Jackson Street Comes Alive

Jackson Street Comes Alive

More than 50 people braved the elements on Thursday for the official launch of Petone’s newest community art initiative, the Blank Canvas Project.

The brain child of Petone business Scratch Design, the project aims to bring the town’s main street alive with colour, culture and diversity with commissioned art pieces to feature on the glass curtain wall at 1 Jackson Street.

Guests at Thursday’s launch braved the elements, enjoying coffee from the vintage “Ripe” coffee truck while taking in the first commissioned piece as part of Petone’s Blank Canvas Project

Each piece will feature for four months before being refreshed with a new, exciting commission.

Scratch Design’s James Walshe says public feedback was extremely positive and despite a gloomy day for Thursday’s launch event, the project was “fantastically received”.

The first commissioned piece by Wellington-based art Kumi is a vibrant “P” for Petone.
She says of her piece, “P for Petone includes vivid colours to express Petone's bright future and vibrancy. Unique objects represent Petone's history and its position as a lively place”.

Mr Walshe says with the Petone retail and business districts set to welcome some of New Zealand’s large-scale stores, including Bunnings, Rebel Sport and Kmart, the idea was to create a sense of balance with the inclusion of large outdoor art pieces that could be enjoyed by the wider community. He hopes the project will eventually grow, securing additional spaces along Jackson Street, ultimately becoming a street art trail.

The Blank Canvas Project, which has been two years in the making, will continue approaching artists to submit work to be considered for the project. Works chosen are then digitally transferred onto a vinyl print that can be easily applied and removed from the Jackson Street glass curtain wall.

Mr Walshe extended his thanks to all those who attended Thursday’s launch, the Sign Foundry and Petone Rotary who have confirmed their funding support for the next commission in April 2016. He also invited local artists and those interested in sponsoring future works to get in touch.

ENDS

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