Œuvre d'art public

The Great Canadian Equalizer

Jerry Grey, The Great Canadian Equalizer, 1978
Jerry Grey, The Great Canadian Equalizer, 1978
Jerry Grey, The Great Canadian Equalizer, 1978
Location:
Jean Talon Building, Statistics Canada, Tunney’s Pasture, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Artwork creator(s): 
Grey, Jerry
Text author(s): 
Grey, Jerry; Dictionary
Installation year: 
1978
Remarks on location: 

Corresponds to Transitway stop "Tunney's Pasture" of OC Transport.

Description: 

The concept of this demographic/historical mural grew out of the failure of the 1971 Victoria conference over constitutional reform and the ensuing discord between the provinces and federal government over the division of powers. It is an artist's vision or solution to power sharing in Canada. In the mural, every region gets equal time and space. Canada is divided into 15 geographical regions. Each region comprises four parts: dictionary definition; land area, represented by red in proportion to the largest area, Quebec; population, represented in black (largest -- Ontario); and a lineal map of region (Newfoundland and Labrador are separated for aesthetic, not political reasons). The mural is flanked by an explanatory text, biographical information, and numbered identification panels.

 

Source : Jerry Grey (2008). Commissions: Public Art. The Great Canadian Equalizer

http://www.jerrygrey.ca/commissions-gce.php

Text theme: 
Demography and provincial history
Artwork theme: 
Discord between the provinces and federal government over the division of powers.
History: 
1.Commissioned by Department Public Works Canada, Capital Region. 2.Jean Talon Building, Statistics Canada, Tunney's Pasture, Ottawa, since 1978.
Note(s): 

Commissioned by Department Public Works Canada, Capital Region; Jim Strutt, Architect, 1975-1979

Owner(s): 
Collection of Public Works and Government Services Canada
Architect(s): 
Jim Strutt
Document(s): 

Art in Architecture. Art for the Built Environment in the Province of Ontario

Boyle, William J. S., Jeanne Parkin (1982).  Art in Architecture. Art for the Built Environment in the Province of Ontario. Toronto : Visual Arts Ontario, p. 276

The Great Canadian Equalizer - Commissions. Public Art.

Grey, Jerry (2008).  The Great Canadian Equalizer - Commissions. Public Art.. <http://www.jerrygrey.ca/commissions-gce.php> : Jerry Grey webpage