Laz's Lane and Rita's Way - first tick off the the list

While I’m on a bit of a streak, I thought I’d write about my first tick off the 2021 list. 

Laz's Lane and Rita's Way are community laneway projects in Carnegie and having lived there for a few years, I’ve been meaning to go back and visit. What a wonderful surprise!

I think the story behind them can best be described by the info found on site:

Laz Stark lived in Graceburn Avenue in Carnegie and was a bit of a local legend. After Laz died in 2018, residents decided to turn the laneway into something special and named it after him.  

Laz's Lane runs from Koornang Road through to Graceburn Avenue, near Carnegie Primary School. It’s filled with colourful paintings and art works, cabinets containing figurines, mosaic art, a little library, and Angel wings - plenty of pic opportunities. 

The Garden and Gallery continue to be added to and all the art and plants have been donated and are maintained by volunteers.

It really is a wonderful display of community diversity and worth a look. 

Rita's Way is named after local artist, Rita Santucci, whose colourful mosaics and artwork can be found dotted all around Carnegie.  Rita’s Way is a newer project, just on the opposite side of Koornang Road. It too includes lots of beautiful ceramic art, paintings, and planter boxes and is a work in progress.   

You can read more about Rita in this article from The Age. 

And if you want to know more follow the Carnegie Community Laneways Facebook page.