Cheers and applause erupted at the unveiling of Unanderra's vibrant new community pet wall on Monday night.
The curtain coming down was the culmination of months of planning by Louise Ward, owner of Alvive Hair Design on Waples Road.
Louise was visiting friends in Melbourne earlier this year when they proudly pointed out their dog's portrait on a collaborative pet mural, created as part of a Neighbourhood Watch program.
"It was just really lovely," Louise said.
"It got me thinking that maybe I could do that on the outside of my salon wall because it was very plain.
"And they love their pets in Unanderra; working at the salon every single day, there's lots of people always walking past with their dogs."
After getting the green light from her landlord, Louise put out feelers to see if anyone would be interested in contributing a picture of their beloved pet for a similar mural.
She received 133 photos of different animals - some of them living, others dearly departed - from 84 people, with each participant contributing a small amount to cover costs.
She then commissioned Corrimal graphic designer Jessica Franchi of Custom Pets Art to digitally transform the photos into paintings, which were then sent to a signage company for printing.
The 84 individual tiles, each featuring one or two pets, were glued and bolted to the wall on Monday morning to create the quirky public artwork, with a cover going over it the minute it was finished in order to keep it a surprise for the community unveiling on Monday, October 9.
"I was really excited after seeing it because, you think, there's 84 people you've got to please and clearly they love their pets because they want to showcase it for everybody to see," Louise said.
"But the quality is really good - it's really clear, it's bright, it's fun.
"And just something interesting to look at as people walk by."
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