GRAFFITI IN UNION LANE

Located in the heart of Melbourne’s retail precinct (just off the Bourke St Mall), Union Lane is unusual. There aren’t any of the usual bars, boutiques or cafes to entice visitors but they come nonetheless. What they congregate to see is one of the city’s best known street art sites. Just about every square centimetre of wall is covered by graffiti murals, some 550 square metres in total. Born out of a mentoring program launched by the City of Melbourne, the work was created by 50 young artists in late 2007. Since then the original art has been effaced by layer upon layer of graffiti, new art and tagging. Although street art remains controversial in many quarters, its immediacy, verve and accessibility are hard to deny.

This post is part of the Monday Murals meme.