From 1978 to 1993 the Transporting Art project saw local luminaries like Mirka Mora, Michael Leunig, Howard Arkley and Reg Mombassa making over Melbourne’s beloved W-Class trams with designs as distinctive as the city itself.

Melbourne Festival reignited this spark in 2013 and ever since the Melbourne Art Trams have been a visible reminder of the creative energies that drive this town.

Seven new tram transformations as imagined by Victorian artists will take to the tracks in October, including one that specifically responds to the artist’s interpretation of community.

This year Melbourne Art Trams also tips its hat to its origins, recreating the raucous, bold and mischievous work produced by the late David Larwill for the Transporting Art project in 1986. The tram was painted as part of the commemoration of the United Nations International Year of Peace, but has been in storage for more than 20 years. The design has been photographed and designed to be wrapped on a modern tram.

2018 Melbourne Art Trams artists

Hayley Millar-Baker—tram ID 2009
David Larwill—tram ID 273
Stephen Baker—tram ID 2054
Valerie Tang—tram ID 2012
Oli Ruskidd—tram ID 3003
Troy Innocent—tram ID 5106: Download the App →
Nick Howson—tram ID 5002
Oslo Davis—tram ID 3532