The Creative Communities Scheme funding is now open. We caught up with Birdy who has just finished painting the Whangamatā Community Pool mural, one of the successful applicants from the last funding round of the Creative Communities Scheme funding.
Who is Birdy Design?
My name is Merel Ijpelaar, a 34-year-old Dutchie living in Whangamatā. I moved to New Zealand three and a half years ago from the Netherlands.
I feel so appreciated in my new country – so many people love art here and a felt immediately at home.
I specialise in wildlife, botanical illustrations, paintings, murals, and workshops.
Tell us about the Whangamatā Community Pool mural
Whangamatā Community Pool contacted me when they wanted something colourful on the outside wall of the pool.
This wall is over 20 meters long, which is the biggest mural I’ve done so far.
The briefing was: It needs to be colourful, aqua themed, with people in it.
I normally don’t really paint people, but I love a bit of a challenge. The board was open for my ideas, which gave me even more of a boost to create this mural.
I made a few sketches on procreate first, have a chat with the board about the idea, from there I had an idea. I introduced the style, colours, and composition to the board. After that, I made the needed adjustments to satisfy both parties and waited for final approval. I felt so excited to hear I got the greenlight!
The most fun part was that I had a chance to get the students of the Whangamatā Area School involved. I went to a class of Mrs. Kay to explain how to become a Muralist and how to get the mural on the wall. A few students got to come and help me paint this enormous wall, so a could show them all the steps to create this piece of art.
What made this a successful application?
The Whangamatā Community pool projects ticked a lot of boxes for Creative Community Scheme Funding criteria:
- Broad community involvement – The project will create opportunities for local communities to engage with and participate in arts activities.
- Diversity – The project will support the diverse arts and cultural traditions of local communities, enriching and promoting their uniqueness and cultural diversity.
- Young people – The project will enable and encourage young people (under 18 years) to engage with and actively participate in the arts.
If you want to check whether your application meets the funding criteria, or if you have any other questions about your application, contact our team of funding assessors: info@creativecoromandel.co.nz
Learn more here.
