Narrative Impact

Co-creating stories that inform, influence, and connect.

We collaborate with groups to gather and visually express stories that reflect current realities and lived experiences. These projects help organizations and communities explore key themes, surface insights, and document moments in time—creating a compelling narrative of now that informs culture, communication, and connection.

How It Can Be Applied

Communications strategy
Community engagement
Public awareness campaigns
Internal culture building
Thematic documentation

How The Process Works

Process

Workshops are designed to meet the group’s capacity, access, and needs
Format is tailored to the project’s goals: drop-ins, 1:1s, small or large groups, or alongside existing events
Multi-arts approach includes writing, metaphor, stencils, projections, and AI tools
Focus is on authentic expression—not artistic skill
Knowledge holders may be invited or may emerge from within the group
Sessions can support specific goals like team building, relationship repair, or community connection

Outputs

Large-scale painting or mixed media digital artwork
Digital reproductions and social media-ready visuals
Participant quotes, video clips, and process photography
Individual artworks participants can take home (digital or physical)
Optional NFTs with royalties shared among participants
Additional tools like coloring books or visual reports featuring participant content
Informal process data useful for graphic recording or communications

Project Feature: Red Road to DC

Red Road to DC: E Ala E Mural

E Ala E is a powerful example of Narrative Impact, inviting hundreds of people across the United States to contribute images, symbols, and stories about our shared connection to Earth during a cross-country totem pole journey led by the House of Tears Carvers. Through visual storytelling, participants expressed personal and ancestral knowledge—creating a collective mural that documented this historic moment and called for sacred site protection.
Learn more about this project →

Past Collaborations

Creating Culture

We Are All One is a collaborative mural created by 40 participants with varied physical and cognitive abilities, reflecting shared connection, creativity, and the joy of making something together.

Community Engagement

25 Syrian youth engaged in a collective process exploring themes relevant to their migration process and new settlement. The 12-panel painting is now available as a storytelling strategy.

Educational Content

Youth excluded from mainstream schools shared how creativity helped them thrive, co-creating a mural showcased at an education conference featuring Sir Ken Robinson.

Thematic Documentation

This mobile mural, created in collaboration with the Totem Pole Journey, serves as a visual record of 140 participants’ perspectives on the human connection to nature and the responsibility it carries.

Multi-Campus Engagement

A multi-campus arts engagement project that brought together over 70 participants from Mount Royal University, MacEwan University, Norquest College, and Olds College to explore what queer joy looks like.

Public Campaign

Co-created by 60 participants, this mobile mural documents community reflections on the human and environmental impact of Alberta’s Tar Sands. It is used as an educational for dialogue.

Our experience was amazing for the level of skill, engagement and passion for the project.

Bringing dreams to life takes dedication, and we felt ourselves in highly qualified hands to achieve our goals.

Noreen Allossery Walsh
Ursuline Sisters of Chatham

Working with Melanie is an absolute dream. Melanie is kind and sparkly, and has a quality about her that can only be described as magical. She is a dreamer, but also a doer, and that rare combo means that what she creates is infused with so much love and skill.

Michelle Peek

Founder, Art Not Shame

As an academic let me make clear that the value of the community experience in the process of collective art production cannot be measured. I see the huge benefits of this process of art co-creation for people in academia and beyond.

Gloria Perez

Professor, Mount Royal University

She was able to transform physical art into digital representations, enhancing the work so it works together as a whole while still preserving the individual contributions of each community artist.

Julie Ryan

Community Engagement Advisor,

Indwell

The community love, mindful hosting and deep engagement that I witnessed in how Melanie approaches social art projects was inspiring and illustrated connection through creativity.

Michelle Baldwin

Senior Advisor,

Community Foundations of Canada