Art transforms Byron Bay’s Lateen Lane

Renowned documentary maker Selina Miles has released her first clip of the new Elysium project that has been transforming the Byron Bay’s Lateen Lane. (Lateen Lane was formerly known as Lawson Lane and runs parallel to Lawson Street).

Miles has been filming over the last few weeks as five Byron Shire artists and three other renowned artists from Sydney and Berlin have been at work.

Filming the laneway project has provided Miles with the opportunity to give a master class at the local SAE with students loving the opportunity to find out about her process and work.

‘That’s one of the reasons I like to bring people into Byron, it creates a whole cross collaboration,’ said project curator Rebecca Townsend. ‘Artists Sonia van de Haar and Kellie O’Dempsey are also now going to be collaborating on other projects together.’

Responding to some negative comments about the artwork Townsend said she hoped that anyone with concerns regarding the project would contact them. ‘We have been contacted by some people with questions and concerns and we have always responded and engaged with those people and they have been positive and thanked us for that. Our details are available both at the laneway site and in all the media we have had and I would hope that we are able to have a positive conversation with everyone in the community.’

The artists have now finished their work and there is a final sculpture that will be placed at the Johnson Street end of the laneway in a week or so when the rain stops. ‘This involves a lighting element,’ continued Townsend. ‘According to the police this end of the laneway is unsafe at night and part of the design is about making that end of the laneway safer.’

Miles will be producing a second clip of the artists work to be released in the next week with a final documentary later in the year with the hope that it will be launched at a screening at the SAE.

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