Video: Artwork blossoms at Durban North school crossing
Creating the field of daisies was all in an effort to tackle the daily school drop-off traffic congestion and to uplift people’s moods.
SPREADING cheer and lifting the spirits of everyone who sees them, the new artwork of daisies at Northlands Primary School’s zebra crossing has been the talk of the town.
The artwork was a collaboration between the school’s marketing department and the visual arts department. It was spearheaded by Deborah Holshausen, the visual arts educator at the school and Candice Sparks, the head of performing arts.
Inspiration was drawn for the daisies from Cape Town artist Heather Moore (aka Skinny laMinx) who recently completed a much larger installation of daisies on Strand Street where it crosses St Georges.
Creating the field of daisies was all in an effort to tackle the daily school drop-off traffic congestion.
Caroline Hockly, head of Northlands Primary School’s marketing and communication, explained the project began as a way to show empathy for other schools in the area which have been criticised over traffic congestion, particularly during drop-off and pick-up times.
Turning the zebra crossing into a daisy crossing was a way to uplift the moods and show everyone is trying their best.
“Over the past weeks there have been some very negative comments about traffic congestion around the schools in our area. Managing traffic at drop-off and pick-up for a school is enormously frustrating for anyone living near a school. It is frustrating for the schools too. We all try our best to manage an almost impossible scenario,” Hockly said.
“Many times it is not just our parents, but school transport companies, taxis and even Uber drivers, who refuse to listen to our pleas to not stop in a drop and go area or to double (or even triple) park, and to please listen to our Marshall guard and not abuse him either. Our teachers created a field of daisies for our children to cross safely and to make us smile.”
With more than 30 daisies marking the crossing to the school entrance, there is hope to expand the project to the main road at either side of the zebra crossings.
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