Art Pharmacy were approached by developers AMP Capital to develop the art plan for Smidmore Street, an exciting new extension of local landmark Marrickville Metro.

Working closely with Inner West Council, we formed and led an art committee of AMP members, council stakeholders and local residents to define the interior and exterior art curation at the Smidmore Street site.

We developed an overarching art strategy that reflected the unique culture and community of Marrickville in which Smidmore Street sits. The narrative needed to encompass the significant use of the site by First Nations people and it’s transition to an industrial haven for Vicars Wool, Shelley’s soft drinks and Sydney Steel Company. Today Marrickville is a melting pot of cultures and crafts, where sustainability and self enterprise is valued, the status quo is challenged and creative communities flourish.

We arrived at an encompassing statement that would form the foundation of our art narrative: “The people of Marrickville are spirited and they are conscious”

This informed 3 foundational themes:
— Industrious spirit
— Food & community
— Creation & innovation

We devised an art program for the Inner West Council to utilise when sourcing and briefing artists. This included reference images, assessment criteria and case study examples for qualifying opportunities and guiding artist selections. In addition to this, we prepared artist briefs for each art site identified by AMP which, combined with the art narrative and historical backgrounder, was used in an EOI call out via the Inner West Council website.

Working closely with Inner West Council, this project will be launching on the 10th June 2021.

Art Pharmacy is a full service art strategy and culture agency. Our Art Consultants are here to plan, manage and deliver creative projects that culturally enrich spaces and tell interesting stories using high- quality Australian art.