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130 Osborne Street (2)
These pieces for Stradbrook Chiropractic were rendered and installed in 2004 by Mandy van Leeuwen & Michel St Hilaire. Sponsorship was by Take Pride Winnipeg, Osborne Village BIZ, Manitoba Chiropractic Association, Mattress Source, Chirotec, and DC Max Systems.
The artwork was removed in 2021 when the clinic moved out and relocated in a mall in another part of the city. Original notes follow:
Dr. Brian McWhirter (Stradbrook Chiropractic Clinic): "We decided in 2004 to move our clinic from around the corner to
the old Genesis Books location. The previous Mural (see 130 Osborne in the RIP section of this website) was
in brutal shape. I think the artist did a
good job, although I couldn't understand the
Mural. Unfortunately, it was graffitied over repeatedly
and had weathered due to the poor brick quality. It had to come down. Besides, anything that seems to
be new age or have demonic references (perceived or
otherwise) is really unpalatable to me as a Christian."
"I had a great time doing this project. I have the
drawing skills of a drunk ant, so it was great to have
the talents of the artists to do this project."
Mandy van Leeuwen (Artist): "The middle panel (photo 3) features Dr. Obie Bailey, a chiropractor who
was instrumental in bringing chiropractic care being covered under Manitoba Healthcare.
The inclusion of chiropractic in Medicare in 1969 was controversial, supported by many,
resisted by some. It was the culmination of decades of work by chiropractors and their
friends. The final key was the respect and trust premier Duff Roblin had for his minister
of Labour, Obie Bailey. Michel and I actually did that portrait together. It was quite
fun."
"The face at the left on this panel was a kind of happy coincidence the way it turned out.
I projected the face very quickly onto the surface and then put the boards on their sides
and left them out that night. The rain came and touched the paint just enough to cause
the paint to run. We loved the effect it produced!"
"A lot of the imagery was inspired by old textbooks, and features equipment that was
used at the time. The panel at the left (photo 2) represents the office of Dr. Daniel David Palmer,
who was the Father of the science of Chiropractic."
The panel on the right (photo 4) shows the Chiropractic emblem in the center. Below it are
graduates from the Chiropractic school; and in the background are various campuses of
schools of Chiropractic.
Brian: "The float mount is to my knowledge unique to Winnipeg.
What a job that was. I can actually do carpentry, but
had quite a time mounting the frames onto the walls. Mandy painted the murals in her backyard and we
screwed them onto the frames later."
"One day while up on a ladder, struggling to get the
wood on the brick, an elder gentleman walked by and
told me I was doing it wrong. Amused (I thought he was
a street person), I asked if he thought he could do
better. This guy climbed the ladder like a mountain
goat and drilled the hole in about 4 seconds. Since I
had been struggling for about an hour with the same
task I hired him to help me and he's been doing
carpentry for me ever since, as I own rental properties."
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Displaying Photos 1-3 of 4
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