HNZ looks for artist to create overbridge mural

Dunedin Hospital’s pedestrian bridge over Cumberland St will soon be getting a new look. PHOTO:...
Dunedin Hospital’s pedestrian bridge over Cumberland St will soon be getting a new look. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSON
The search is on to find an artist to paint a 26m-long mural over a busy central Dunedin location.

Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand (HNZ) is looking for someone to decorate Dunedin Hospital’s Cumberland St overbridge.

The artwork, which will span an area 1.4m high and 26m wide, will be made with support from the Dunedin Street Art Trust.

In a notification posted by the trust on social media, HNZ said the mural would be visible from rooms where patients received cancer treatment.

"Cancer is described and recognised as a stressful time in one’s life and we wish to do everything in our power to minimise this burden and create a nurturing space that is focused on people.

"We envisage a bright, colourful and fun image - a conversation piece, something aesthetically pleasing, that conveys warmth and strength."

Patients, families and hospital staff had given feedback, the notification said.

They wanted a mural that referenced water or the harbour, the natural world and local mana whenua narratives.

The artist would have creative freedom to interpret the guidelines, with the final design approved by the organisers.

Deadline for applications - including an indicative design sketch - was Sunday. 

"The final selection will be made based on the artist’s experience with large-scale mural work, working within strict safety protocols, and examples of previous work," the notification said.

Project organisers would seek funding through community grants and donations.

Installation of the mural was scheduled for February next year.

A traffic management plan and scaffold installation were among the organiser responsibilities listed.

HNZ did not answer further questions asked by the Otago Daily Times neither last week nor this week.

fiona.ellis@odt.co.nz

 

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