The ideas behind the Rochester Mural Festival entries

By Shannon Colee

Apr 8, 2024

Excited to start: (Back from left) Steve Monk, Marco Pennacchia and Gren Freeman, and (front from left) Kerry Nicholson, Helen English, Maryann Jenkins, Ana Armillas and Chris Duffy were all smiles at the Rochester Mural Festival’s Opening Dinner on Saturday night. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

This year’s Rochester Mural Festival theme ‘I Have A Dream’ inspired a trove of artwork, including that of the eight finalists who will paint their murals this week.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

Echuca artist Maryann Jenkins said it was exciting to be selected to paint her design in Rochester.

“I didn’t really think I’d get picked because they have a lot of people put in for it, so when they rang and said I was going to be one of them, it was a bit surreal,” she said.

“It’ll be something to look back on as a real accomplishment, especially as I get older.”

Inspiration: Ana Armillas and her work ‘Your heart dreams with spring’ was based on the book The Women Who Run with the Wolves. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

The other artists who will be painting their work this week are Steve Monk, Gren Freeman, Helen English, Kerry Nicholson, Marco Pennacchia, Chris Duffy and Ana Armillas.

Much of the art had a touch of humour, perhaps none more than Mr Monk’s ‘Livin’ the Dream’.

“I used to have a mate who was a police officer, and outside of work, he used to drive ladies of the night to jobs and wait in the car for them,” he said.

Night dreams: ‘Dream Unveiled’ by Marco Pennacchia was about the veil between dreaming and reality. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

“Well, what ended up happening was that he stole the girls and opened his own business. At the time, for me and my mates, this was every man’s dream.

“I didn’t think I could paint that, so I pivoted to this painting about wealth, its corrupting power, and what people think it looks like.”

Other artists, like Mr Duffy, took a much more literal approach by including Martin Luther King Jr in his creation.

Personal work: Helen English created her piece ‘Land of Promise’ which partly drew on her time moving between countries. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

“The sentiment of Martin Luther King’s famous speech ‘I Have A Dream’ is great, but there’s been a bit of a glitch since then,” he said.

“It's a beautiful notion, but we haven’t really got there. So, to show that, I decided I would put the glitch in as a test pattern.”

The week is an exciting one for the artists who are looking forward to the camaraderie.

Big goals: Gren Freeman used a self portrait for his art ‘Impossible Dream’ which talks about the things he wishes could be destroyed, like bombs. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

“Obviously, it’s a competition, but that’s not how I’ve thought about it. It’s just as much about the camaraderie and being with a set of people who are into the same thing as you,” Ms English said.

“I mean, where else, apart from a mural festival, do you get to stand alongside other people who love painting murals as you do it all together?”

Far to go: Chris Duffy tried to use colour to make his work ‘Glitched - I have a dream’ more cheerful than the subject matter. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

This is something that artist Ms Armillas agrees with Ms English about.

“I’m really excited. I really want to paint this concept, and it’s my first time taking part in this, so I’m looking forward to learning from everyone else,” she said.

“We were given a lot of artistic freedom for this, which was invaluable.”

Livin’ large: Humour was a big part of Steve Monk’s ‘Livin’ the Dream’ painting, which features a gangster-themed representation of living a flashy lifestyle. He describes the it as being about “wealth, its corrupting power, and what people think it looks like”. Mr Monk will paint a mural based on this painting. Photo: Shannon Colee Photo by Shannon Colee

For people interested in watching the artists paint the murals, they will be working at Mural Park on Moore St, each day until Saturday. The festival runs from April 6 to 14.

People can vote for their favourite mural, and those results, along with the judges’ choice awards, will be announced on Sunday at about 11 am.