A new art installation will take shape in the central business district tomorrow, Tuesday 16 May, as part of Orange City Council's FutureCity Public Art Project.
Dappled Landscape by local artist Maria Shaw will be installed on the wall of the Mr Lim restaurant in McNamara Street.
INCLUSIVE: Artist Maria Shaw install her public artwork 'Dappled Landscape' in McNamara Street.
Orange Mayor Jason Hamling says this is the seventh artwork to join the growing public art trail through the city's CBD, stretching from McNamara Street to Anson Street.
"It's great to see such a diverse collection of murals and art installations taking shape in the inner city as we work to make our CBD much more than just a place where people go to work, but somewhere for visitors and residents alike to explore and enjoy," Cr Hamling said.
The artist Maria Shaw said she was inspired to create a work that brought nature into the urban environment by glimpses of eucalyptus leaves while walking her dog at Gosling Creek, that can be touched as well as looked at.
"This artwork is designed to be engaged by the audience in a tactile and visual fashion. By using a variety of textures, the audience is invited to explore the work by touch so they can feel the subtle variations of the surface," Maria Shaw said.
"Inclusivity has been a major consideration in the development of this work. Public art for the community means exploring ways to include all people, particularly those who may struggle in a mainstream art setting including vision-impaired people, colour-blind people and people who experience and process senses differently.
"The installation is positioned along the wall suitable to accommodate a variety of heights in the hope that most people will be able to feel some of the tiles."
The project is funded by the NSW Government's Infrastructure Grants Program and by Orange City Council under the FutureCity initiative.
