Materials: Aerosol spray paint
About the Artist
Bronte Naylor is an artist based on Awabakal Country (Newcastle, NSW), and
Gus Eagleton is an artist based in Meanjin (Brisbane, QLD).Working collaboratively, the artists use painting, collage and community engagement to explore place, perception and contemporary Australian identity. Their work often responds to local contexts, combining visual research, site-based observation and community storytelling.
About the Project
Not to Scale is a public artwork created collaboratively on Mparntwe Country (Alice Springs) by Bronte Naylor and Gus Eagleton as part of the 2021 Red Hot Arts Street Art Festival. Developed through a process of listening, observation and community engagement, the project was informed by conversations with local residents who shared their experiences, memories and reflections of Alice Springs.
These exchanges helped shape the artists' understanding of place and informed the direction of the mural. Exploring the relationship between perception, experience and belonging, the project acknowledges the limitations of an outsider perspective while reflecting on how different levels of connection influence our understanding of Country and community.
About the Art
Not to Scale reflects the artists' interpretation of Mparntwe and acknowledges that the social, political and cultural complexities of the region cannot be fully understood through a single experience.
Read from left to right, the mural presents three experiences of place along a spectrum of connectedness: a voyeuristic tourist perspective, a more localised and unfiltered experience, and a tribute to Undoolya Elder, academic and artist Patricia Ansell Dodds, recognising a deep and enduring relationship with Country.
Created using collage-based methodologies, the artwork combines preconceived images of Alice Springs with photographs, observations and stories gathered on site.
Community conversations played an important role in shaping the work and deepening the artists' understanding of the town.The left section depicts a stereotypical tourist, highlighting the gap between curated online representations and lived experience. The centre section draws on the Claypans and found objects from the local landscape, reflecting the intersection of the urban and natural environments. The final section features a portrait of Patricia Ansell Dodds, honouring her connection to Country and her ongoing work in cultural awareness and understanding.
📷Image / Photo Source: Emma Louise Murray Photography via Mparntwe Street Art Festival 2024
📍17-19 Hartley St (laneway wall, Alice Plaza Complex)