Get to know the stories behind the selected artworks in our creative hoardings program – you’ll be seeing a lot of them soon!

Recently, the City of Sydney sought submissions from artists to show their work on hoardings (those temporary structures that hide all the digging, drilling and building at construction sites) within the city centre and surrounds. In an ambitious move, the city has made artwork mandatory on highly visible construction sites.

We were delighted with the 520+ original, beautiful and fun submissions we received. But we had to choose just 10 to launch the program. And here they are:

The Terminal Face of the Perito Moreno Glacier, Timothy Harland

The Terminal Face of the Perito Moreno Glacier by Timothy Harland

Photographer Timothy Harland’s awe-inspiring panorama showcases the grandeur of the famous Perito Moreno glacier in Patagonia. A majestic play to bring the beauty and tranquility of the natural world to the city, it’s made up of more than 50 different shots taken while travelling in a boat parallel to the glacier. Of the vision behind his work, he says “we can’t save what we don’t know or can’t imagine.”

Timothy Harland is a professional photographer based in Sydney. He dreams of creating glacial “portraits” of the Antarctic glaciers, icebergs and ice shelves.

Children Very Upset, Edwin Budhi

Children Very Upset by Edwin Budhi

Lost pet signs are a familiar and heart-wrenching sight in the city. Sydney photographer Edwin Budhi has collected a collage of real-life lost animal signs and stories from across Sydney and its suburbs. For him, it’s a story of hope, loss, family and life in the city (all the owners of the pets still at large are very keen for this artwork to be used!)

Edwin Budhi is a photographer and filmmaker from Sydney.

Birds of Australia, Eggpicnic

Birds of Australia by Eggpicnic

These friendly feathered friends reflect the diversity of our Australian birdlife. Startlingly, some of these iconic, native birds are under threat of extinction. “Birds of Australia aims to open the hearts and minds of the public to understanding and recognising the problems facing our vulnerable wildlife”.

Eggpicnic (Camila De Gregorio and Christopher Macaluso) wants to be the Disney of conservation – they create illustrations to make us fall in love with, and feel compelled to protect, our beautiful fauna.

Poly Ubiquitous, Cynthia Schwertsik

Poly Ubiquitous by Cynthia Schwertsik

“I hope this artwork brings awareness to the next piece of plastic we hold in our hand before it becomes garbage,” says Cynthia Schwertsik of her photo series Poly Ubiquitous. At first glance, the brightly coloured images appear abstract – only upon second look does the subject matter make itself known – plastic shopping bags adrift in the sea.

Cynthia Schwertsik is an Adelaide based artist with a diverse practice spanning painting, drawing, sculpture, performance and photography.

A Song from Nature, Danling Xiao AKA Mundane Matters

A Song from Nature by Danling Xiao AKA Mundane Matters

Danling Xiao has built a sizeable Instagram following off the back of her conceptual sculptures lovingly made from food scraps. She hopes her work – featuring everyday objects such as trees and teddy bears, made from fruit and vegetable scraps – inspires people to smile, wonder and consider how we can act mindfully to reduce food wastage and save our environment.

Danling Xiao is a designer and writer based in Sydney who is dedicated to creating immersive experiences to spread the love for nature.

Obstacle Course, Elliott Bryce Foulkes

Obstacle Course by Elliott Bryce Foulkes

Ask Elliott Bryce Foulkes to describe his dream project and he’ll tell you he’d like to make a mathematics textbook. His work Obstacle Course references an individual’s experience and journey when navigating the city. Each element has been carefully selected to represent Sydney, from existing infrastructure to ongoing development. It’s a deceptively simple and abstract look at our city.

Elliot Bryce Foulkes is a designer and artist based in Sydney. His commercial work across identity, editorial and publication design is complemented by an art practice that focuses on typography, language and the rearticulation of graphic forms and spaces.

Sydney Opera House at Night, Emily Crockford

Sydney Opera House at Night by Emily Crockford

A vibrant colour palette along with playful bold strokes symbolise the creative energy and joy that infuses Sydney’s most iconic building. A fresh take on a postcard location, the delicate patterning pays homage to the intricate tile patterns of the world’s most famous sails.

Emily Crockford is an emerging artist from Studio A, an organisation that provides support for artists living with intellectual disability.

Stone Jewels, Fiona Currey

Stone Jewels by Fiona Currey

“I find it awe inspiring that someone made these exceptional objects by hand so long ago,” says Fiona Currey of the beautiful and impressive stone tools featured in her illustrations. The striking colour palette was derived from the diverse materials from which these tools were crafted, particularly glass.

Fiona Currey is an emerging artist working primarily in northern Australia. One day, Fiona would love to be creating huge inflatable figures and attaching them to iconic buildings.

REAL MYTH, Captain Pipe

Real Myth by Captain Pipe

Captain Pipe is inspired by “animal noises and weird plants,” so it makes sense that his work features bizarro creatures in playful, hypercolour situations. Each character is building their own story, which combines into one continuous mural.

Captain Pipe considers himself a full-time photon shaman. A fine art graduate of Northumbria University, you could also call him an artist.

Double-take, Rachel Harris

Double-take by Rachel Harris

Look, and then look again. Should that selfie stick be in that historical snap? Rachel Harris has altered images from the City’s archives to create a playful juxtaposition between the now and then. She says, “Sydney is such a progressive city steeped in so much history. I wanted to celebrate that. I like to make work that questions our perceptions and makes us look closer at our environs.”

Rachel Harris is a photographer, designer and installation artist from Adelaide with dibs on creating the next Kylie album cover.

All the above works have been licenced by The City and are available to use free of charge.

If you’re a developer or builder wanting to know more about this project, read more here.