How professional mural artists can save our desolate cities

There is always a hot-topic debate surrounding the street-art that permeates most cityscapes around the world. Some choose to call it graffiti, some call it an eyesore and some others call them works of art. While there are some cases where ‘graffiti’ is certainly an appropriate term in terms of its artistic value and intent, for the most part, mural artists have been showing up in droves and transforming city skylines infinitely for the better.

The notion of ‘Street Art’ is slowly changing with every commissioned piece of legitimate ink being cascaded across the once blank canvases of alleyways and abandoned buildings. Taking a note from countries around the world that have dealt with graffiti with love instead of legislation, Australia could bring some life back to its towns and a much-needed boost to the arts industry thanks to mural artists.

How professional mural artists can save our desolate cities

Giving power to creators

Hiring mural artists for large-scale pieces in cityscapes is not exactly the newest of ideas, and in a world of ever-changing temperaments relating to the value of street art, it’s important to commission mural artists instead of letting it run amok.

There’re cities that are in desperate need of attraction on the other side of the pandemic, losing a majority of their foot traffic, it seems cities need a helping hand in getting people back – it seems as good a time as any to try new things.

By hiring mural artists to create pieces – there’s money going to creators, and more life in the cities.

Embracing the edge

It’s not hard to embrace a whole new world, oftentimes you’ll find the more amateur graffiti painters are simply looking for a way to express their own creativity and not being able to find an outlet to do so.

By embracing mural artists as legitimate enterprises, there’s an element of embracing the unknown and the fringes, of allowing a newfound excitement to be injected into young creators who may see commissioned pieces and hone their craft to become mural artists themselves.

By embracing the fringes, cities have a chance to become a city of artworks, of embracing change, and daring to be a little different.

A Berlin example

There’s no better example of this concept coming to life than with the mural artists of Berlin. The city that is known to be tattooed from head to toe with the artworks that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Even the infamous Berlin Wall has become a place of reflection and expression, showcasing an endless array of political, vibrant and colourful displays on a once oppressive divider between two fractured cities.

All throughout the city you’ll find examples of incredibly scaled works of art commissioned by mural artists that have cemented themselves as part of the city skyline and immeasurably added an element of unique beauty to the city itself.

A little closer to home

If you needed anymore examples on mural artists having an ability to bring vibrance to a city, look no further than Melbourne, the city that is known for its alleyway artworks.

Becoming a place to visit in the city that has a few caveats going for it, but the notion that creators can contribute to the already impressive city is an encouraging one to say the least.

While there is a long way to go for the world to get back to a state of normalcy. Australia can take a page from Berlin and Melbourne’s book and embrace the edge and give creators a chance to bring people back to the city streets.