The city is a canvas

Lillybeth Melmoth with some of her chalk artwork in the red Square.

The seed was sewn when she was just four. With a stick of chalk.

'I was drawing on the ground outside Baycourt with all these people. I can't remember what we were drawing, but I can remember leaving my fingerprint.” And it made Lillybeth Melmoth really happy.

That telling moment, that connection, would flood back each time Lillybeth returned to Baycourt, whether it be for her Form 2 play or whatever.

'Now I want to create a situation where multiple people can experience the same feeling and get involved in art in a really easy accessible way.”

It's super cheap, just chalk. It's environmentally friendly, you draw on the ground and it washes away in the rain.

The blank canvas is the city, ‘Colouring Book City' as Lillybeth has renamed us. The medium is chalk and the inspiration is children's books that have been authored or illustrated in Tauranga.

Step back a couple of months to when internationally renowned community development consultant Peter Kageyama was in town pitching his ‘love your city' concept at a city revitalisation workshop.

It's a concept of ‘love notes to the city' – investing in where you live and making nice things happen like festivals and pop up art.

The best ideas would be temporary events, says Peter. 'They would involve children because children would bring families, they would be art focussed and collaborative.”

Lillybeth's ‘Colouring Book City' ticked most of those boxes, and that's why her concept won half a $500 prize run by Creative Tauranga in conjunction with the Kageyama workshop. The prize is tied to making it happen.

So Lillybeth went to Creative Communities Scheme and convinced them to turn her $250 into $2500.

'The full idea is to have a colouring book city train, permanent painted outlines like funky unfinished artwork at city parks where families can go, take their own chalk and finish off.”

But Lillbeth's not waiting for permanence. The first of her three events will be outside Jeanswest in Red Square to coincide with the Garden & Art festival in late-November.

The outlines will be temporary to see if there's an appetite for the concept.

'To make it unique to Tauranga every artwork will be based on a children's story book that is locally authored or illustrated. The first artwork will be based on ‘Uncle Glen's Cabbages' by Ron Bacon and illustrated by Sharon O'Callaghan.”

Sharon painted the last Humpty Dumpty face at Memorial Park.

Another event might be Lynley Dodds' ‘Hairy Maclary'...down by the brass statues.

It's a temporary plan with a view to being permanent.

The artist has an enduring attachment to chalk. 'Even in my 20s I loved to go night clubbing and dancing. But when I got sick of that I would pop outside with my chalk and do some artwork.”

At the Winter Nights Winter Lights Festival, she borrowed some chalk from La Mexica and wrote an appropriate biblical quote on the ground – ‘I am the light of the world'.

Chalk art is temporary and it just may touch people. 'It may say hey, I have been here and this is what's happening.” Lillybeth says it beats just sitting watching something and then going home.

Now Lillybeth's looking for a bunch of branded councillors to assist ‘Colouring Book City' – for book readings and chatting to chalk artists during the event and handing out prizes and stickers. She is also looking for sponsors to help colour up the city.

Give Lillybeth a call on 021 1501 605 or go to www.facebook.com/colouringbookCITY

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