Council’s graphic designer Mitchell Allen is the King of scrim

Scrim is made from environmentally-friendly PVC that can be used in exposed outdoor conditions. It was installed on the fence while the park gets a major upgrade with considerable design input from the local community. Once the park is completed in late 2025, and the scrim is no longer required, it can be recycled.

With deadlines looming, Mitchell took about three days to design the artwork for the park’s scrim. It took another couple of days to tweak the design and get Council approval. It was then printed on four identical 50-metre rolls that are each 1.6 metres tall.

Mitchell says Walter Mildenhall Park is the next Naenae development project off the blocks – following on from the Te Mako Community Centre and Te Ngaengae Pool + Fitness. The Park is situated right next to the pool which was blessed and opened in early December.

“We realised this was a key opportunity to promote what we’re doing at the park for those attending the blessing, the Community Open Day, and all pool users and members of the public after that.

“We’ve done quite a few scrims for projects already, and they follow set guidelines so it’s easily recognisable as Council. The theme for every scrim is influenced by the project and what it’s delivering for the community. In this instance a couple of the key features of the park were accessibility, open spaces, skateable features, and a basket swing.

“In fact, I didn’t know what a basket swing was so I had to find a picture of one online and use that as a kind of template from my illustration.”

The scrim also includes key information about the project such as the cost of the investment, a project timeline, a brief overview of the work being carried out, and the contractors involved.

“It is a key piece of work to keep the public informed and because it’s made of woven material, you can see through it to keep an eye on the work being done behind the fence. The public always likes that.”

Mitchell’s work hasn’t gone unnoticed. He deservedly picked up the Kotahitangi (Be Connected) Award at last year’s He Tangata Awards.

After three years at Council, in a very fast-paced graphic design environment, Mitchell is looking forward to getting stuck into more projects this year.