SMUG.
Melbourne's Wall to Wall festival has just taken place, transforming neglected urban spaces into vibrant hubs of creativity through large-scale mural works by renowned artists.
Melbourne, known for its undeniably artistic flair, has long held the title of an international street art capital. So, it is hardly startling that the return of the Wall to Wall festival has attracted world-renowned artists to launch the city’s official street art precinct. Through a collaboration between Australia’s original street art festival, Wall to Wall and Kingston Council, seven of Australia’s top street artists and three acclaimed international artists have converged to adorn the area with an array of large-scale mural works over April 26-28th. The project transformed a long-forgotten industrial pocket of Mordialloc into a hub of creativity and expression, with street art covering the surrounding laneways and building facades to usher in a new era of artistic innovation and cultural revival.
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“Melbourne is known as a mecca for street art but still lacks well-curated areas where major artworks can be viewed one after another, like an outdoor gallery. The scale of Wall to Wall is unprecedented in Melbourne’s beachside suburbs and will help cement Mordi Village Arts and Cultural Precinct as a beacon of creativity and community engagement,” says Shaun Hossack, curator of Melbourne Street art collective, Juddy Roller.
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The initiative seeks to celebrate and showcase the impact and artistry behind street art while repurposing neglected urban spaces. Among the roster of artists are renowned figures like Smug, Adnate, Celeste Mountjoy (creator of Filthy Ratbag), Gorge Rose, and French artist Zoer, among others, who will contribute their talents, imbuing the precinct with their unique stylistic perspectives and designs.
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“Street art has emerged as one the leading forms of expression without bounds out there on the walls instead of stuck inside four walls,” says Jenna Davey-Burns, Kingston Mayor.
In typical artistic fashion, the colourful and eclectic murals that line the streets of Mordialloc sprung to life on Saturday April 27th during a block party presented by Wall to Wall and Mordialloc’s newest culinary precinct, Urban Ground. The event featured illusive DJs from across the nation, epicurean pop-ups, market stalls, workshops, open studios and hourly tours and tastings of contemporary spirits courtesy of renowned local distillery Saint Felix.
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