MAKA'S BURGER MURAL

Smith Street is a street in inner northern Melbourne.It runs north-south from Victoria Parade at its southernmost end to Queens Parade. Between Victoria Parade and Alexandra Parade, it forms the boundary between Fitzroy and Collingwood; the short segment north of Alexandra Parade is in Clifton Hill.

By the 1860s, Smith Street was a busy and popular suburban shopping strip. Smith Street is now host to restaurants and cafés and also has numerous shops selling cheap household goods. North of Johnston Street there are factory outlets selling athletic and fashion clothing. Parts of Smith Street also serve as a meeting place for the local Indigenous Australian community.

Smith Street is somewhat more downmarket than nearby Brunswick Street and has not become as fashionable though it is slowly gentrifying. During the late 1990s, Smith Street was frequented by heroin users and dealers. This earned it the sobriquet 'Smack Street', which, whilst arguably no longer apt, has stuck. In the last few years a number of bars and clubs have emerged on Smith Street, including “a bar called Barry”, “Scarlet” and until its closure in 2004; the all night venue Republika.

The mural by Mike Maka is in Smith St, Collingwood and is one which is frequently overpainted and "refreshed". Here you can see a previous mural by the same artist on the same piece of tiled wall. And here is another mural by Mike Maka in Clifton Hill. The latest "Death Burger" mural seems to be a grim reminder of the plight of the environment and the toxins with which we pollute it - that no doubt end up in our food. The inclusion of money in the mural and the burger symbolism point towards fast food, commercialisation of nutrition and the dire results on health that this has. The green fish (depicted in the previous and now overpainted mural) is labelled "Ever-fresh" and strikes a strong note of irony...

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme.