Perth Voice Interactive

MICHELLE SUTHERLAND wants Bayswater council to set aside $80,000 for urban art in the city.

Impressed by Vincent city council’s commitment to installing public art within its boundaries the councillor wants her own city to follow suit.

Bayswater already has a public art scheme where developers of any commercial, non-residential or mixed use project costing more than $1 million contribute at least one per cent of the cost to the creation of a public art piece.

But Cr Sutherland wants council to take the initiative and not to be reliant on development applications.

“I think places like Russell Road in Morley are pretty shoddy looking and are crying out for a mural and some artwork to brighten it up,” she says.

“The city centre in Morley has got nothing and would really benefit from little installations and pieces like they have on Beaufort Street.

“We have already started to make inroads by installing a mural at the Mt Lawley subway, and the development at Ross’s Salvage Yard will have an artwork through the city’s public art scheme.”

Cr Sutherland says employing an arts officer would gobble up funds and she wants the elected council to decided how the $80,000 should be split across different town centre sites.

“I think some areas like Maylands would suit statues or installations and some areas, like Morley, would be more conducive to murals,” she says.

“We have to look at what works best for each location.”

Celebration—a series of silver spheres in the civic centre’s reflection pond—is one of the few public art pieces in Bayswater.

It was nicknamed “D’Orazio’s Balls” after former mayor, the late John D’Orazio.

Cr Sutherland’s art motion will come before council later this month.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK