Police Lane’s new coat of paint

A NEW mural by artist Briony Galligan titled Open Every Door has debuted in Alfred Deakin Place.

After almost a week of installation, Galligan said she enjoyed being a part of the project and pushing her artistic boundaries to complete such a large-scale piece.

“Some of it in a way feels like a big school project, we had stencils for the letters, a big builder’s compass and a lot of other people to help me along the way,” she said.

“The weather has been amazing and because the entrance to the gallery has moved to this side, it’s been good and I’ve seen a lot of people come through.

“People have been really curious about the piece, which is really nice because you don’t get those conversations when you’re working inside in a gallery.”

Commissioned by the City of Ballarat, Open Every Door is the first of two works that will be exhibited on the Annex Wall, with each getting a six-month run.

Both murals makes references to queer historical figures and artists, as well as abstract drawings made by Deakin’s contemporaries including Georgiana Haughton.

“The quote came from one of those Baci chocolates, … it was from Emily Dickinson and it was really startling, you know when you find something in an everyday way and it really strikes you,” Galligan said.

“There’s an artist whose work I’ve been really into who is Cuban and died in the late 90s of HIV AIDs and he had always worked with Baci, so I took inspiration for the quote from that.

“Then the circular forms and geometric pattern came from these nineteenth century spiritualist drawings that were often abstract and interpreting a spirit world.”

Next year, Galligan said she’s excited to return to the site and once again transform the space into a new piece of art.

“I want to keep it a surprise, but it will be sort of the same project just a different work,” she said.

“Because this is my first time doing something like this, it will be nice to be able to do it again.”