By Jolene Ogle
The Noosa Junction could soon be rid of unsightly graffiti, with plans for council and business owners to dedicate blank walls to street art.
Councillor Jess Glasgow recently visited Sydney where he was inspired by the plethora of street art murals and said it was time Noosa harnessed the talent of local youths in the form of public works.
“We’re spending about $4000 a month removing graffiti at the Giraween sports centre,” he said. “That’s $4000 of ratepayer money just gone. Why don’t we harness this and give them (artists) somewhere to express themselves.”
Cr Glasgow said he imagined the project would start with privately owned walls before moving onto council assets such as the Burgess Street underpass.
“Council is completely on board. We need the community to get on board, too,” he said.
Noosa Junction Traders Association member and Junction 2 co-owner Gary Swan said there had been an increase in graffiti in the Junction.
“It starts at the former bowls club and once one tagger starts, they all start. The wall in front of our business has been done about four times and each time it has to be painted over. That’s a cost to the community,” he said. “We need to look at other avenues,” he added.
Mr Swan said the idea for more street art in the Junction was about directing local artistic talent into a more productive activity.
“It’s about giving young people a way to express their work,” he said.
“At the moment, young local artists can only express their work through graffiti, and we want to offer them something else. We want to give them legal spaces where they can explore their creativity and connect with other creatives. They can learn how creative industries can be a career.”
Mr Swan said public art wasn’t a bad thing, and it was about providing a positive avenue for young artists to express themselves.
The first street art piece will be privately funded with the works to be located near Mr Swan’s business Junction 2.
Mr Swan said any local business owners and landlords who had blank walls or current issues with graffiti in the Junction were encouraged to get in touch and donate their space for public art work, gary@junction2.co.
