Historic homes set for demolition in Kamloops preserved in 40 paintings

A passionate Kamloops artist is devoted to capturing and preserving heritage homes slated for demolition in 40 large canvas paintings.

The beloved homes built more than a century ago on Nicola and Battle Streets are being demolished to make way for City Gardens, a multi-million dollar housing development project by Kelson Group.

Last summer, artist Debbie Lively was commissioned by Kelson Group to complete the large, detailed canvasses, reproductions of which will beautify the two housing towers in the works. Lively has spent countless hours among the old homes with a camera and easel, hoping she can provide something happy in the midst of the sadness some residents are feeling at the loss of them. 

“I feel greatly honoured to be asked to paint these homes,” she said. “I love history and the stories each of these homes have to tell. I hope my paintings will make people feel uplifted in seeing them.”

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Lively has taken 1,300 photos of the houses to date, in all seasons, types of weather and times of the day, capturing parts of the neighbourhood from all different angles. She said the process from photograph to painting requires a lot of patience.

“This type of project is meticulous because you have to get the drawing right, the drawing takes a day,” she said. “I do a precise drawing, then a precise painting, but the foliage, flowers and trees are looser. I loosen up straight lines with a pallet knife to give them an artistic flare.”

In the hours Lively spent among the homes, she felt a connection with them, and met people who lived in the neighbourhood.

“The people were all happy and excited about the project,” she said. “Sometimes I asked them to sit on the steps for a picture. It was a really special experience. While painting, I thought about the history, stories and all the people who may have lived in these houses. This is why I’m doing this."

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Lively is currently working on her fourth painting. Her first painting is of her favourite house, a big, brown relic at 451 Battle St.

“I went there and no one was living in it,” she said. “All this ivy was growing on it. I went up to the left side and pulled down some vines and found another window underneath. I added it to the picture and added all of the flowers I wanted. I will cry when this house is removed.” 

Lively said she was offered the commission from Kelson Group after completing other similar projects with them in the past. She is painting originals of the buildings from all different angles on three sizes of canvas: 30"x30”, 30"x40” and 30"x60”.

She is hoping to make prints in the future that will be available for purchase.

Lively is a self-taught artist who has done a lot of teaching over the years. She does workshops and has a home studio for private lessons. Her work could be seen at the former Hampton Gallery in Kamloops for many years, and she has a Signature Membership with The Federation of Canadian Artists. She is involved in jurying various art shows in the province.

“I am honoured and very grateful to be offered this commission,” she said.

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