After relentless wet weather I was finally able to complete this mural at Highland Reserve State School in Upper Coomera. It was great to see students inspired by the painting process and thanks to staff and tuckshop volunteers for making me feel welcome.
I kept busy during the school Holidays with murals at Denison State School who had hosted a competition to rename the tuckshop. Deno Snack Shack was the chosen name accompanied with cartoon fruit & veg and Australian animals. I was also set the task to apply a mural the student leaders had designed. A big thanks to the P&C for making this transformation happen.
Making the most of school holidays I returned to Emerald North State School and added another artwork at the school entrance. I really enjoyed applying the abstract design, it was challenging but satisfying and I am super keen to do more of this style of art on large scale sites.
I completed a demo for the grand opening of Headspace Emerald thanks to Anglicare CQ who I have worked with since 2004.
I also applied a fresh piece at Emerald BMX. It had been almost 6 months since my last graffiti piece, the longest break in 28 years. It was great to be back in sunny Queensland to dust off the cobwebs and and gain more function recovering from injury.
Photo provided by Anglicare CQ
Photo provided by Anglicare CQ
I enjoyed kicking off the new year with a large scale work at Oxenford State School. The P&C provided the opportunity to paint a native flora & fauna mural which serves as a colourful welcoming statement. I packed in lots of details along the 50m long wall and included some of the animals that were hanging about whilst painting such as bees, spiders, magpies and the resident blue tongue lizard “Bluey”. The feedback has been amazing, from staff, students, OHSC, parents, other contractors, local politicians and residents many of whom have voiced positive comments whilst driving past or stopping to take a closer look and check out the art making process and progress.
After a productive school holidays completing murals at 4 schools term 4 has kicked off as busy as ever. It was great to be a part of Livingstone Christian College’s art talent workshop programme last week. I worked with several groups of eager students to explore stencil and aerosol art techniques. It was cool to see students taking part in numerous workshops taking place on campus including special effects make up, battle of the bands and pavement chalk art.
It was great to return to Robina State School and reconnect. I recall painting a mural with students in the early 2000’s as a part of a Gold Coast City Council Youth Arts project. The sports houses mural was completed in 2012 and the Robina Champions in 2016. This time around I was assigned the Tuckshop. I enjoyed the combination of sign painting and mural work which complemented the surrounds.
It was great to work with Burrowes State School in Marsden. Over the holidays I applied a mural to brighten up the Canteen. The brief was to do something colourful and incorporate Mr Responsible and Ms Safety superheroes into the design.
After completing murals at Regents Park State School’s Tuckshop and Uniform Shop earlier this year I recently returned for Book Week. It was a challenge painting the pavement and staircase but the result was well worthwhile. The 10 book titles were voted by the students and it was interesting to note a few classics in there I was familiar with as a youngster.
It was great to return to Upper Mt Gravatt State School after completing quite a few murals around the school grounds over the years. This time I was commissioned to create a backdrop for the newly established Community Garden. I really enjoyed contributing to this initiative as I believe every school should have some form of edible garden. It ties to many subjects and promotes healthy eating amongst an array of beneficial outcomes. Also whilst painting I noticed community members visiting to say hi to the chickens and tend to patches. Many local residents don’t have the space for gardens or animals so these types of spaces are a valuable resource, providing an opportunity that would not otherwise be accessible. A huge thanks to the Upper Mt Gravatt P&C for the opportunity to be involved and I can’t wait to to see the gardens continue to grow.
It was great to complete my first mural at Rosewood State School over the weekend. The brief was to clearly define the schools tuckshop with bold use of colour. The artwork really transformed the space and generated some fantastic responses from students, staff and the P&C. I am looking forward to creating more murals with Rosewood soon.
I was contacted by the Gympie West State School P&C committee to give a splash of paint to an original weatherboard tuck shop. Normally I would develop a design based on the clients brief but the committee forwarded such a comprehensive plan I put my time purely into the application. The striped colours had been selected to match the adjacent corridor and the supplied design included the 3 animals and position of chalk boards to be added soon. It was a lot of prep & painting, doing vertical stripes on weatherboard was challenging but the transformation looked great.
