Helen Wilding's Decade-Long Project Sketching Melbourne's Brunswick Street
Helen Wilding has been drawing Brunswick Street in Fitzroy, inner Melbourne, for seven years and anticipates the project could take another ten years to complete. The street, known for its cafes, pubs, homes, churches, markets, shops, and a branch of the A1 Lebanese bakery, serves as the rich subject of her detailed work.
Wilding's artistic process involves creating long-form line drawings that take four to six hours each and can span weeks of work. She adds color later at home and organizes her sketches by street number. Her work documents changes to the street over time, including Covid lockdown closures, signs from Black Lives Matter protests, and faded murals; however, she deliberately excludes graffiti from her drawings.
A professional librarian by trade and a long-term Fitzroy resident, Wilding brings an intimate knowledge of the area to her sketches, contributing to their high level of detail. Her project has helped foster a local sketching community in Fitzroy, attracting other artists who visit and interact with passersby. Tourists have been seen taking photos, and Wilding once gifted a sketch to the owner of the Polyester record shop.
One notable subject captured by Wilding before its demolition is the old Fitzroy Nursery at 390-394 Brunswick Street, which was replaced by an apartment building. Among the community she has engaged is 85-year-old Alf Green, a fellow local sketcher who travels over an hour each week to join Wilding's group. Together, they often share lunch and review their artwork.
Supporters can follow the progress of Wilding's streetscape project on her dedicated website, which tracks and showcases her ongoing work.
