Carterton artist colours Chorus' world

BRIGHT TOUCH: Carterton artist Adair "Angelo" Davis works on her Chorus cabinet art mural near South End School.PHOTO/ANDREW BONALLACK

"Concepts of Carterton" is how an artist sums up her contribution to Chorus' national cabinet art programme.

Mural artists throughout New Zealand have been invited to submit designs to Chorus to decorate its telecommunications cabinets, particularly those frequently hit with graffiti.

Artists are paid $1000 for their work.

Carterton artist Adair Davis, who said that, creatively, she would rather be known as Adair "Angelo", was spotted putting the finishing touches to Carterton's only mural, near South End School yesterday.

Her design includes balloons, wheelbarrow races, daffodils and the Carterton clock tower - "lots of colour and animation and fun", she said.

"Murals are the love of my life. If I could get employed doing murals, that would be it. I would be as happy as a pig in the proverbial."

But it's not just for her.

"This is good for the community. If you can get children involved, it gives them a sense of ownership, of self-esteem - and less incentive to paint over it."

A lot of the work is done in her mind: "Most of the work is the design concept, and once you've done that, you've about done the job.

"You create a small version, then transfer it to the wall. It's incredibly mathematical. And it has to be pleasing to the eye."

She thinks Chorus should do lots more, and she would certainly sign up for it.

"I must put in a plug for Resene paints - without them, we wouldn't have these wonderful colours."

She has done murals as big as 50m high, so this is one of her smallest works.

"But it's very satisfying."

Chorus' community relations adviser Jo Seddon said nine boxes had been done in Masterton, two by Makoura College. Wairarapa College was taking on another on Pownall St.

Ms Seddon said the South End cabinet, one of only two Chorus cabinets in Carterton, was chosen because it was prone to tagging.

She thanked Masterton mayor Lyn Patterson for giving it a push: "She put it in her column and then we had artists coming in - it was great."