Street Art 14 11 13

1925 Grocery Mural, Waihi, New Zealand

This mural I have been working on sporadically for a year. It is almost finished and is the most ambitious painting I have yet done. Old people love it as all the products in the store are from 1925 or earlier although I used a little artistic licence in that some products are from a little later. It contains references to World  War One, the British Empire, the 1919 flu epidemic, the great age of Radio and products readily available over the counter include gelignite, ammunition, strychnine and whale oil. Politically Correct? No. God save the King....

Billboard Sculpture Installation

This was carved from one big block of polystyrene and was fixed to a billboard in central Auckland for a year. It was an advertisement for a new middle of the road radio station- more excitement in the middle of the road was the wording...
I was back at Hungry Creek Art school for a short time of study and Andrew Ventor, the Director of the school, had a son who owned some billboards in the city and had a client who wanted this on a billboard. Andrew and I went 50 50 on the job, he had the contract and setup money and the business acumen and I had the talent.
We figured out how to do it, how to frame and fix it and where to get the materials we needed and posed  Andrew's son and girlfriend in a photographer's studio that had a chaise longue and I took a ladder and a camera along and the couple embraced while I took a dozen or so photos of them from every possible angle.
Then began a frantic week of sculpting to a deadline while the Andrew made the mounting and fixing bits and pieces. It was a lot of fun and good money for an art student as I then was..

The Mural Artist Mural

At last, a new mural. Been ages since I painted a mural. A self portrait?
Could be, Would be, Should be like that -
'Cause Horton was faithful, he sat and he sat -
I love kid's art and kid's literature...

Moth Sculpture

I made this sign at Art School and donated it to the school and no-one seemed to care or take interest so I took it down, took it home and put it on my new house.
It's there still, on the Moth house in Sandspit and the upstairs where my studio was is now a Yoga studio run by the new owners of the house who made it a condition of sale of the house that the Moth remain there.
Nice to have ones work appreciated...

The Plunket Mural, Warkworth, New Zealand

Wilson Cement Works Mural

Wilson Cement works present day

Wilson Cement Works, Warkworth 1920. A photo taken from the riverbank opposite

Sandspit Wharf Mural

Waihi Murals

Warkworth Mural: Loren and Jenny

Snells Beach Mural, Renata's feathered friend

Tazman helps me colour in Renata's patch work jersey while her sister paints a giant butterfly

This mural was for Bruce, the chemist, who owns the building and Bronte and Tazman helped me out in the final stages by supplying genuine hand painted original children's art.

Bronte and Tazman's folks own the dairy on the other side of the wall so I got to know them and asked for their help, which they were pleased to give. Some other children's art I borrowed and carefully reproduced where it was too high for Bronte and Tazman to work safely

Town Hall Mural: 1911 Dance Floor, Warkworth New Zealand

click on picture to enlarge

click on picture to enlarge

click on picture to enlarge

Town Hall Mural, Helensville, New Zealand

Up on the third floor this one, I worked on this when builders were recladding the building and they did this wall first and left the scaffolding up for me. Nice.

Torbay Mural: Waiake, Torbay Shopping Centre, Auckland

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click on picture to enlarge

Library Mural: Orewa,

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click on picture to enlarge

click on picture to enlarge

Auckland Mural: Opposite Auckland Library, Lorne St.

The first major mural, right opposite Auckland Library, a great location