Proserpine Youth Space mural to return to a blank canvas

This week is your chance to say goodbye and snap some memories with a popular Whitsunday public art piece.

Community members are invited to say their goodbyes before a well-known piece of Proserpine street art disappears under a fresh coat of paint next week.

The colourful painting featuring a giant humpback whale has been a defining feature of Proserpine’s state government-funded Youth Space, behind the main street shops, since 2019.

But with the service recently relocating, the building’s owner says it is time for the artwork to go.

Youth Space Assistant Coordinator Christie Taylor said she understands the owner’s decision to have the mural repainted, next Wednesday June 30, but wanted to make sure it did not come as a shock to the community.

“I put a notification on Facebook to say come down if you want to get a photo before it’s painted, just to give people the chance, and I’ve had quite a few messages back,” Ms Taylor said.

“Quite a lot of people are quite fond of it – more than we thought. It was even a local Pokemon [Go] hunters’ spot.

“The youth especially loved it,” she said.

Ms Taylor said she was in discussions with the artist, Martin Jegou of Gwada Murals, to paint another mural at Youth Space’s new home on Marathon Street, possibly in collaboration with local youth, but would need permission from the building’s owner first.

Of the whale mural, Mr Jegou said: “Street art is meant to be like this unfortunately.”

“By being in the street, it‘s always a risk to have your piece repainted or graffitied over,” he said.

“Seeing this piece going is obviously a bit sad as I really enjoyed providing some art to this ‘dull’ space … But that‘s just a part of the game I guess.”

The owner of the Main Street building, Shane Spann of Spannys Whitsunday Real Estate, declined to comment.