Love bErto for Harbour Eats

As an artist bErto's roving presence is known through large scale public and private works in LA, New York, Sydney and now Auckland. The murals are painted by hand in an exacting week's long process, resulting in monuments to colour, frequency and pattern influenced as much by Frank Stella and Keith Haring as the surf in Dakar and the streets of Berlin.

Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Havoc and Resene Black are used for the base layer to create a strong horizon line. A pattern to symbolise swell lines uses a combination of Resene Origin, Resene Hemisphere and Resene Yarra to give the illusion of the vast colours of the ocean. The complete work is protected with Resene Uracryl GraffitiShield.

When bErto was nearing the end of the artwork, a strong tribal energy felt as though it was coming through the piece so it made sense to dedicate it to the local Maori tribe – Ngati Whatua Orakei.

The main challenge to overcome was painting the piece during the global pandemic. The artwork was constructed in four panels, painted over a couple of weeks before being assembled as one piece on site. Luckily bErto was able to fly into New Zealand and back out again – before the country went into lockdown. bErto is rarely pinned to one location but can usually be found where the city meets the sea.

This project won the Resene Total Colour Installation – Experiential – Product Colour Maestro Award. The judges said "meticulously detailed the colours ripple out across the wall. With an underlying vibe of a radio frequency, the colour subtly plays on the senses. Each colour is cleverly and painstakingly separated from each other so that each colour and the space that lies between set the rhythm in harmony. A unique application of colour that wraps and elevates this space."

Architectural specifier: Izzard Design
Artist: Love bErto
Building contractor: Complete Construction
Client: Precinct Properties
Photographer: Studio South
Winner: Resene Total Colour Installation – Experiential – Product Colour Maestro Award
Project: Resene Total Colour Awards 2020