CBD laneway Russell Lane was transformed last week when Sydney street artist Jason Wing and a team of local teenagers decorated its plain walls with a mural.
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Mr Wing has been commissioned by Goulburn Mulwaree Council to paint the mural in the laneway space, and invited local kids who were interested to help him with the project.
He also worked with local youth through the ‘Be Seen, Be Heard’ initiative, run by Council’s Youth Opportunities Officer, Alysha House.
He started conducting workshops at the Goulburn Regional Art Gallery on Monday and progressively taught the kids the finer points of stencil art and calligraphy throughout the week.
“I must stress that this work is not graffiti, as it enables self empowerment, self expression, the sharing of skills and also adds value to the cultural tapestry of Goulburn’s CBD,” Mr Wing said.
“The kids cut out all the stencils, they’ve designed the mural, they’ve done graphic design, layouts, learnt about colour theory, etc. They basically did everything from scratch. It’s a pretty ambitious lane, as it’s about 30m metres long.”
Mr Wing also emphasised that local kids will feel like they have a sense of ‘ownership’ of the laneway.
“Now the kids will get to ‘own’ the laneway and be able to show their friends,” he said.
“We’ve invigorated a public space, and a lot of parents were quite surprised how the kids stuck to the task, committed to it and did something new to get such an amazing result.”
He also emphasised that the artwork would create more of a sense of safety for people who walk up and down it.
“It’s going to make the laneway appear safer, just because it’s more vibrant, more welcoming,” he said.
“By activating the place, hopefully kids and adults alike will be able to gather in the lane and congregate.”
Mr Wing takes a lot of his artistic cues from his heritage, which is an unusual mix of Chinese, Aboriginal and Australian.
Goulburn Donut Shop owner Jacquie Howard, whose shop is in Russell Lane, was really impressed with the standard of the artwork.
“My staff and I are really ecstatic about it all. It also gives the kids a bit of ‘ownership’ of their town and to say ‘we did that’,” she said.
Ms Howard also made a ‘donut tower’ for the kids and adults to enjoy whilst painting.
Mayor Geoff Kettle and General Manager Warwick Bennett came to inspect the work and were impressed with how it had all come together.
“It’s certainly brightened up Russell Lane, and from talking to both business owners and members of the public, it will certainly breathe life back into the laneway which is a vital addition to our CBD,” he said.