DURBAN North is home to several stunning murals but none more so than the two newest additions done by creative artist Giffy Duminy on the walls of Ocean View Montessori.

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The outer walls of the Montessori, which border the school’s vegetable garden now sports two Purple-Crested Turacos or Purple-Crested Louries.

Lucy Cronje, owner and principal of the Montessori said she felt the murals were a standout feature for pedestrians and motorists entering the area.

“I see where our school is located as the gateway to Durban North. Prior to the mural project we had started a vegetable garden in 2017 and had the backing from the eThekwini Municipality and I enlisted the help of final year DUT horticultural students who helped design our veg garden. We are very involved in any project that is eco-friendly and we work closely with Enviro Fixers Durban North. It was actually a trip to Virginia Bush Nature Reserve that sparked the mural idea. I was speaking to Helen Koch when we saw the beautiful images on the bird hide at the reserve that Giffy had done.

“Helen suggested I reach out to Giffy and he agreed to help. We want our children to impact the community in a positive way knowing they can make the world a better place with their own two hands by putting the environment first. We wanted the children to see themselves as agents of change in their community and the addition of the murals and the expansion of our vegetable garden is doing that. The brief for the murals was we often see purple-crested lourie visiting the garden and he totally blew our mind with his beautiful personality, his humility and his skill. Apart from the absolute creativity and the use of colour which is amazing, the shading and highlighting he did just makes the mural pop-out, and give it so much depth. I hope residents will see the murals as a landmark and take photos of the artwork and spread the word,” she said.

For artist, Giffy the feedback from the community has been overwhelmingly positive.

“I had a few passersby stop and give compliments and ask questions. It’s a great feeling to have the community notice and appreciate the new mural. I enjoy all nature themed murals because there is so much diversity in what I may choose. I aim to paint species that are found in the area of the wall itself. Hopefully bringing light to these species through public murals encourages people to take note of the amazing wildlife we have around us in KZN,” he said.

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