Photos courtesy of British Columbia 525M British Columbia 525M members Raymond Boyer, right, and Oberdan Mariani spent about 150 hours painting the mural at the local's headquarters building.

Raymond Boyer's mural on the exterior of British Columbia 525M's headquarters features a view of Vancouver's skyline over the top of Science World's geodesic dome.

Mural painting is not only one of the most ancient outlets for human expression; it also is one of the best known arts identified with workers and the labor movement.

To think of labor murals is to remember the great Diego Rivera, whose murals from the 1930s of workers at their trades and in their struggles for justice still excite younger generations who see them displayed in the United States and Mexico.

In that proud tradition, artist Raymond Boyer set to work on an outside wall of British Columbia 525M's headquarters in Vancouver and developed a 400 square foot mural that brightens the neighborhood.

Boyer has worked as an artist and done prepress work for more than 50 years. A modest man, Boyer observed: Working in the trade "saved my life because just as an artist, I wouldn't have lasted long."

Also a GCIU member for more than a half century, Boyer was director of Local 525M's Graphic Arts Training Institute, which is housed in local headquarters, from 1980 to 1985 and has taught at the school for more than 30 years. Although "semi-retired" since 1988, he continues to teach at the school and proudly displays the art work of his students.

For the mural, which was endorsed by Local 525M members, Boyer said he came up with the design concept of what the view of Vancouver skyline from Local 525M headquarters' hill would be from on high.

In preparation for the painting of the mural, the exterior wall was covered with acrylic cement, "This is why the mural has a graphic look rather than photographic," Boyer noted. He said the mural took 150 hours to paint with the help of Local 525M member Oberdan Mariani. "He got me used to working on scaffolds," Boyer said of Mariani.

Boyer is almost as delighted with the mural as he is in his union career. "I could not have been associated with a better group of people," he said. "I'm very proud of my union."