Heritage-inspired art for Anzac Station

The Metro Tunnel’s five new stations will create a new city art trail, with works by some of Australia’s foremost artists.

At Anzac Station work has begun to install Future Wall Painting, by Dr Raafat Ishak, head of painting at the Victorian College of the Arts.

Designed to be taken in as you pass by on a journey, Ishak’s work is a nod to the history of Melbourne’s famous St Kilda Rd boulevard, visible as passengers enter the station’s Albert Rd entrance and begin the descent underground.

“The overriding concept behind my design for Anzac Station is to create a work that people will walk past at that very special moment of moving from above ground to the tunnel underneath,” Ishak says.

“The work becomes part of that experience of being in transit.”

Sure to brighten up even the gloomiest of Melbourne days, the bright and colourful art is printed on glass panels and will be displayed in the pedestrian underpass below St Kilda Rd.

Render of Anzac Station’s pedestrian underpass where Future Wall Painting will be displayed.

The abstract work features native flora and fauna in reference to the pre-colonial landscape of the area, in combination with architectural and cultural landmarks.

In his role at the Victorian College of the Arts, Ishak is just a stone’s throw away from Anzac Station teaching upcoming artists.

Future Wall Painting was produced in Melbourne by local manufacturers Viridian Glass at their Clayton South facility.

Construction at Anzac Station continues, with scaffolding coming down near the Shrine of Remembrance station entrance after the structure beams and entrance roof were installed.

Domain Rd tram tracks have also been connected to St Kilda Rd following around-the-clock work in the April school holidays.

Crews are preparing for the return of the South African Soldiers’ Memorial on Albert Rd, after it was taken down for Metro Tunnel construction in 2018. The memorial has been refurbished and will be installed close to its previous site in the Albert Rd Reserve.

The Metro Tunnel will connect the busy Sunbury and Cranbourne/Pakenham lines via a new tunnel under the city, creating an end-to-end rail line from Melbourne’s north-west to its south-east, freeing up space in the City Loop to run more trains on other lines. •

Caption: Dr Raafat Ishak inspects the glass panel at Viridian Glass in Clayton.