Meet the artist behind the rail car mural in honour of Boxcar Country Festival

J.D. Irving, Limited is proud to once again sponsor Boxcar Country Festival in Saint John, N.B., and for a second year in a row, a New Brunswick Southern Railway rail car is on the waterfront, decked out for the weekend’s festivities.

Last year, JDI commissioned local artist Fabiola Martinez to paint the rail car in honour of the event. For the next week, the mural will be gracing the waterfront once more with its bright imagery, marking another festival weekend of great music and strong community spirit.

For Fabiola, it was important that the piece instill a sense of community vibrance among passersby.

“I wanted it to bring colour and positive energy to the community,” she said.

The fine artist and art educator’s public artwork is easily recognizable for its big, bright colours. Fabiola brought the same vibrancy to her work on the rail car, which depicts a cityscape and two cowboys playing guitar against a rosy sunset.

Fabiola said she wanted to capture the “beautiful energy” of the city with the piece.

“I hope they can see the beauty that I see in architectural spaces, in urban spaces,” she said. “They can feel the energy that we create together.”

The mural’s creation process took place over the course of three weeks. This included having to contend with Saint John’s typically unpredictable summer weather, something that Fabiola took in stride.

It was also important for Fabiola to engage young, emerging artists as well as the public in the painting process. She wanted to make it a true community project that brought people together.

“Inviting others to be a part of the painting process on some sections helped to create this big boxcar that brings, not just visually the energy, but also literally the energy from other people being part of it,” Fabiola said.

For Fabiola, the project was also personally a special one. Originally from Mexico, Fabiola said the Boxcar Country Festival reminders her of home and she is a regular attendee of the event.

As music festival attendees flock to the Area 506 Container Village for the upcoming July 26 and 27 festivities, Fabiola said she hopes her artwork will provide viewers with a sense of happiness.

The rail car will be available for the public to view until the end of the music festival, after which people may catch a glimpse of it on the rails as it’s returned to regular service.