Pemberton's Newest Mural
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Pemberton Valley Supermarket Mural
Art Meets Community Spirit
Here’s what happens when a community comes together to transform a blank wall into something special. The new mural at Pemberton Valley Supermarket isn’t just about beautifying a building; it’s about capturing who we are as a valley.
Local artist Natasha Plumridge has done something remarkable here. She’s taken our everyday views — the eagles, the salmon, the bears, and our local plants like huckleberries — and woven them into a story that feels true to home. What I really appreciate is how she let Mount Currie speak for itself, keeping the painted landscape clear of our most iconic peak.
The project shows what’s possible when local groups work together. The Pemberton Arts Council (PAC) brought expertise from its Outside Voices Mural Project, the supermarket provided funding, and the Lil’wat Nation shared crucial cultural guidance that shaped the piece. This mural isn’t just public art, it’s public collaboration at its best!
Video Credits/Sponsors: Pemberton Arts Council / Undeleted Productions / Vancouver Biennale
The practical challenges were real. Natasha worked through our typical drastic fall weather (we all know what that means in Pemberton), managed a scissor lift in a busy parking lot, and kept her two-year-old close by throughout the two-month process. That’s the kind of determination that defines our community!
If you haven’t seen the mural yet, you can go ahead and take a walk down to the supermarket. It’s more than paint on a concrete wall. It’s a reminder of what makes Pemberton so special: our natural beauty, our shared history, and our ability to come together to create something meaningful.
We know this is just the beginning for Pemberton’s public art. The Pemberton Arts Council is always working on more projects, including a tile mosaic that promises to add another layer of creativity to our town.
That’s the Pemberton way, always building on what makes our community unique.
Speaking of community, the Pemberton Arts Council deserves recognition for their growing impact. Since 2006, they’ve evolved from a small group of dedicated artists into a force for creative change in our valley. Their work goes far beyond murals.
The PAC understands that art isn’t just about hanging paintings in galleries; it’s about bringing people together. They’re running the Mountain Muse Festival and other local art exhibitions, and are consistently expanding with new staff, initiatives, and weekly workshops.
For anyone wondering how to get involved, reach out! Artists, supporters, or just curious folks wondering what’s happening in our creative community, the PAC’s doors are always open.
This project was also made possible with support from the Vancouver Biennale, whose public art programming helps connect small communities like Pemberton to a wider cultural conversation.
Interview With the Artist: Natasha Plumridge
To learn more about the story behind the wall, we sat down with the artist herself, Natasha Plumridge. In this conversation, Natasha talks about how she worked with guidance from the Lil’wat Nation, and what it was like to paint through Pemberton’s fall weather with a toddler in tow.
Read on to hear Natasha’s own words about the mural, the process, and what’s next for public art in Pemberton.
Did your perspective of the Pemberton Valley change during the two months you spent creating the mural?
My perspective of the valley… I guess I feel like my connection to the community deepened. I used to teach on a First Nations reserve, so I’ve had many connections to the culture and the Lil’wat people. But I think I developed an even deeper connection with them during this project.
When they would come by, I felt really honoured by how excited they were about the mural. I had quite a few Indigenous members of the community come up and express their enthusiasm. This was really important to me because I had been working from a list of culturally significant flora and fauna to include in the painting.
Once I had those elements painted, and community members came by to express such happiness at seeing them represented, it really strengthened my connection to Pemberton and the culture. I felt truly honoured to be a part of that.
Can you walk us through your creative process in deciding which local elements to include and exclude from the mural?
So I originally drew everything on my iPad, working from the list provided by the Lil’wat Nation that included all the culturally significant flora and fauna. They were all suggestions – elements like bears, eagles, salmon, dandelion, stinging nettle, fireweed, and cedar trees. There were also various berries, such as soapberry, huckleberry, black caps, and pine mushrooms. I didn’t have to include everything, but they were all suggestions. They also specifically requested that water be included to show how it connects to all living things.
I was trying to incorporate as many elements as possible. Initially, I thought I might leave a few things out, but as I was nearing completion of the mural, I decided to include them all.
On the very last day, I actually added one pine mushroom because it was the final item on the list. I wanted to make sure I had incorporated everything. So, after I drew it all on my iPad using the suggested list as guidance. Then, at night, I projected it onto the wall, traced it out, and painted it.
In what ways did the input from the Lil’wat Nation shape your artistic decisions and understanding of the valley's cultural heritage?
I think that it was a huge, huge part of it. All the animals and plants came from their input, though I added a couple of plants just because I thought they would look nice with the different colours.
The view of the valley came from a photograph I had, which is close to my house. But aside from that, all the elements came from their input. It was really interesting because I feel like I learned a lot about what’s special and important – even understanding things like the significance of dandelions versus daisies.
It really deepened my understanding as I looked into it. The input from the Lil’wat Nation was definitely a major influence on the entire project.
Were there any unexpected challenges or surprises during the project that taught you something new about large-scale public art?
The busy parking lot was definitely a challenge, and then there was the uneven sidewalk. It was hard to get the scissor lift level, which was new to me since I’d never driven one before. For the scissor lift to go up, it has to be perfectly level, so it was challenging to work around the dips in the sidewalk.
