By YASEMIN TALAT
INTERNATIONAL street piano art project Play Me, I’m Yours has landed in Altona.
The international project features an array of ‘Street Pianos’ installed in different locations across cities around the world encouraging communities to engage.
It has been described as a “musical equivalent of Facebook” with Street Pianos a resource for the public to express themselves.
The Arts Centre Melbourne has presented Play Me, I’m Yours to Melbournians with the installation of 25 Street Pianos around inner and outer Melbourne to inspire spontaneous playing.
Melbourne Art Centre’s Creative Producer for the project Patrick Cronin said it was the perfect project to connect people and communities.
“The Arts Centre wants to offer a variety of ways to connect, such as connecting through creative practice out in your own area like Altona,” Mr Cronin said.
The project has already been to 37 cities across the world from New York to London, Barcelona to Paris and now can be experienced at Logan Reserve in Altona.
“It takes people out of their everyday experience,” Mr Cronin said.
“People are often walking to work, or walking along trying to escape the heat and all of sudden they hear a piano being played or see a piano and they go and have a play of it,” he said.
“It’s a great way to escape from the everyday world and that’s the main aim of it, to give people a sense of knowing there’s something out in their life instead of their work, perhaps,” he said.
“And you can get out there have fun and be creative.”
The artwork, which was devised by British Artist Luke Jerram, has been touring the globe since 2008.
An extra touch of community was added to the Altona piano with its decoration done by residents at the Wood Street Arts Space in Laverton.
The pianos are located around the Melbourne Arts Centre and the CBD as well as in Coburg, Dandenong and Altona until Monday 27 January.
For more information visit http://streetpianos.com/melbourne2014/pianos/r-j-logan-reserve-cnr-pier-st-the-esplanade-altona/
