Perth Voice Interactive

VINCENT council is claiming fame for being the leader in street arts across Perth.

The council last week published a You Tube video about its successful mural program, which involves investing anything from $500 to $10,000 (for large pieces such as that at Luna cinemas) for urban art.

Last financial year, the council commissioned 21 murals—13 were done in the past six months. In 2013/14, it put in money for three.

The largesse compares to only three local government-backed works at Bayswater council, three in Stirling and 18 in Perth since July 2013.

Vincent mayor John Carey says the council is ahead of the rest because it’s “one of the first to provide funding to businesses” for art and has a good relationship with creative groups such as Laneway Collective.

Staffers at Bayswater have asked Vincent for advice.

“Street art has the incredible ability to transform a public space, create more interest and encourage more activity in streets without costing ratepayers a lot of money,” Mr Carey says.

Council spokeswoman Shenade Unicomb says the city also matches up artists with traders for privately commissioned work—for example, artist Amok Island’s painted fish on seafood shop Kailis Bros in Leederville.

“It’s hard to put an exact number of how many murals have gone up as some building owners commission pieces directly,” Ms Unicomb says.

Illustrator and urban artist Sarah McCloskey painted a mural just off Oxford Street, Leederville, as part of FORM’s “Public 2015” project in April.

The 23-year-old says exposure from that piece has led to more work in the city, and plans to work with more local traders.

FORM public project officer Rhianna Pezzaniti agrees Vincent is doing some good things in the art scene.

“They’re definitely leading the way in terms of volume.”

by EMMIE DOWLING

VINCENT’S NEW STREET ART GUIDE
• Oxford Street, Leederville—at least 14 murals have gone up in this street over the past year
• Beaufort Street, Mt Lawley—walk down Beaufort Street towards Highgate. Also check out the lane behind Grosvenor Road, near the Flying Scotsman locomotive.
• Around Scarborough Beach Road, and Fairfield and Coogee streets in Mt Hawthorn artists did three murals here in the past year.