Usually when someone in the street shoves a fistful of paper in my direction, my immediate response is to project a smile that is equal parts smug and goofy, polite and dismissive while deploying a finely nuanced downward gaze and a gesture of the hand that says, ‘thanks, but no thanks.’ It’s a fine art, trust me. You know what else is a fine art (event coming to a Brisbane near you)? Papergirl Brisbane. That’s what.
Brisbane is set to play host to Australia’s first Papergirl Street Art Project, an event originating in Berlin that has spread to over twenty cities worldwide, which allows local creatives of all shapes and sizes to get their work out there in a way that more closely resembles your neighbourhood papergirl (or boy) earning their pocketmoney rather than your local clinical white-cubed gallery space.
The only condition is that submitted art, after exhibited, must be able to be rolled up and distributed by bicycle to random passer-by types around the city. The event intends to bridge the disconnect that exists between what we create and the effect it has on our day-to-day lives, all the while opening up the arts community in Brisbane and encouraging an unrivalled level of participation. For the people, by the people – a nice touch.
Submissions are accepted by post, email, or in person at the White Canvas Gallery in Fortitude Valley. More information can be found at Papergirl Brisbane.
The first-of-its-kind Papergirl Brisbane takes to the streets in February so start rollin’ (your canvases).
