Landmark 400m Sydney mural: Mural which tells the story of Sydney from black and whitea could be covered in advertising signs
- 4 years ago
A much-loved mural which tells the story of Sydney from black and white viewpoints could be destroyed and replaced with advertising signage, the artwork's creator fears.
The mural along both sides of the underground Domain Express Walkway in the city has been targeted by vandals and may be removed rather than repaired.
The moving walkway, which was once the longest in the world at 207 metres in each direction, links the Domain parking station with Hyde Park.
Every day the travelator carries thousands of commuters to and from the central business district in a five-minute journey many spend admiring the painting.
The mural includes one of Australia's first illuminated public sculptures, created years before such installations became popular around the world.
'Tunnel Vision' features imagery of original Aboriginal occupancy, the First Fleet's arrival and today's multicultural Sydney and was painted by artist Tim Guider in 1996.
'It's a portrait of Sydney,' Mr Guider said. 'And now they want to destroy it.'
Several Aboriginal artists and 14 students from Woolloomooloo's Plunkett Street Public School also contributed to the mural, which took three months to create.
With all my public artworks I've invited Aboriginal participation,' Mr Guider said. 'I would not have created that public artwork without Aboriginal involvement.'
'I really like the fact that the mural is a combination of cultures.'
At the Hyde Park entrance to the walkway is a wall sculpture which shows a First Fleet ship tethered to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which merges with the Sydney Opera House.
The most startling element of the work is an elderly Aboriginal man portrayed holding onto the steelwork of the bridge as if gripping the bars of a prison cell.
The mural also shows other Aboriginal motifs, children of various races playing together, beach scenes, inner-city housing, stands of gum trees and a Van Gogh-inspired night sky.
Mr Guider did not believe those responsible for the mural's maintenance understood the work or cared if it was destroyed.
'They've got no idea what that mural's really about,' Mr Guider said.
'A five-year-old could relate to those images and so could a university professor. It has multiple layers. It reaches people on those different levels.'
One of the reasons Mr Guider originally took on the project was that he believed its location would protect it from damage.
'I jumped at this one because it was underground,' he said. 'I knew it would last for years and years and years.'
The mural has been defaced with graffiti which Mr Guider has offered to repair but no one has been prepared to pay for that or to even guarantee the work will survive.
'They're not allowing me to fix the graffiti and it's reached an absolutely obscene level,' Mr Guider said.
'I wouldn't care if it wasn't my mural and it's artistic merit wasn't that great. It's part of our cultural history and we really need to preserve public artwork.
'If they want to destro
The mural along both sides of the underground Domain Express Walkway in the city has been targeted by vandals and may be removed rather than repaired.
The moving walkway, which was once the longest in the world at 207 metres in each direction, links the Domain parking station with Hyde Park.
Every day the travelator carries thousands of commuters to and from the central business district in a five-minute journey many spend admiring the painting.
The mural includes one of Australia's first illuminated public sculptures, created years before such installations became popular around the world.
'Tunnel Vision' features imagery of original Aboriginal occupancy, the First Fleet's arrival and today's multicultural Sydney and was painted by artist Tim Guider in 1996.
'It's a portrait of Sydney,' Mr Guider said. 'And now they want to destroy it.'
Several Aboriginal artists and 14 students from Woolloomooloo's Plunkett Street Public School also contributed to the mural, which took three months to create.
With all my public artworks I've invited Aboriginal participation,' Mr Guider said. 'I would not have created that public artwork without Aboriginal involvement.'
'I really like the fact that the mural is a combination of cultures.'
At the Hyde Park entrance to the walkway is a wall sculpture which shows a First Fleet ship tethered to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which merges with the Sydney Opera House.
The most startling element of the work is an elderly Aboriginal man portrayed holding onto the steelwork of the bridge as if gripping the bars of a prison cell.
The mural also shows other Aboriginal motifs, children of various races playing together, beach scenes, inner-city housing, stands of gum trees and a Van Gogh-inspired night sky.
Mr Guider did not believe those responsible for the mural's maintenance understood the work or cared if it was destroyed.
'They've got no idea what that mural's really about,' Mr Guider said.
'A five-year-old could relate to those images and so could a university professor. It has multiple layers. It reaches people on those different levels.'
One of the reasons Mr Guider originally took on the project was that he believed its location would protect it from damage.
'I jumped at this one because it was underground,' he said. 'I knew it would last for years and years and years.'
The mural has been defaced with graffiti which Mr Guider has offered to repair but no one has been prepared to pay for that or to even guarantee the work will survive.
'They're not allowing me to fix the graffiti and it's reached an absolutely obscene level,' Mr Guider said.
'I wouldn't care if it wasn't my mural and it's artistic merit wasn't that great. It's part of our cultural history and we really need to preserve public artwork.
'If they want to destro