Taking Street Art to New Heights

By Danielle Pope

Image courtesy of Coorong District Council. Photo by Mitchell Stanbury
Image courtesy of Coorong District Council. Photo by Mitchell Stanbury
South Australia's largest art canvas is over 30 metres tall

South Australia’s largest art canvas is now complete, with five striking images of children at play, now covering the face of the 30-metre high Viterra grain silos at Coonalpyn.

The artworks were completed during February and March by world-renowned artist Guido van Helten. They now sit proudly along the busy Dukes Highway in the State’s Coorong District Council, and have become one of the most photographer artworks in national history.

In creating the work, artist van Helten has described the mural as, “representative of growth in creativity, community spirit and local identity…. This design brings together the simplicity of playful interactions with the silo’s structure architecturally and hopes to serve as a catalyst for creative thinking to the artwork’s audience and the community of Coonalpyn in the future.”

The Council’s Community and Corporate Director Nat Traeger said she knew this project would create an impact as soon as she saw the draft design concept. “From the outset, we wanted to create something unique,” Mrs Traeger said. “The final mural depicting Coonalpyn Primary School children offers a focus on the future and renewal.”

After keeping it under raps during painting, it can now be revealed that the five children on the silos are Kiarah Leske and Blake Thompson (aged six), Macey Jacobs and Reef Gregor (aged five) and Ciara Johnson, (aged nine).

Coorong District Council Chief Executive Office Vincent Cammell said this project brought about a sense of community pride and belief for the future for the once dwindling country town. “This project has exceeded everyone’s expectations, with online engagement alone reaching more than half a million people internationally,” he said.

Cammell also said that the project has had a positive impact on the community’s children. “From a community perspective, one of the greatest outcomes we have witnessed is what this project has meant to local children,” he said. “Our youngest residents are showing a sense of excitement about their town’s future, and renewed hope for what they can achieve themselves – a reflection of the mural’s theme.”

 

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