New Horizon Mall is giving families an opportunity to experience an interactive art installation this holiday season, with the life-size art collection, Sweet Street.
Sweet Street features art installations from Calgary artists merged into a gigantic board game, with a four-foot gummy bear, a massive chocolate bar, and a candy-themed balloon arch located at the main stage at New Horizon Mall.
“This year’s different than the past, we wanted to think outside of the box and bring some fun to New Horizon Mall and give guests something to do and explore our shops while engaging in some entertainment,” said New Horizon Mall Marketing Manager, Alexandra Winn.
“We’re really excited to work with Promoting Artists | Redefining Kulture (PARK). They are a great group, we brought something really sweet and fun to the mall,” she said.
One of the Founders of PARK and Vice President, Jessie Landry’s goal was to create an art installment that was captivating and colourful for families to enjoy this holiday season.
“We came up with the candy board game idea, because of its vibrancy and the fun colours we could incorporate, and from there we chose four local artists, and they each contributed a unique piece to it,” she said.
Tyler Lemermeyer designed the interactive game board, the end goal is to get across the board game, and on the weekends at the very end of the game, Santa will be on the stage.
“I was approached by PARK to design a board game, an immersive experience. The inspiration came from my inner child, it’s very bright and colourful, there’s a lot of candy, I really tapped into that,” Lemermeyer said.
Rachael Meckling designed a candy backdrop for family photos, while Wari Willie-Pepple created a cartoon illustration with a candy castle and a candy queen.
Ekaterina Shagaeva designed gingerbread men and a balloon arch that Santa will sit under.
“I love building something very huge, I was so excited because that was the biggest balloon arch I have ever built,” Shagaeva said.
“I’m very proud of it. All of the artists did a great job we were all working together to mesh the colour scheme, and it turned out perfectly,” she said.
For Landry, creating an art installment that families would love was the ultimate goal.
“We love it, we think it’s a really fun to interrupt the holiday season. Holiday décor is primarily red and green and it’s really fun to throw in the vibrant colours. We find with our experience with building these art installations kids and families really love and gravitate towards the bright colours,” Landry said.
Adding, “The colours are super fun and photo-worthy for social media, we’re really hoping that people will come out and support these artists and also support the retailers that are at New Horizon Mall.”
COVID-19 measures are in place for Sweet Street, and the area will be cleaned several times throughout the day.
