Additional Information

This painting tells a story of a federation house and a Renovation Centre that states publicly to all – “Renovate For Less”. I’ve driven past this derelict house on Winbourne Road, Brookvale, to buy hardware during the day and never grasped the irony. I was drawn to the house’s rusted metal roof and I kept making a mental note to do a photo shoot. I could never ever find the time during the day.

Then one Monday night, at around midnight, I grabbed my camera gear to capture the house. The house is located near a street light that casts a warm glow over the old weatherboards. And luckily for me across the road from the house is a parking lot. This enabled me to shine the lights of my car directly at the front of the house while taking photos.

Just as I was about to take this photo featured in my artwork a police patrol car pulled up. The young constable leaned out the window and asked, “Is everything OK?”
“Everything’s fine officer, I’m just snapping this house for an art project.”
“That old shit box.”
Seeing the funny side of his response I replied, “Yes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” He slowly pulled away in the patrol car, “OK I’ll leave you to it.”

Taking photos at night removed the daylight noise of people and traffic. When I thought about the images, I could see how silently the old house mocks at the bold black and orange lettering from the business next door. Renovate For Less, or just Never Ever Renovate!