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PLACEMAKING PILOT PROJECTS
During last financial year, a series of Placemaking Pilot Projects,
linked to Council’s community facilities, were undertaken
to create a “sense of place” for each location. Libraries and
community centres are important local hubs across the
Council area.
The
Enfield Community Centre’s
Placemaking Activation
Project
has created a fabulous bird and butterfly mural on the
front facade of the building facing Regency Road and colourful
mural panels under the front entrance veranda. Artists Therese
Williams, Fran Callen and Debra Morley engaged with local
community groups and local residents on the design of the mural.
Responding to community requests for the Enfield Community
Centre walls to be colourful and vibrant was integral to the
process.There has been a lot of positive feedback about the
murals. A local resident said the murals “brighten her day” every
time she sees them.
Adjacent to Lefevre Community Stadium, a project at the
Osborne Skate Park
has resulted in a new mural, information
chalk boards and a new seat. Council’s Youth Engagement Officer
consulted with local schools, skate park users and parents and
found that there was strong interest in seating, shade and public
art for the site. Artists Kaspar Schmidt Mumm and Emmaline
Zanelli conducted a wonderful community engagement event
on Saturday 9 June, featuring painting while skating, videography,
mural art workshops, skate workshops by Sk8 Therapy, catering
by local businesses Red Lime Shack and social enterprise Café
Options in the Port, and music by local band Somnium and DJ
Slowmango. The designs from the workshops were incorporated
into the final mural.
The Pilot Project based out of
Semaphore Library
aimed to
celebrate the area’s “hidden histories” by creating temporary
public art works (paste-ups) within the Semaphore Library and
Semaphore Road area, sourced from historical and contemporary
images and stories of Semaphore. Artist Rachel Harris worked
with the Port Adelaide Historical Society, Semaphore Mainstreet
Association, City of PAE’s Library Service Local History
Collection and the Semaphore community. Semaphore’s Hidden
Histories will be on display in 14 locations along Semaphore
Road during August for the SALA (South Australia Living Artists)
Festival and beyond, due to popular demand.
Staff of the
Port Adelaide Library
had long noticed that members
of the public were accessing the free libraryWi-Fi out of hours
by sitting in and around the entrance to the library. Access to
the freeWi-Fi requires library membership and is a critical part
of contemporary library service provision. Staff monitored and
documented this activity over time, including through informal
conversation with library users. Through this process it became
evident that this un-conventional use of the service presented
as a placemaking opportunity to welcome and invite people to
do so in comfort. Now, if you walk past Port Adelaide Library
you will see chairs, tables and potted plants creating a welcoming
space to enjoy the sun and watch the world go by. With the
library just there, customers are not short of reading material
and can readily log on to the freeWi-Fi. The upgrade of this
area is part of our Placemaking Pilot Project, turning spaces into
welcoming places and helping to make PAE a place where people
love to be.
Hidden histories Artist Rachel Harris
Artists Debra Morley and Therese Williams
PAE
fact
In August over 470 local artists
were involved in SALA