Two-hundred messy hands left their prints on the Path of Stawamus last week.
On Thursday (May 23), 100 Stawamus Elementary School students walked down the hill to the seven-month-old pedestrian overpass that connects across Highway 99 to Totem Hall. At its base, they were met by Squamish Nation artist Rick Harry and a few buckets of yellow paint. The children were each given a Latex glove and an opportunity to leave their handprint on the structure.
Harry was all smiles as he helped lift the children up so the shorter ones could reach the flat concrete wall. The renowned artist designed the Thunderbird and serpent that hold up the bridge. The figures were created by making giant moulds using eight sheets of plywood per side, he said. It was the largest structural design Harry has worked on, he noted, adding he's up for doing more art along the same stream.
Photographer Gary Fiegehen was on hand to take the students' and Harry's photo. The picture will be mounted onto the base beside the handprints.
How do you get 100 kids to smile with their eyes open? he joked before gathering them together.
Seven-year-old Jasmine Baker was excited to see her handprint on the cement.
It looks awesome, she said.
The aspiring dentist said she hopes to stay in Squamish when she's grown up. At that time, Baker said she would bring her friends and family to view her handprint.
Every day I will come to look at the handprint, she said, before reconsidering the statement after being queried by a friend.
The overpass was officially unveiled in October 2012. The six-month-long project saw bridge designers Hatch Mott MacDonald, the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure and members of the Squamish Nation work together on the bridge. It came with a bill of approximately $2.2 million.
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