Northbridge has gained some rainbow street art at the intersection of James and Lake Streets.
The new artwork is in front of the Northbridge Piazza, which is colloquially known as the Pride Piazza since the WA Pride Centre was established in the space.
The painting on the road features all the colours of the Pride Progress flag including the traditional purple, blue, green, yellow, orange and red of Pride, the black and brown addition to represent people of colour, and the white, pink and light blue to acknowledge transgender and gender diverse people.
The council has described the painting on the road as a ‘supergraphic’ but not a rainbow pedestrian crossing.
The space used to be home to the public artwork The Arch, a large black and white sculpture reminiscent of a Rubix snake toy, which was created by artist Lorenna Grand.
The artwork was installed in 2009 to celebrate the opening of the Northbridge Piazza. It was removed in 2023 as it had begun to deteriorate.
The location of the new LGBTIQA+ affirming artwork is also at a junction that’s a focus of the annual PrideFEST parade through the streets of Northbridge.
A spokesperson from the City of Perth said the new art work would signal that Northridge was an inclusive neighbourhood.
“The rainbow supergraphic being installed at the intersection of James and Lake streets is an inclusive entry point to the Northbridge neighbourhood.
“The Northbridge Piazza, and Northbridge more generally, is the headquarters of Pride WA and meeting place for the LGBTQIA+ community. Northbridge is also the home of Connections, which is believed to be one of the oldest gay nightclubs in the southern hemisphere,” the spokesperson said.
“The colours of the supergraphic surface represent the colours of the Pride flag.” they said.
The project originated from a motion put forward by Councillor Catherine Lezer in 2022 to investigate suitable locations for the supergraphic surface within the City. The City’s LGBTQIA+ Advisory Group were also consulted on the supergraphic and its location.
The project is expected to be completed early this week.
