By Mikayla van Loon
Mooroolbark’s newest mural has been taking shape over the last week and a half, breathing life and colour back into the library precinct.
Renowned large scale mural artist Jimmy Dvate has been transforming the former brick exterior building into a masterpiece as part of a collaboration with Murrup Biik Public Art, an initiative of Wurundjeri Elder Aunty Kim Wandin and Christine Joy.
“The building originally was all brick and it was then organised to be rendered to give it the smooth finish for me to paint on,” Dvate said.
“We also organised with them to do the angles [with brick] which also corresponds to some of the Indigenous pattern work that we’re working with in the background and it’s also a nice architectural feature that leaves some of the older brick so it shows the history of the building and the old and then the new with the mural.”
What started as a blank rendered canvas was sketched onto to produce the main imagery to allow Dvate to apply the base colours and later add details.
Dvate said the base is usually made up of six colours but when finished will be roughly 60 colours to create definition through layers.
The monumental public artwork is titled “Yerrin Biik,” which means “Bush Country” in the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung language and it encapsulates Mooroolbark’s rich history while celebrating its local flora and fauna.
Working primarily with native and endangered flora and fauna within his murals, Dvate sees that as awareness.
“Probably the last eight years or so I’ve focused purely on flora and fauna work. I do a lot of research and investigation into the species I choose,” he said.
“I try to use threatened species where I can to raise a bit of education so everything on this wall is all threatened species apart from the wrens which have a spiritual connection to Aunty Kim.
“They’re all from this area. There’s the Kilsyth orchid and they’re all very locally based. You’ve got the Gang Gangs on the back there. So it’s trying to raise awareness and highlight to people what’s in their backyards.”
That’s why Dvate also likes producing murals that are placed with nature and having Hookey Park as the backdrop was the perfect setting for this project.
Native plants will also be planted at the base of the mural, adding to its impact.
Originally giving a timeline of three weeks to complete the project, Dvate said a few days of rain set it back but it should be completed by the middle of November.
It has certainly been a project keeping the community interested throughout its stages of completion, Dvate said.
“You get the people who come past every day and we’ll have a chat and love seeing the progress and then other people who are only in town once a week and they’re like, ‘Wow, you’ve done so much’.
“It’s really nice and especially the further out of the city you get, the more community based it is and the more people want to try and support you and see if you need anything and offer cups of coffee.”
