Artist sought for Road Safety Centre mural

Published on 28 August 2024

A talented Tasmanian artist is being sought by the City of Launceston to create new mural artworks for the redeveloped Launceston Road Safety Centre.

The Council has been overseeing a significant redevelopment of the facility, which was originally built in 1980 inside a disused water reservoir.

The redevelopment was prompted by a landslip in the vicinity of the facility, which required major earthworks and other technically complex restoration works to the reservoir structure.

The project was further complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the contractor availability, escalating construction costs, and logistical and supply chain issues associated with it.

The original road safety centre featured murals of buildings, shopfronts and an ambulance and fire station.

City of Launceston Mayor Matthew Garwood said the Council would today call for Expressions of Interest from Tasmanian artists to reinterpret the old murals for a new generation of children.

"What we have here is a unique opportunity to bring an artistic vision to more than 236 square metres of wall space in the redeveloped Launceston Road Safety Centre, which we expect will be reopening to the public early next year," Mayor Garwood said.

"We're calling for Tasmanian artists to put in an Expression of Interest as part of this process for brand new murals to delight a new generation of Northern Tasmanian children.

"The redevelopment works at the Launceston Road Safety Centre are entering their final phases, and we're in the process of installing new play equipment including a fire truck, service station, steamroller, a boat and bulldozer."

Further details on the Expressions of Interest process can be found here, with submissions closing at 4pm on Friday, September 27.