When Alex Taylor-McCallum was in the throes of alcoholism, his grandmother told him the story of a two-headed serpent.
Known as sisiyutł in the Kwak’wala language, it symbolizes opposing ideas, such as the contrast of dark and light, good and bad, war and peace, said Taylor-McCallum, a Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw and Nuu-Chah-Nulth artist. An image of the serpent is now painted on a wall in a Pandora Avenue breezeway that connects to the Johnson Street parkade.
A figure between the two serpent heads represents the balance needed to live a healthy life, Taylor-McCallum said.
“It’s an important teaching I really carry with me, or try to, every day,” he said.
Using spray paint and paint rollers, Taylor-McCallum spent 20 hours last week painting the mural on the side of a Cool Aid Society supportive housing building at 749 Pandora Ave.
Below the two-headed serpent is a raven with a beam of light coming out of its mouth.
It’s meant to bring light and colour to Pandora, where Taylor-McCallum sees “much darkness.”
Many of the people struggling with addiction on Pandora Avenue are Indigenous and Taylor-McCallum wants this Indigenous art to provide a sense of protection for them.
He wants the mural to inspire hope in those who are struggling with addiction, like he once was.
Taylor-McCallum started drinking alcohol at age 11. He grew up in a loving home but his parents and extended family members used drugs and alcohol to cope with their trauma, he said. His grandmother’s murder when he was in Grade 3 changed his life and the lives of those around him, he said.
By his mid-20s, Taylor-McCallum’s drinking became a daily habit that led to stints in hospitals and drunk tanks, and prevented him from keeping a job.
Eventually, the father of two young boys realized he wouldn’t be in his children’s lives if he didn’t stop drinking. “I just knew that I’d lose everything around me if I didn’t sober up.”
Taylor-McCallum has now been sober for three years.
His next project is to paint a mural on Island Health’s sobering centre near Cook and Pembroke streets. It’s a place that helped him to beat his addiction.
“I feel confident that I never want to relapse because life is amazing now,” he said.
regan-elliott@timescolonist
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