until now.
The brick abode at 63 Dundurn St. S. - home to a travel agency on the first floor and vacant apartments on the second - became among the most vibrantly incongruous fixtures in the area this month thanks to a Hamilton-based mural artist.
Coated in tangerine orange and shades of pink, the mural is an ode to elements of Chinese culture. It features renderings of pandas, city skylines and landmarks like the Great Wall of China and the Oriental Pearl Tower.
We are China specialists for tourism and the artist did an outstanding job," said Justine Manuel, head of New Horizons, a long-standing local travel agency.
Manuel, who's owned 63 Dundurn since 1991, said she wanted a change for the building after New Horizons was financially hard-hit during COVID-19. Her hope is the vivid facade drums up fresh business and attention.
During the pandemic, there was no business at all, but for (travel agencies) especially," she said. And we're trying to build something for the future. This catches people's eyes."
Tim Nijenhuis, the brush behind the street's new eye candy, agrees.
Nijenhuis began to work on the building in late November. He said the prep is most important because paint is susceptible to the outdoor elements. I had to fix quite a bit of the masonry and plaster the foundation and fill up the bricks with new mortar and prime the whole building," he said. You want it to last for 10 to 15 years."
A local artist who's painted some 30 murals around Hamilton, Nijenhuis said the inspiration behind 63 Dundurn's colourful look came from Chinese-made woodcuts, a relief printing technique in which knives are used to carve drawings into the surfaces of woodblocks.
Sebastian Bron is a reporter at The Spectator. sbron@thespec.com