Overview
Getting creative is a tried-and-tested way to de-stress. Sometimes, you don't just want to whip up a masterpiece, though — you also want to blow off steam. Enter splatter rooms, aka the paint-flinging alternative to smash rooms such as Rage Cage, which lets you hit stuff with a baseball bat. At this imaginative activity, you can throw colours at the canvas in the name of art and catharsis.
Keen to get a-splattering? Meet The Splatter Room, which is part of Portside Wharf's new Art Month in May. You'll find it next to the Dendy cinema from Friday–Sunday across the month, letting you get messy in a space that'll be white when you enter, then covered in paint when you leave.
The paid activity costs $60 per session, which includes all of the supplies that you'll need and an hour to use them. An obvious word of warning: don't wear something that you're not comfortable with getting covered with paint, even though you'll be donning a protective garment over the top.
The Splatter Room sits on the Art Month lineup alongside a big street party at the Hamilton precinct, and also dedicating the month's markets to local creatives and artists. At the first, which takes place from 1–6pm on Saturday, May 4, there'll be free art activations, plus pop-ups serving up bites to eat and sips to drink. At the second, more than 35 stalls will sling their wares.
The street party will also include free splatter sessions at 3, 4 and 5pm four groups of ten — until booked out. And, away from the paint, there'll be live tunes thanks to a roving brass band, Caribbean percussion and a DJ. The folks from Pink Flamingo, which opened in Hamilton late 2023, will also be family-friendly circus shows. Fancy lawn games instead? That's also on the bill.
As for the food, Fosh, Rise Bakery, Bird's Nest Yakitori, Byblos and Gusto Da Gianni are among the venues taking part.
Then, when it's time for the Portside Wharf Creative Market on Saturday, May 18, free splatter sessions will be on offer again at the same times — and for the same group sizes. You'll also be able to shop for pottery, homewares and art.
Pet portraits will be available, too, for free for the first 25 folks or for $10 afterwards. You'll either need to bring your furry best friend or a photo of them. Your dog can also get creative via peanut butter lick painting, which is exactly what it sounds like.
Claudia Baxter
Claudia Baxter
Portside Wharf Art Month runs from Wednesday, May 1–Friday, May 31 at Portside Wharf, Hamilton — head to the precinct's website for more details.