4 Jul 2019Nelson artist, Hannah Starnes, has unveiled her award-winning mural on the Homes by Orange building on Queen Street in Nelson. Hannah was one of ten winners from across the country who took out the top prize in Keep New Zealand Beautiful’s (KNZB) Resene Nature Murals Competition 2019. The mural, titled ‘Small Things Matter’, highlights the importance of bees. In her submission Hannah outlined how bumblebees, honeybees and other insect pollinators are in dramatic global decline. Hannah created the mural using stencils, rollers and hand painting. “I was a bit worried about starting this mural as it was my first-time using stencils, and the wall was stucco. The painting process took me about a week to complete, and I’m really stoked with the message and how it came out. Thanks to Homes by Orange for the blank wall and lending their name to the colour!” This is the second year in a row Hannah has won a place in the competition with her other mural, titled ‘Home’ which depicts a space man tending to a magnolia seedling with a watering can, visible on Rutherford Street. The Resene Nature Murals Competition, which is part of the Paint New Zealand Beautiful programme, ran from February – April 2019, 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, along with a $750 Resene paint voucher and other materials to paint their mural. KNZB CEO, Heather Saunderson, said: “KNZB is proud to partner with Resene again this year to deter vandalism and Paint New Zealand Beautiful. Numerous studies have shown the great impact murals have on their surrounding communities – from increasing civic pride, to a reduction in anti-social behaviour such as littering and graffiti. Together with Resene, we’re excited to see Hannah’s mural come to life and to help Nelson beautify their corner of New Zealand”. Hannah Starnes’ completed mural ‘Small Things Matter’ on the Homes by Orange building on Queen Street in Nelson. The ten winning artists and regions are listed below, with their designs visible on the Keep New Zealand Beautiful website. Yeon Seo Kim – Auckland Sara Fernandez – Auckland Luther Ashford – South Taranaki Stan Mans – Hastings Jil Sergent – Central Hawkes Bay Isobel Te Aho-White – Wellington Rosa Friend – Wellington Hannah Starnes – Nelson Madison Kelly – Dunedin Claire Rye – Dunedin Share this page
