Creative rubbish monsters on the city centre's poles

Creative rubbish monster in the city centre

The small rubbish bins in the town centre will be a real treat for the eyes in the coming days. The art group from the Hafnarfjörður Work School has been painting several of them to liven things up. And they certainly have, with the young people leaving their mark on them, just as they will on the rest of us!

They call the work creative rubbish monsters, and it is open at the new barrels, which serve as the monsters' mouths.

But how did this idea come about? „The idea came up during a discussion. They got creative and one of the group had seen it done, so the group took up the idea,“ says Sigríður Diljá Vilhjálmsdóttir, project manager for the Hafnarfjörður Youth Work Programme.

„The group made sketches and then got on with sanding the barrels down and priming them. He then transferred the pictures he had drawn onto the barrels,“ she says.

„We received many colours from Flugger, all sorts of samples. So it turned out so incredibly well. I've therefore sent out a request to paint more barrels. We're waiting for a reply.“

How many barrels has the group painted now? „At the moment, they have been granted permission for eight bins. They will be installed from the Vesturbær Ice Cream Parlour on Strandgata to the Innovation Centre, and then towards Hörðuvellir,“ says Diljá, adding that the group includes seventeen teenagers aged 15-17.

So, are there more projects for the art group this summer? „Yes,“ she says. „As Pride Week approaches, we will paint Linnet Street, as we have done every year.“

The young people in the art group applied through Vala. They had interviews with the group leader, who then placed them in the group. They work with the group at the same time as the after-school club is running, or from 9 am to 12 pm and again from 1 pm to 4 pm. „How long they stay depends on their age,“ says Diljá. All the groups had finished their work by the Bank Holiday weekend. She says it's fun to follow the young people's work.

„It's so lovely to see their creativity breaking through,“ she says.

„We hope that when people throw rubbish into these creative litter monsters, they'll think about the environment.“ But, when will the bins go up? „We're aiming for them to go up in the next few days,“ says Diljá, and encourages young people to find out about the art collective and others within the workshop school, and to apply for next year.

Yes, this is delightful!