Wellington artist, Kiran Parbhu, has unveiled his award-winning mural in Brooklyn, Wellington. The mural, titled ‘Power’ is located on the side of a substation on Brooklyn Road, which is one of the main commuter routes from the city to Brooklyn and the southern suburbs.

Kiran was one of ten winners from across the country who took out the top prize in Keep New Zealand Beautiful’s Resene Nature Murals Competition 2020.

The mural is approximately 74 square metres in size and features New Zealand native birds including a Kiwi, Kākā, Hihi and Kererū together with lightning bolts and the words ‘We have the power to change the future’.

"I entered the Resene Nature Murals Competition earlier this year being in a position where my job looked likely to be on reduced hours due to Covid-19. Art is just a hobby for me and I have never painted anything on this scale before, but I really liked the theme of nature and I really wanted to capture the energy of the many Wellingtonians who have worked hard to enhance the local biodiversity over the last 20 years. The lightning bolts and words on the mural are a playful attempt to acknowledge the site being on a power substation, but also an attempt to tie in the idea of the energy and efforts that people have made. The birds are symbols of what has been achieved so far,” says Kiran.

"I have completed the mural on my days off and I have really enjoyed the challenge. I have also enjoyed meeting the local community who have been very supportive. I would like to say a big thank you to Transpower for letting me use the site and to Keep New Zealand Beautiful and Resene for making the mural possible!”

The Resene Nature Murals Competition, which is part of the Paint New Zealand Beautiful programme, ran from April to June 2020, with artists encouraged to submit mural designs which included an environmental message. Artists from around the country sent in their designs, with the top ten murals selected based on their environmental message, enhancement of the community, and originality/creativity.

Winning designs receive a $1000 grant upon completion, along with a $750 Resene paint voucher and other materials to paint their mural.

Keep New Zealand Beautiful CEO, Heather Saunderson, said: "This is the fourth year we have partnered with Resene to run our Nature Murals competition and we were absolutely amazed by both the quality and quantity of entries this year. Research has shown that the beautification of public spaces deters vandalism and anti-social behaviour such as littering and graffiti and increases civic pride. We’re proud to partner with Resene again on this programme and we’re excited to see these murals come to life and beautify their little corners of New Zealand.”

The ten winning artists and regions are listed below, with their designs visible on the Keep New Zealand Beautiful website.
• Brigita Botma, Keep Our Home Clean NZ!, Auckland
• Corey Harbrow, Adventures of Lucky n’ Bobs, Christchurch
• Elise Grangier and James Mitchell, Mind the Balance, Wellington
• Fiona Clarke, Our Planet, Auckland
• Jil Sergent, Trouble in the Pegasus Basin, Hawke’s Bay
• Kelly McGinley, Kaitiakitanga o te Moana, Tauranga
• Kiran Parbhu, Power, Wellington
• Mark Noble, Care For The World, And It Shall Care For You, Rotorua
• Nest Arts Collective, In Our Hands, Rangiora
• Ngā Atua Hou, Mangonui Mural Project, Mangonui

About Keep New Zealand Beautiful

Keep New Zealand Beautiful is an iconic not-for-profit charitable organisation that has been leading the way in litter abatement and educating New Zealanders on how to ‘Do The Right Thing’ since 1967. Keep New Zealand Beautiful facilitate initiatives and educate, to inspire and empower Kiwis to participate and do their bit for the restoration, care and protection of their local and national environment.

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