The Laneway Collective

Local artists working on the Moir Street laneway.

Laneway Proposal

What

To do two collaborative street mural projects in two laneways.

Where

Moir Street Laneway in Perth and Grosvenor Road laneway in Mount Lawley.

Why

To bring colour and life to forgotten laneways.

Who

Prominent local street artists, including:

Stormie Mills

The Yok and Sheryo

Amok Island (and friends)

Fieldey

Arcadian Dreams

As well as local emerging street artists.

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How

Via the Laneway Collective, run by Mel McVee and David McLoughlin.

When

When funding can be secured.

Cost:

Completion of artwork down Moir Street Laneway:

$5000 Payment of 10 artists ($500 each) to assist with materials and time

costs.

Artwork down Grosvenor Street Laneway:

$5000 Payment of 10 artists ($500 each) to assist with materials and time

costs.

Total project costs: $10,000

Neighbours chatting about the artwork at the Moir Street laneway.

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Background

My name is Mel McVee and I’m a local artist living on Walcott Street. I work in a variety

of mediums, but more recently, my work has been wall murals.

Murals always fascinate me as an artist. They provide interest and colour to a boring or

unsightly public area – and can creating a more engaging landscape or location of

interest.

Also, when you are actively painting a mural, you are immersed into the community.

People want to talk, to discuss, and usually if they are kids, want to help. It takes very

little effort to get children involved, but the enjoyment is clearly written on their face

(the little girl in the image below begged her grandmother to come back in the afternoon

so she could paint some more).

The general public are intrigued with art, and, on the whole, always supportive.

The local kids helping out with the Leederville IGA Mural, 2014

A couple of weeks ago on a Sunday, my husband and I went to view the recent public

artworks completed for the FORM PUBLIC project. 30 artists (local, Australian and

International) were involved in creating 45 artworks around the city. It was huge for

Perth, but what was more surprising is the amount of people walking around on a

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Sunday, in an area of Perth which is usually dead, taking photos and reviewing artwork.

So the interest is there – why can’t we create more of this?

Then recently I completed a mural on the back wall of 19 Grosvenor Road in Mount

Lawley for a private commission based on a call out from the Beaufort Street Network.

The owners loved it and I was given the opportunity to hang out in the laneway, meeting

the locals as they walked through. It was quite the hub of activity, and a lot of people

stopped to say I was more than welcome to paint their wall next.

The before and after shots of the laneway wall I painted in Grosvenor Road.

So I started thinking about the other fences in the laneway and its bad reputation in

regards to drug use and graffiti. Maybe this could be changed through the use of art, as

a type of social experiment? Could we use art as a way of creating a positive place of

interest?

So to start with, I asked some prominent wall murals working in Perth today if they would

be interested in the project. Surprisingly the response was hugely positive. Artists that

expressed interest included:

Stormie Mills

The Yok and Sheryo

Amok Island (and friends)

Fieldey

Arcadian Dreams

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Artists left to right: Stormie Mills, The Yok and Sheryo, Amok Island, Fieldey, Arcadian

Dreams

Additionally, emerging street artists also expressed interest on a Facebook forum called

Art Lab (created and maintained by Luke Halpin, who organises the Perth Art Games).

I have also been in contact with David McLoughlin, who was primarily responsible for

getting Moir Street Laneway painted in partnership with FORM during the PUBLIC

project. He too is interested in collaborating on more laneway art projects, including

completing the laneway walls along the Moir Street laneway. So we created a new group,

the Laneway Collective.

Neighbours mingle and watch the artists at work.

Ideally we would like to pay artists for materials and at least a little of their time.

David and I would run the project on a volunteer basis, organise consent forms from

home owners, sign up artists, and searching for additional funding and sponsorship to

continue the work to new laneways.

A breakdown of the proposed funding is as follows:

Cost:

Completion of artwork down Moir Street Laneway:

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$5000 Payment of 10 artists ($500 each) to assist with materials and time

costs.

Artwork down Grosvenor Street Laneway:

$5000 Payment of 10 artists ($500 each) to assist with materials and time

costs.

Or alternatively, we would also be interested in perhaps a dollar for dollar contribution

whereas if resident and external sponsorship is received for the project, City of Vincent

will match the amount.

This project promises to work with land owners and residents to bring colour and life to

forgotten spaces and create a better local community.

Thanks very much for your time.

Mel McVee

0406 431 664

melmcvee@hotmail.com

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