The birds and the bees – and all the pollinators in between!

21 May 2024

Artist Kiran Parbhu has unveiled his award-winning mural titled The Birds and the Bees(and all the pollinators in between) in the suburb of Brooklyn in Wellington. 

Kiran was one of ten winners from across the country who took out the top prize in the latest Keep New Zealand Beautiful’s Resene Nature Mural Competition. This is the second time the artist has won the competition having previously painted the mural 'Power' on the side of the substation on Brooklyn Road. 

His mural this year, which is located on the Lynwood Court Complex on Ohiro Road in Brooklyn, features New Zealand native flora and fauna including Kōtukutuku (New Zealand Tree Fuchsia), Kopakopa (Chathams Island Forget-me-not), Ngutukākā (Kākābeak), Poroporo, Mānuka, Koromiko (Hebe), Brown Bush Ant, Korimako (Bellbird), Red Admiral Butterfly, Common Blue Butterfly, Flower Longhorn Beetle, Moko Kākāriki (Wellington Green Gecko), Honeybee and Bumblebee. 

"My mural highlights the many and varied creatures that pollinate the plants around us. They literally help Keep New Zealand Beautiful! It's impossible to capture them all but I tried to fit in as many as possible and I think noticing some of the smaller and more subtle ones amongst the more large and prominent is a neat part of the mural for people to discover as they pass by. All of these pollinators can be found locally and hopefully the mural helps people consider what they can do to help create space for them in our community. One aspect of this is providing abundant food for them and I have highlighted a number of flowering native plants. Hopefully this will provide some inspiration for what people can add to their gardens to help," says Kiran. 

Above: Kiran’s render of the mural. Below: The final mural painted in Brooklyn, Wellington. The colours used are Resene CandyFloss for the prominent Kākābeakflower with the flowers in the background using Resene Paprika. The green cap of the flower is Resene Citron, the gecko's base colour is Resene Jungle Juice with the skin details in Resene Elephant, Resene Wham and Resene Parsley. The Hebe flowers are primarily Resene Lip Service with Resene GlamourPuss and Resene Revolver to add highlights and shadows. 

"Altogether, it all makes for a lively, colourful and hectic composition which I hope will brighten the day of the many people who pass through Brooklyn. It's a privilege to be a part of the Nature Mural Competition again. Thank you to Keep New Zealand Beautiful and Resene for the providing the opportunity. Thanks also to the many people who have waved, clapped and stopped to chat with me over the last month, it's been great to be out in the community!" 

Kiran's mural is located on the Lynwood Court Complex, 157-159 Ohiro Road, Brooklyn. 

See more of Kiran’s work online at www.kiranparbhu.com.  

Published: 21 May 2024