Street art is dotted all over the walls of the inner west of Sydney. A Fish chases a butterfly in Petersham. A river settler gallops a horse on Marrickville Road. No one walking along King Street in Newtown could miss the face of Martin Luther King high above the pavement with the famous opening words of his immortal “ I have a dream” speech. There is pictorial history of Cockatoo island on a sidestreet in Birchgrove. It might be surprise to find out that these art works and a hundred others have been supported by an initiative of the Inner West Council, called Perfect Match
For several years the Council has been matching residents, businesses and community organisations which want to put paintings on their outside walls, with local artists who have the skill and imagination to make it happen.
The council sees the programme as a contribution to its support for local artists and the creative industries. For the council it is a way of both enhancing public places and the environment of the inner west while celebrating its history through what the artworks depict. It also has a very practical objective of reducing illegal graffiti-ing and tagging on walls
To find out more about how the programme works in practice Eastside’s Mick Paddon met with the artist who painted the Cockatoo Island street art in Birchgrove, Kelly Wallwork . They met in the side street looking at the artwork. They talked about how the artwork was developed, the images in the mural, the role of the council, and why programs like this are important to local artists.
All the details of the Inner West Council’s Perfect Match program with maps of where all the artworks can be found, are on their website at <https://www.innerwest.nsw.gov.au/live/living-arts/arts-and-cultural-programs/perfect-match>
This podcast was first broadcast on the new show on Eastside, From the Chamber, on Thursday April 15th