Street artists step up to keep City of Parramatta community connected

Western Sydney artists are creating vibrant footpath art in the City of Parramatta as part of a new Council initiative to help the community stay connected while social distancing.

Nadia Odlum, Kalanjay Dhir, Penelope Cain, Leanne Tobin and Jason Wing are transforming walkways in the Rosehill Ward for the Parramatta By Foot project, curated by Parramatta Artists’ Studios.

“With COVID-19 social distancing restrictions in place, Parramatta By Foot offers our community interesting street art to engage with when they head outdoors for exercise and fresh air,” City of Parramatta Lord Mayor Cr Bob Dwyer said.

"This fantastic Council project also provides emerging artists with an opportunity to showcase their work to a broader audience in a new and exciting way.”

The temporary footpath art installations include:

Nadia Odlum – ‘I’ll meet you here again’. The maze painted in the Wentworth Point Community Centre and Library forecourt is inspired by the historic labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral in France and explores how people move through public spaces during COVID-19. Installation is under way. Penelope Cain - ‘Gondwana forest footfall’. This footpath artwork at Harris Park Shops will explore the relationship between Australia and India through fossils from the Permian period. Kalanjay Dhir - ‘Immersion: Granville Patch’. This footpath artwork near Granville Station will deal with themes of spirituality and engaging with the natural environment as a settler-migrant. First Nations artists Leanne Tobin and Jason Wing – ‘Magari – to fish’. The collaborative work, to be painted on a section of the Parramatta River bike path near Eric Primrose Reserve, will explore the Darug people’s relationship with the Parramatta River.

Parramatta By Foot is an initiative of Rosehill Ward councillors Patricia Prociv, Steven Issa and Andrew Wilson, and funded under the Councillors Ward Initiatives program with the support of the Lord Mayor.

The Parramatta By Foot collection has been curated by Parramatta Artists’ Studios (PAS), the home of creative production in Western Sydney which offers professional development programs and subsidised studios to local artists.

Kalanjay Dhir is a current PAS artist, Nadia Odlum and Penelope Cain are former PAS artists, and Leanne Tobin (Darug) and Jason Wing (Biripi) are First Nations artists.

PAS is an initiative of the City of Parramatta and supported by the NSW Government through Create NSW.

For more information, click here.

For images of Nadia Odlum’s installation, as well as photos and bios of the artists, click here.