Year of the Rat

The composition depicts positive symbols for Year of the Rat by using a combination of lucky numbers. Botanicals such as African Violets and Lily’s are showcased intertwining, around two rats. The rats can be seen frolicking amongst orange blossoms (an important and lucky floral in Chinese tradition) and the afore mentioned flowers, one of them is wearing a lucky symbol. Colours chosen are red for good fortune and happiness together with gold for wealth. These are the auspicious colours of the New Year paired with yellow. These hues are painted using Resene Lumbersider low sheen waterborne paint in Resene Adrenalin, Resene California, Resene Paua, Resene Pursuit, Resene Turbo and Resene Gold.

As Melbourne is a multicultural city, street art is the perfect platform to help celebrate something locally to a foreign audience. This is a campaign with a difference – there’s no selling, more celebrating than anything. The wall is perfectly placed on Flinders Lane opposite Chin Chin restaurant so there was a regular captivated audience of passers-by.

The wall was the second in two years to be commissioned by the Grand Hyatt to George.

This project is part of a body of work that won the Resene Total Colour Visual Art Award. The judges said "an incredible body of work, bold interpretations and colour palettes bring streetscapes and public spaces to life in a true celebration of colour and artistry. The works are so over scaled to suit each environment. With an underlying style, the art is reinvented with each brief so that each work truly shines on its own. Harnessing an enviable eye for colour, the colour palettes and proportions are beautifully and brilliantly intertwined."

Artist: George Rose
Artist representation: Eddie Zammit
Client: Grand Hyatt
Photographer: Holly Hawkins
Winner: Resene Total Colour Visual Art Award
Project: Resene Total Colour Awards 2020