PAINTING A WALL

23 June 2026

As I sit typing, I look out from my study at a very bland fence. There are some plants along our eastern border but I can’t see them when I’m sitting at my desk. Susan and I have discussed the idea of having a mural of some sort painted on the fence but we’re yet to decide on an artist let along to check the feasibility of the idea. That made a publication from the Melville City Council particularly useful. It covers all the murals in Applecross so on a fine morning, we headed off to explore them.

Some are simply words or patterns. Some are favourite birds such as swans and pelicans and black cockatoos (Applecross is a suburb on the Swan River). Some are faces in various layers of realism. Some are landscapes. And some didn’t even make it into the brochure. Two were buy Olive Cheng who made the beautiful carved and painted wooden vase that we bought last year. Most are by artists we’ve never heard of. But each contributes in an important way to the streetscape of the area. Regardless of whether we ever get a mural, I’m more than happy to my council rates going to support the artists and beautify our world.






 

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