Public Art: Flatiron Mural by Derek Besant

The Flatiron Mural on the Gooderham Building occupies the narrow, windowless eastern wall that faces inward toward Berczy Park. It uses a technique called trompe l’oeil, which means it is designed to fool the eye. Derek Besant painted the mural in nineteen eighty to mimic the actual architecture of the building, adding fluttering curtains in the painted windows. When a breeze hits the heavy fabric of the actual building, those painted curtains appear to move along with the wind.