Calgary artist painting proceeds going to support Ol’ Beautiful

As the staff at Ol’ Beautiful Brewery continue to pick up the pieces after a devastating fire destroyed the taproom, a local artist is lending a hand.

The beloved taproom, a staple in the Inglewood area since 2017, went up in flames overnight on June 30. Nobody was injured.

When Lauren Shipton, whose work has focused on the iconic buildings that make up Calgary’s identity, heard the heartbreaking news, she knew she needed to use her talent for good.

“A lot of people will reach out and tell me their stories about how this place meant so much to them,” she told 660 NewsRadio.

“There’s one collector … I was talking to and he wanted a print because he and his partner had, their first date was there, so their anniversary is coming up, so he wanted to get one as a gift for her.”

The answer to how became clear when she was repeatedly asked to commission a painting of the building.

“Over the next few days, I had a lot of people reaching out to me and asking if I would paint Ol’ Beautiful because they wanted some prints,” Shipton said.

So she quickly took out her brushes and acrylic paints to create a piece now being sold on her website, with 100 per cent of the profits going towards the Ol’ Beautiful GoFundMe page.

“I thought that was a really great way to raise money for their GoFundMe because it’s supporting the taproom staff that are out of work right now,” she said.

Ol’ Beautiful says on the page that 15 bartenders are without reliable income and insurance doesn’t provide financial support. The fundraiser is meant to help with rent and bills while they find other employment opportunities.

So far, Shipton has raised over $2,000 and says she was surprised to see such a response, but she adds she is honoured to see how many people have supported her and the brewery.

“I didn’t really have any expectations of how much money would be raised I didn’t think it would be this much so I was really surprised when I was getting so many orders from people, so it’s more than I expected,” she said.

Her prints can be purchased through Shipton’s website.