I felt like I needed to be really efficient with my setup. I had to find the right spots quickly because I needed to put the scissor lift away every single day. The daily setup and takedown were quite challenging, as I had to clear everything so people could access the sidewalk when I wasn’t painting.
The weather was another major challenge. It rained for most of October, and I didn’t realize the wall never gets any sun. So even when the forecast said it would be 15 degrees, it was really, really cold on that side of the wall. Some days, I was warming my hands up with a blow dryer and a heat gun.
The scale of the project itself was also challenging because being right up against a 1,400-square-foot wall makes it difficult to see where everything goes. Those were definitely the main challenges I encountered.
As both a local artist and resident, how does it feel to have created something that will be part of Pemberton's daily landscape for years to come?
Yeah, I feel really excited, really honoured. There are so many talented artists in the Sea to Sky corridor and in Pemberton, and I feel absolutely blown away that the committee chose me to paint it.
I feel proud of myself in a way because I’ve never done anything this big before. I’m proud that I finished it and that I even got this contract in the first place. I feel really excited that my two-year-old daughter will have memories of being part of that, hopefully, and then also see it as she gets older.
So I am excited and happy to be able to create something right in the middle of town, and a piece of art that can connect other people in the community together.
How did having your 2-year-old daughter with you throughout the project influence the experience?
Yeah, that was an unforeseen challenge. It was one of the most beautiful and most challenging parts of it. Some days were sunny, and having her in a backpack on my back felt really special, letting me share what I was doing with her and have her be a part of it. Everybody thought it was so cute and wonderful.
The flip side was that she didn’t really want to leave my side throughout the whole process. On cold days, she was in my car, and although she was often with her dad, she still didn’t want to leave my side. She’d like to run around the parking lot, or she’d like to paint on the wall, or she’d like to come up in the scissor lift with me.
For pretty much the entire project, she was there in the parking lot. Some days with me and some days with her dad, but she didn’t want to leave. So it was beautiful and then also challenging.
How do you hope this mural will impact the community's relationship with public art and the local art scene?
I hope they see the vibrant colours and the connections to others. I hope they see the impact art has on bringing people together in a community, like when people share stories and experience emotions while looking at a piece of art.
Public art can bring people together, connect them, and evoke emotions. It can brighten spaces, create feelings of happiness and joy, and, hopefully, inspire others. When people talked to me, they often shared stories about their own art. I feel like it gives inspiration to maybe go home and paint something, or maybe paint the side of their house – it’s inspiring to other people, I think.
The Pemberton Arts Council is doing a fabulous job of putting up more murals in Pemberton. I think there have been four or so just in the last year or two. They’re doing a really good job at adding more art around the community. It’s such a wonderful town for this kind of initiative. When you drive through other towns in British Columbia, like Vernon, there’s art everywhere. It’s nice to see that maybe Pemberton is going that way too.
What was your most memorable interaction with community members while painting the mural? Any stories that really stuck with you?
That’s a good question. I’m not really sure about a specific story, but there was this older man who would come by a couple of times on his bike. He would share stories about living in Pemberton and his experiences in the backcountry.
One of his stories was about encountering a grizzly bear. I think he was someone who had grown up in Pemberton and had been around here for a long time. He would come by on his bike, wearing a big hat, to check out the progress on the mural. He’d point things out, like when there was a new tree or a bear added, and he would sit on his bike watching me paint for long periods while sharing his stories.
What made it even more interesting was that he was an artist himself. His art involved going to the river and stacking rocks on top of one another, creating what he described as bouncing and nook-like formations. So that was probably my most memorable interaction – him sharing his own artistic experience with me while telling me about what he does for his art.
Looking back at the finished piece, what element or aspect brings you the most pride or satisfaction?
That was definitely the most enjoyable part of doing it – just having people be so positive and kind. Some people would just kind of yell “good job,” but others would actually stop me and say, “I just wanted to take a minute and tell you this is wonderful and so beautiful and you’re doing such a good job.”
I guess it’s always nice to hear you’re doing a good job, but it especially feels nice when you are doing something for the community. Since I was doing it for Pemberton, it felt nice to know that the community members liked it. So that part really meant a lot to me.
It’s not just about the compliments and praise for the art itself – it’s more about knowing that the community appreciates what you’ve created for them. When the job is to make something the community will like and want, getting that feedback that you’re achieving that goal feels especially meaningful.
I had a lot of doubt in myself going into it. I worried about not being able to operate the lift, about the busy parking lot, about whether people would like it, about whether I was good enough, and whether they should have chosen someone else – all this kind of background stuff in your head. So it felt nice to know that, hey, maybe I am doing a good job.
Do you have any other upcoming projects or endeavours that people should look out for, or any artistic creations coming our way?
At the moment, I’m just working on a small mural in a nursery in a house in some stone. I just finished doing a little bit of window painting for the holidays at the Great Glass Elevator in Whistler. And then I’m slowly plugging away on a children’s book that I hope maybe will come out next year – one of my own.
Beyond that, I don’t have any specific projects lined up right now. Just hoping for more things to come!
- Originally Posted:
- Most Recent Update: January 29, 2026
- Author: Pemberton Valley Lodge
