Announcing the Finalists of the Jewell Station Public Art Competition

Neometro, in partnership with VicTrack, is one step closer towards selecting an artist to create a unique public artwork for our new transit-oriented development at Jewell Station.

In November 2016, Neometro and VicTrack announced a public art competition for Jewell Station. Working with art consultant Melissa Loughnan of Utopian Slumps, artists and creative teams were invited to submit stage one expressions of interest.

The brief called for proposals for a unique public artwork that would reflect the ethos of the development. It is intended that the artwork will operate as a key feature of the new development and should appeal to the common interests of the residents and local community.

After an overwhelming response, the judging panel has selected four artists from the Stage One applications to progress to Stage Two, where they will be able to further develop their proposal for the final selection of one major work. These artists are James Geurts, Sanné Mestrom, Jessie Stanley and Fleur Summers.

Jewell Station will form a New Urban Village by Neometro in partnership with VicTrack. The project promotes the idea that well-designed apartments support wellbeing and connection in the community. The apartments at Jewell Station are more than a place to spend the night – they will be home to likeminded people who value community, good design, urban living, sustainability and a balanced approach to life.

Jeff Provan, Neometro’s Design Director and judging panellist, said: “The New Urban Village at Jewell Station provides a forum for Melbourne’s arts community to imagine and produce new expressions of public art. There were a large amount of innovative concepts of great artistic integrity submitted and it was a difficult task to narrow down to the final four. Each of the shortlisted submissions demonstrate the ability to contribute to the vibrant Jewell Station community, bringing together the architecture, landscaping, upgraded bicycle infrastructure and community gardens with Neometro’s vision for design-driven and socially-led apartment living.”

Once the artists have developed their stage two proposals the public will have an opportunity to vote for their favourite entry via Open Journal. The judging panel will make the final selection and the winner will be announced in March 2017.

The public realm is VicTrack’s vision, and construction works are being funded by VicTrack using part of the proceeds from the development partnership with Neometro. The implementation of the artwork will be managed by VicTrack.

Find out more about joining the Jewell Station Community here.