A mural created by Kwantlen First Nation artist Brandon Gabriel has been removed from a wall in Fort Langley’s Gasoline Alley.
Gasoline Alley owner and developer Eric Woodward confirmed he had it painted over last week.
He declined to comment on the reason for painting over the mural but did direct the Times to his Facebook page.
There, Woodward criticizes Gabriel for a Facebook post the artist made about Woodward ruining Fort Langley. Woodward has screenshot a Facebook post Gabriel had made about a visit to Squamish.
“The town of Squamish reminds me of Fort Langley 20 years ago,” Gabriel wrote on the post, adding that if they see Woodward ‘sniffing around’ to ‘shoot him on sight.’
Woodward took the words as a threat.
Gabriel responded that his comment wasn’t a ‘serious call to action’, more an expression of frustration with how he feels Fort Langley looks now.
As for the mural, Gabriel said he isn’t bothered that it was painted over.
“I painted it in 2006, so it has been there for 11 years. Most murals in this type of art business only have a shelf life of one to four years, They are intended to be ephemeral, so this piece definitely saw more than enough longevity,” Gabriel said.
Gabriel has several pieces of artwork around Langley. His most recent mural went up last school year on the outside wall of Douglas Park Elementary.
The large mural in Gasoline Alley depicted the history of Fort Langley, starting with Aboriginals to when Europeans settled here. The mural’s creation was spearheaded by Cranberries Naturally owner Jasmine Marjanovich whose storefront is located in Gasoline Alley.