So you’ve heard of local artists Lister, Numskull and Skulk, but how many times have you stopped to look at their work? To contemplate the skill, style and progression of these paste-up, roller art and mural painters? On Culture Scout’s three-hour walking tour of the Inner West, you learn a little more about the art you already know – like the iconic, heritage listed ‘I Have a Dream’ mural (did you know one of the artists served time for murder?) – and a lot more about smaller tagging, stickering and vigilante paint jobs of Newtown and Enmore.
Our guide Craig (a cartoon artist by the name ‘Bunkwaa’) points out the artworks we may have missed, introducing us to Krispie’s handpainted cartoon stickers; artist Will Coles' metallic gun cleverly camouflaged into its surroundings; and pictures creatively painted inside grey squares left behind by council clean-ups on Goddard Street. But there’s also time to appreciate the works right under our noses, like Lister’s dancing ballerinas on the Hub building, or the sweeping layers of pink, blue and turquoise of ‘Save Our Coral Reef’ by Phibs and George Rose – an artwork commissioned by the council and covering signposts to blend into the urban environment. We bet even residents would learn something new.
