Keshia Linyard is just 15 and already has her artwork on the streets after painting two Chorus cabinets over summer.
As well as the Chorus cabinet opposite Pics Peanut Butter World, Keshia has transformed a graffiti-covered cabinet on Richmond’s Florence St with a tui surrounded by native flowers. The white flowers in her design match the manuka tree that shades the cabinet.
Keshia had to complete NCEA exams before she could begin painting the cabinets – even though she was in Year 10 – and by then the metal boxes were hot work in the summer heat.
“The metal gets really hot so the paint dries before you can blend it. I could only paint it after the middle of the day when it wasn’t in the sun.
“I had to clean the graffiti off first – it wasn’t great graffiti and it was completely covered. So, it’s better now than what was there.”
Her design was inspired by Aotearoa’s wide range of native flora and fauna.
Motueka also has a beautiful piece of artwork on Parker St as part of the Chorus and Council art programme.
Artist Emma Egan, who transformed the Chorus cabinet, has titled it ‘Stingrays in Deep Blue Water’.
“Stingrays are a magical creature who are often sighted swimming off the coast of the Tasman region. They have been spotted in Port Motueka. These are also my favourite sea creatures and I love to paint them,” she says.
There’s four more Chorus cabinets to be beautified in the near future, so keep an eye out for some awesome local art.
Each year, Chorus invites local artists to submit design proposals to transform the metal cabinets and their artwork then goes to a selection panel.
