Box Kite Piazza, Bald Hill

At some places, the box kites punch up out of the pavement…

As the most visited destination in the Illawarra, Bald Hill at Stanwell Tops is a place loved by locals and tourists alike. Wollongong City Council recently completed upgrading Bald Hill to match the site’s significant profile.

In early 2015 I was invited to collaborate with Wollongong City Council landscape architects Andy Goldie and Felicity Skoberne. Brainstorming ideas for potential public art works at such a significant place was an exciting process.

Five potential public art projects were identified, each exploring a different site based narrative. Each had strong design constraints due to extreme environmental exposure and heavy pedestrian visitation. In addition, the art works needed to reflect the horizontality- “the baldness”- of the site. Of the the five potential public art works, three have been realised. Of these three, the central pavement artwork is my design.

Arguably Australia’s greatest inventor, Lawrence Hargrave lived in Stanwell Park in the 1890’s. The pavement artwork honours Lawrence Hargrave, referencing the box kites that held him aloft , 16 feet above Stanwell Park on November 12, 1894. This first manned flight was a world aeronautical breakthrough; Hargraves design for stable wing surfaces was used successfully by the earliest generation of aeroplanes.

The Box Kite pavement provides a focal point that is playful and visually stimulating .

As a meeting area adjacent to both the beloved Mr Whippy van and the tourist bus stop, the space jostles with visitors on most days of the year. The work is mainly viewed by pedestrians and has been designed to be enjoyed at different focal distances, changing depending on the viewing angle.

At some places the box kites punch up out of the pavement, appearing three dimensional, an optical illusion which humorously engages visitors; closer up, the terrazzo pavement is studded with handmade stoneware fossils which reference the geology of the site and are designed to catch the eye of children.

The large scale of the work also makes it visible from the air, extending a visual dialogue to those above, soaring in machines that owe their existence to the historic kites that first flew from this unique place.

Detail: Handmade stoneware fossils imbedded in the terrazzo.

Robertson Public School children make artworks that celebrate their unique environment

The Art+Environment project at Robertson Public School, which engaged children from Mrs Campbell – Jones 2014 year 3/4 class in meaningful art making, is now installed at the school next to the main entrance pathway.

The three circular tiled panels each represent the unique flora, birds and animals of Robertson- the Yarrawa Brush.

Designs of local plants created by Robertson Public School children.

Through the mediums of charcoal drawing and clay work, the children learnt about some of the unique plant and animal species that call Robertson home. The children then transferred their drawings into clay tiles, preserving their charcoal drawings for all to see.

Working with charcoal pushes children out of the comfort zone of texta and pencil. Learning to use charcoal is frustrating at first, but year 3/4 soon learnt to modulate the weight of their lines, experiencing the way a charcoal line can be drawn lightly and finely with a gentle touch, thickly and darkly with a firm hand. Smudging charcoal line is fun and can create the appearance of three dimensions. I was particularly impressed by the drawings of plant materials that the children made. Carefully observing the samples that I provided, they made sensitive observational drawings ; the children’s lines are fresh, strong and confident yet have a naive quality. The finished tiles have the quality of a Margaret Preston wood block print .

robbo kids plant tiles

Like charcoal, clay is a tactile medium. Being responsive to touch, it has a life of its own. With clay tools the children transferred their lines into leather hard clay tiles, preserving the quality of their original charcoal drawings and making a permanent playground art work that they can be proud of.

IMG_4055 (1)

It was the confident quality of the children’s charcoal drawings that inspired another project in Robertson- the carved benches in Pinkwood Park.

IMG_4054 (1) IMG_4067 (1)

“I’m proud to be the conduit for another local community arts project. My philosophy is that moving small grains of sand can make big differences. Few of us have the time or financial resources to make grand gestures, but we can all make a difference by sharing just a little of our time, skills and knowledge.”

Public Art Projects

Native Bee Bells for Picton Botanic gardens are on the way…

Public Art Projects

Bee Aware: Environmental Art Workshop

FeaturedPublic Art Projects

Lives On the Line: NSW Railways Remember

Earlier this year, my partner Stephen Fearnley and I were thrilled to be selected to create a commemorative artwork that honours the commitment of NSW Railway men that served duringNSW Railway men.

“The outbreak of war in 1914 had dramatic impacts in Australia, with large numbers of men rushing to enlist for military service to serve their country. At the time, the NSW Railways and Tramways Department was the largest enterprise in the state, with 45,000 employees. Over the course of the war 8,447 men from the department enlisted for service and by the end of the war 1,210 of these men had died serving their country. Most NSW Railwaymen served amongst other soldiers fighting on the frontline, whilst some were recruited especially for their expertise to assist with operating railway lines for the war effort in Europe. The nature and scale of WWI suited the use of railways like no war before or since, with the war requiring massive transportation in an era where road vehicles and aviation were still too limited. Joseph Joffre, Commander-in-Chief of the French Army during the war declared: ‘This is a railway war… if we win this war it will be largely due to the railways.’ From nswrailwaysremember.com.au

The artwork that we are making is linear in nature and when finished will be 45 metres long. The work explores three themes: The first section references the extraordinary story of the men of the 6^th Australian Broad Gauge Railway Operating Company (ABGROC) which was made up of volunteers from the NSW Government Railways. In July 1917 they took control of the locomotive depot and exchange sidings at Bergues Exchange that was supporting the Ypres area on the Western Front. 303 stoneware tiles – one for each member of the 6^th ABGROC – are being handmade in the design of the red and purple shoulder patch worn by the Railway Operating Companies. Signatures from a Christmas card the company made in 1917 for the Chief Commissioner for the NSW Railways and Tramways, will be reproduced and subtly incised into these tiles. These tiles also reference ceramic tesserae used in many Federation railway stations.

The deeper level of meaning of this section of the memorial references intellectual man: here is the “mind” of man.

The second section of the memorial is a collaborative artwork. At a series of events around NSW, members of the general public, as well as railways employees and their families, are invited to take part in clay workshops to help make thousands of ceramic pieces to be included in a 28 metre long mosaic. We are aiming to make 8,447 objects- one for each man who served- ceramic facsimiles of everyday articles that would have been familiar to the men who served. Buckles, badges, buttons, keys, whistles, coins …fragments of objects that were trapped in the mud of battlefields and are being found to this day. When the work is installed the ceramic objects will appear as flotsam caught in an eddy; from a distance the work will be a palimpsest of textures, close up the details will be revealed.

The deeper level of meaning of this section of the memorial references physical man; this is the earthly realm, the “body” of man.

The third part of the memorial made of steel, punctured, as though with bullet holes. Each hole will be sealed with kiln slumped blue glass. The steel panels will be illuminated from below: 1210 starlike points of light, representing the number of NSW Railwaymen who died on the battlefields.