Street artists transform Brisbane ahead of 2032 Olympics

World Half Full

Oct 2

3 min read

CULTURE/ANIMALS

Jarad Danby has transformed public spaces around the world with his art, and now, for the first time, he has a mural in his home city of Brisbane, Queensland. His work inside a 200-metre tunnel in the inner-city suburb of Newstead is part of a push to showcase local talent ahead of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“When the world comes to Brisbane, it’s important we tell real Brisbane stories, and who is better to do that than our own artists?” says street art curator Matthew Tervo. “They can give you an artwork that gives you a sense of that place, so when people come to Brisbane they leave with a sense of who we really are.”

In a bid to reflect the area’s history in his artwork, Danby visited a local museum and photographed items to incorporate into his work. He then created a scribble grid on the wall, which gave him a reference point to transfer an image he composed on his computer onto the wall at the correct scale.

“I wanted to represent the future of Brisbane and how abundant it is going to be in the lead-up to the Olympics,” he says. His mural features fresh fruit, and he has taken inspiration from the surrounds with a process behind each element.

“This is my first public piece in Brisbane, so that was really special, and I was able to bring my mum and dad here, and they were jubilant,” he notes.

The mural has been funded by Brisbane City Council, with plans to do more in the next six years ahead of the Games.

“As all eyes are on Brisbane for 2032 it’s important to have projects like this that showcase who we are as a city,” says Brisbane Councillor Julia Dixon.

While street art is created for the public, it’s also helping offset the cost of graffiti. And it’s proving to work at an underpass in Toowong where the council was having to cover up graffiti and maintain its beige walls before it became a mural. The council was spending $25,000 annually to remove graffiti around the tunnel.

“The budget per square metre wasn’t a lot, so we innovated and used recycled paint to achieve the outcome,” Tervo says. “The metric we were given for success is if we halved the amount of spend removing vandalism, then it would be considered successful. So far, there’s only been one instance of vandalism in six months.”

Tervo says the focus should be on creating uniquely Brisbane street art as opposed to becoming “Melbourne-lite”.

“It’s awesome for street artists but also the public because it creates a link between nature and buildings . . . it adds so much culture and life to a city,” Danby says. “Brisbane should be on the map as a world-class street art city because we have some of the best artists and so many blank walls as well.”