Three innovative interpretations of 'Kiwiana” brightening up Katikati's Kotare Lane have given local novice artists a chance to showcase their talents.

The lane, which runs behind the town's main street, and adjacent to the Uretara Stream, needed a facelift and the three murals are just the start of doing that, says Katch Katikati's Jacquie Knight.

'Kotare Lane is set to become more important in future as Katikati grows and develops and the murals are part of that process.”

Three local artists, Christine Oates, Brooke Sinclair and Shanae Crockett, with a little guidance and a lot of encouragement from established mural artist Shane Walker, have created three individual panels representing their interpretation of the theme 'Kiwiana”.

For Shanae, that meant her childhood classics - a Buzzy Bee, chocolate fish, aeroplane sweets, a pounamu tiki, blue skies, green grass and the sea. Accordingly the mural is called 'Kiwiana Childhood”.

'I have never painted anything on such a large scale before and it was a bit daunting, especially when I first sketched it out. Trying to get the right perspective was hard.

'It's kind of weird and cool to see my art up in such a public space. Now I want to do more,” says Shanae, who works for a Katikati company making dental crowns.

Christine Oates (aka Wing) with her mural 'Wings Promise”.

Brooke's mural, called 'A Tui's Song”, is the largest artwork she has attempted.

'I used a friend as a model, and tui to represent a sense of peace and harmony with nature. When you hear the tui sing you know you are in New Zealand; a safe place,” says the 17-year-old Katikati student.

Knowing when the work was finished, Brooke says was one of her biggest challenges. 'I still don't think it's finished – I kept wanting to do just a little bit more.”

However, the experience of painting the mural and having it on display has given her confidence to persevere with her art. 'I'd like to make a career as an artist,” she says.

Massage therapist Christine used the Kiwiana theme to make a pictorial statement about New Zealand's creatures and landscape in her mural called 'Wings Promise”.

'The moa in the mural represents a species which is extinct and there are others which are endangered. I wanted to give the mural a modern twist by putting sunglasses and headphones on the giant weta, which in real life, has ears in his front legs.”

'A Tui's Song” is the title of Brooke Sinclair's mural.

For the official launch of the murals, Christine chose to dress as her alter-ego – a Steam-Punk time traveller and environmental lawyer called 'Wing”.

Wing may be a bit of fun, but there's a serious side to Christine's other self.

'I hope the mural will remind people to tread carefully on this land,” she says.