Article contentPerez said he knows Blaze Wiradharma, who painted last year’s art for art’s sake mural at Bargain Harley’s. But he didn’t reach out to Wiradharma about the mural society or town as he wanted to experience it fresh for himself.Article content“You don’t know a town until you walk the blocks,” he said.Article contentAccessible artArticle contentPerez, a Hamilton, Ont. resident and a big advocate for public and accessible art, murals, and paintings, appreciates what the society is doing.Article contentHe’s not alone.Article content“Every one of them makes the town more vibrant, more inviting, more welcoming,” Berwick Deputy Mayor Johanna Kwakernaak said.Article contentThe Wild Thyme Farm Market project is the eighth mural since the society began in 2021.Article content“I think every one of the murals that we’ve had so far … has added to the town,” Kwakernaak said. “They help tell the story of the town. They help make us sort of reflect back on who we are and where we have been. And also think about what we want to be and what makes this town so special.”Article contentArticle contentArticle contentHistoryArticle contentMain Street runs east-west and was the centre of town before the railway arrived in the late 1860s.Article content The Wild Thyme Farm Market is located at the corner of Commercial and Main streets in Berwick.JASON MALLOY Jason MalloyArticle contentJohn Dow, the society’s secretary and a historian, said prior to the railway most things coming to town arrived through the port in Harbourville.Article content“Our trade was by sea – north-south to the eastern United States and across to Europe,” he explained. “When the trains came through, it switched our traffic patterns and our trading patterns east-west.”Article contentDow said the Commercial Street property was in the Illsley family up until recently and a store had been on the property for 140 years.Article contentArticle contentNEED TO KNOWArticle contentA look at the Berwick Mural Society’s projects:Article content1. Berwick Fruit Company Ltd. first panel, 2021, Trackside Studios. It is located on Mill Street.Article content2. Centennial Mural, 2022, KDP Letters and Talking Wall Designs. It is located at Bargain Harley’s, 182 Commercial St.Article content3. Berwick Fruit Company Ltd. second panel, 2022, Trackside Studios. It is located on Mill Street.Article content4. Diversity Mural, 2023, Ibe Ananaba. It is located at Shur-Gain Feeds’n Needs, 229 Commercial St.Article content5. First Peoples Mural, 2024, Lorne Julien. It is located at Wilsons Home Store, 205 Commercial St.Article content6. Berwick Fruit Company Ltd. third and final panel, 2024, Trackside Studios. It is located on Mill Street.Article content7. Art for art’s sake, 2025, Blaze Wiradharma. It is located at Bargain Harley’s, 182 Commercial St.Article content8. Agriculture theme, 2026, Chris Perez. It is located at 287 Commercial St.Article content
More vibrant, more inviting, more welcoming: Agricultural-themed mural added to new Berwick business
