Exploring art space
A vibrant new road mural is brightening up Christchurch’s red zone, with the artist Dr Suits hoping it will help encourage people to explore the space.
An abstract artwork, Crossings, painted on Burwood’s Corserland Street – a road that leads through a range of public activities facilitated by landowners Toitū Te Whenua LINZ and leaseholders Life in Vacant Spaces.
The mural features geometric shapes that play on the way that roads remain in the red zone despite the absence of the houses they once served. A collaboration between Dr Suits and arts facilitators Watch this Space, it’s one of a series of creative additions to a nine-hectare area known as East x East.
“It heightens the impact of the road markings to a more purely aesthetic level, while also encouraging the viewer to enter the work and play across its shapes and lines,” says Watch this Space’s Dr Reuben Woods.
“It also plays on the natural environment by aligning with the shadows cast by nearby power poles.”
The road mural is complemented by another 80s-inspired artwork by local artists Porta and Bols – the latest addition to their ‘Power Up!’ interactive installation. Painted onto a shipping container, the new artwork uses a pixelated style reminiscent of a video game screen, inviting people to play the nearby ‘Power Up!’ treasure hunt game.
