Colours everywhere: The Colombian artist revitalising Australia's public spaces

Mural artist, Katherine 'Katira' Gailer, told SBS Spanish her work aims to raise awareness of environmental issues as well as the visibility of Australia's immigrant women.

Katherine “Katira” Gailer.

Highlights:

• Since the start of the pandemic, the city of Brimbank, in Melbourne, has become home to many new works of art.
• Katherine Gailer's recent mural tries to reflect the proper management of waste so as not to negatively impact the environment.
• The Colombian artist is dedicated to capturing the stories of immigrants in Australia through imposing murals.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the city of Brimbank, which encompasses several suburbs in Melbourne's west and northwest, has become home to many new works of art that are flooding several streets, buildings and public spaces with colour.

A significant number of these projects and works are part of art programs promoted by the local council and the state government in a bid to educate and inform the post-pandemic community.

The goal was to send a very positive message to the community to reduce our impact on the environment.

Katherine “Katira” Gailer.

Among the most recent public works is a mural by Colombian visual artist, Katherine “Katira” Gailer, which adorns a public wall in the centre of of St Albans.

Measuring a massive seven metres high by 14 metres long, the striking mural was commissioned by the City of Brimbank and Sustainability Victoria to draw attention to the importance of recycling.

photo supplied by K.G.

“The goal was to send a very positive message to the community to reduce our impact on the environment through the small actions that we can all take to reduce our waste,” Ms Gailer told SBS Spanish.

The work aims to reflect the proper management of waste so that it does not negatively impact the environment.

Ms Gailer says even the smallest actions of each individual are instrumental in improving the recycling system in Australia.

“Separate the garbage, always carry a bottle of water to avoid using plastic, use reusable cloth bags... all (these) actions are reflected in the mural,” she explained.

Katherine 'Katira' Gailer. Photo: Instagram

The Colombian artist says she is dedicated to capturing the stories of immigrants in Australia through her murals and several of her previous works reflect themes of love, respect for nature, cultural identity and the empowerment of women.

In this latest mural, entitled 'Small Acts Make a Big Impact', Ms Gailer once again uses the figures of two women from culturally and linguistically diverse communities to raise environmental awareness among the rest of the community.

Another nice element that is incorporated into this type of work... is working with community leaders to (create) concepts that are culturally sensitive and that also reflect what is happening in that public space.

Katherine Gailer

“This mural has two women, one younger than the other, and both... represent multicultural characters... they are working together to separate the garbage and recycle it," she said.

"You can also see the clean containers, which is another recommendation... wash out our containers before throwing them into the recycling bin."

Environmental education through art has been rewarding for the Colombian artist who works outdoors and in public spaces around Melbourne.

Ms Gailer with her St Albans' mural. Instagram.

“Residents have given me positive feedback from day one... they tell me that they are inspired and happy that more colour is coming to their neighbourhood," Ms Gailer said.

"In particular, many women say they are pleased with the representation of CALD women in public spaces.”

The Colombian muralist also draws many lessons from this initiative.

“Yes definitely... (being able to represent) that beauty that exists when there is a connection between nature and our society... I think residents appreciate having these ideas more present in their daily lives, besides the whole public art theme of regenerating public spaces," she said.

Ms Gailer with another of her massive murals. Instagram

She said her next project would take place in Naracoorte in South Australia, about 336km southeast of Adelaide and 100km north of Mount Gambier.

“I'm going to be painting a mural, after consulting with the community through workshops, (which was born) after a first consultation with a group of Asian women living in Naracoorte,” Ms Gailer said.

“This is another beautiful element that is incorporated into this type of work... working with community leaders to (create) concepts that are culturally sensitive, appropriate and that also reflect what is happening in that public space."

Listen to the interview by pressing PLAY under the headline of this article.