A colourful mural featuring a collection of native birds has been commissioned by the Commodore Motel.
The 25m-long mural is being painted by Christchurch street artist Rodrigo Rozas, who travels the country painting murals.
Mr Rozas said he began painting when he was about 6, at home in Chile.
It was a country with a real culture of street art that heavily influenced him growing up.
Later, working as a signwriter and mural artist in New Zealand, he tried to keep a bit of that spirit with him.
He has worked with street art on and off throughout the years, but as his skills improved people started to pay attention to his work.
Commissions started to roll in and he began a career as a professional street artist.
Birds were a popular subject for murals around New Zealand, but he originally did not like painting them.
They were difficult for him and it was frustrating how often he was asked to paint birds, he said.
At some point everything clicked and now he loved painting birds.
He worked on the mural for about five hours yesterday and went back in the evening to continue.
He liked being able to chat to passersby and see their appreciation for his work, he said.
He hopes to finish the mural by tomorrow.
