Mural Masterpieces - Bailey Road School

Location:
Bailey Road School.

Team:
Lead teachers and students –Diane Facon and ten students – Jennifer Tieng, Bartol Rezaie, Natasha Kumaran, Simone Calver, Melinda Li, Rano Sua, Melissa Kane, Sione Filimoemaka, Shazil Izaz and Mofijor Khan.

Accessible to public:
Yes.

Mural theme:
Unity in diversity.

Background to mural creation:
During the consultation phase for the new school charter the community was asked what would make coming into the school more comfortable. One of the ideas that came from the parent consultation was a mural in the hall to represent the diverse ethnicities that attend the school. There are now five large sections running the full length of the school hall representing the diverse ethnicities at the school. However, they did not want to keep the ethnicities apart so the concept “Unity in Diversity” was born.

The first panel depicts the arrival of the tangata whenua to Aotearoa followed many years later by Europeans in their sailing ships. The second panel celebrates our Oriental cultures with a magnificent dragon and lanterns. The Pasifika countries are represented in the next panel with the young Polynesian man blowing the conch shell, the colourful turtle and flowers. The fourth panel recognises other cultures in our school. You will see an African hut and a giraffe and next to that is the national Filipino house. There is a golden domed temple; and a peacock, which is found throughout many southern Asian countries. Finally there is a panel which depicts New Zealand and our local area. The waka and our children have reached their destination. In this panel you will see Mt. Wellington or Maungarei, our mountain and the Panmure Basin, our water. They have included the cabbage tree that grows tall near the hall and kiwi birds. The school symbol, the heron, flies overhead. This final panel depicts that fact that no matter where we come from, while at Bailey Road School (and in New Zealand), all are unified in our diversity.