Upper Hutt youth add two more murals to city’s growing collection

A collaboration between Upper Hutt City Council and two youth agencies has seen the addition of more murals to the city and more skills to the participating volunteers.

UPPER HUTT, Wellington NZ, 20 MAY 2016—Young people from across Upper Hutt have worked together to successfully install two vibrant murals that depict the special character of the communities in which they are located.

The mural projects were made possible through the Ministry of Youth Development’s Youth Partnership Fund. The aim of this fund is to support young people in our community to develop skills, knowledge, and experience to participate confidently in their communities.

Capital Training and Vibe were approached by Upper Hutt City Council seeking volunteers to work on two separate mural projects. After attending two information sessions, eight young people opted in to the projects—forming one group from Capital Training and another group from Heretaunga College.

Each group of young people visited several sites throughout Upper Hutt considering the pros and cons of each site with support from professional artists Chimp and Claire Rye. After choosing one site each, the groups, with support from Council set to work gaining legal permission from the site owners and surveying the surrounding communities to gain insight into what people would like to see in a mural.

Armed with community feedback, the two groups of young people worked collaboratively with Chimp and Rye to create a design concept for each mural. They also collaborated with the artists and Council’s Community Development Advisor, Denise Johnson to identify materials required, health and safety considerations, and other factors that would lead to a successful installation of the murals.

“Young people involved in this project took away some really valuable learning, it will be something they remember for years to come,” says Tom Kelleher, Youth Guarantee Manager at Capital Training. “Our educators saw gains in confidence for each of our students that were involved in this project as they learned new skills and then got to use them in a real life context.”

The mural created by the young men who attend Capital Training is located at Fraser Crescent School. The mural created by young women from Heretaunga College is located on the corner of Ararino and Tawai Street.

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