‘Green man’ to protect Akatarawa Road culvert from tagging

A mural painted on an Akatarawa culvert wall has recently been completed in an effort to curb tagging in the area.

UPPER HUTT, Wellington NZ, 15 OCT 2014—Not quite a modern-day scarecrow, a ‘Green man’ mural was completed in late September on a culvert wall on Akatarawa Road. The spot had previously been a target for tagging but now sports a more positive form of art by professional artist Anna Jenkins.

Akatarawa Road winds through Upper Hutt’s Akatarawa Valley connecting the northern boundary of the city with the Kapiti Coast and State Highway 1 at Waikanae. Because the road effectively sits on the side of the hills it can be prone to blockages from slips. The culvert, which is found along the road between Karapoti and Staglands Wildlife Reserve, was installed on the site in the late 1970s after an event which came to be known as the “Big Blue Slip.” Although in recent times, efforts had been made to blend the culvert in with its surroundings by painting it forest-green, it had still been target for vandals and graffiti.

Local artist, Anna Jenkins was approached by Upper Hutt City Council to see if the problem could be mitigated by a similar method recently used on Chorus street cabinets throughout the Hutt Valley. This partnership between the Hutt Valley city councils, Chorus, and local training provider, The Learning Connexion, saw artists paint thematic murals on the street cabinets to deter tagging.

“To a large extent, the project has been successful,” says Upper Hutt City Council’s Parks and Reserves Officer, Conrad King. “These boxes were once targets of prolific vandalism but this has significantly reduced since the artwork was applied.”

Council’s Roading team decided to employ the same principle for the culvert in Akatarawa, resulting in the 5 x 2.2 metre artwork by Anna Jenkins. Ms Jenkins was approached by Council because of her work on the Chorus project.

The Green man, although an artistic work, is designed to complement the surrounding bush environment so as not to look out of place. According to Ms Jenkins, feedback has been very positive, with some locals stopping to chat while she was working on site.

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