To celebrate our 40th Anniversary this year, we have been researching our history. This is the story of what happened to our mural at Church Street.
BYS had its offices at 14 Church Street Fortitude Valley between 1996 and 2010. In 1999 approval was granted for improvements to the site to make it fit for purpose as our new premises, including new verandahs, laundry and fire escapes. A remarkable mural was painted on the side of the building by a group of talented young people and street artists including Diz Brown and Ms Murricod. The Church Street site was later bought by the Brisbane Housing Company and converted into a $30 million public housing and commercial space in 2012 – a world away from its use as our office and a place for young people seeking support. Fortunately the Brisbane Housing Company made a decision to keep some of the original heritage features of the original building including part of the original wall and mural.
Our BYS art worker Jordan Bruce was tasked with working with young people from BYS to repaint the mural. They kept many of the original features but added new design elements reflecting the energy and interests of the young people involved.
You can see this glorious art work – a vibrant piece of BYS’s history – in the foyer of the nine story redevelopment today.