Silo Art Trail Victoria – Day 2
We set off on Day two of The Silo Art Trail, Australia’s largest outdoor gallery. Today we headed over to Shepparton and drove north to Katamatite, this time driving down finishing at Goorambat Silo Art.
We arrived at Katamatite, but failed to notice that the sign on Google Maps had a Coming Soon notification. We drove an extra 60 kms to find that out.
This was day two of the silo trail trip.
Tungamah Silo Art
St James Silo Art
GrainCorp has yet again provided another blank canvas for the new silo art in St James, Victoria.
The site was once filled with the sounds of trucks and played a major role in the community’s economy.
Now after laying dormant for a few years, again they are breathing life back into the community in a new way with Silo Art. The St James Silos are officially the 27th set of silos to be included in the Australian Silo Art Trail Collection.
This mural art on a grand scale is an ongoing Work In Progress by local artist Tim Bowtell, with draughthorses and an old truck that once carted bushels of wheat to the silos, and local businessmen including Sir G. J. Coles whose name is synonymous with Coles Supermarkets today (the Coles family made a substantial donation to paint the 1943 era GrainCorp silos).
St. James Silo Art by artist Tim Bowtell – St. James Victoria April 13th, 201
Devenish Silo Art
The GrainCorp Silos at Devenish in North East Victoria were painted by Melbourne Street Artist Cam Scale and are officially the 19th Silos to be included in the Australian Silo Art Trail.
Stage one which comprises of the two tall silos was officially unveiled on Anzac Day in 2018. Marked as a tribute to help celebrate the 100-year centenary of the end of the First World War.
The stage one artwork depicts a stunning image of a WW1 nurse and a modern female military medic in the Australian Armed Forces. This mural also depicts the changing role of women in the military and society in general.
Stage two on the short silos were officially unveiled one year later on Anzac Day 2019. This mural is a tribute to the Australian Light Horse. The Australian Light Horse were mounted troops with characteristics of both cavalry and mounted infantry, who served in the Second Boer War and WW 1.
Fifty young men and women from the Devenish Community enlisted in the military services in WW1. At the time, that was one in six residents from this very tiny town. Cam Scale also wanted to honour the seven Devenish diggers that never made it home.
Rosebery Art Silo
Before commencing work in Rosebery, Melbourne artist, Kaff-eine spent time in the Mallee assisting fellow artist Rone on his Lascelles silo project. During this time, Kaff-eine travelled to neighbouring towns, discovering the natural environment and acquainting herself with local business owners, families, farmers and children – all with the view to developing a concept for these GrainCorp silos which date back to 1939.
Completed in late 2017, Kaff-eine’s artwork depicts themes that she says embody the region’s past, present and future.
Goorambat Silo Art
As part of the 2018 Wall to Wall festival, Goorambat silos were painted by famed iconic Melbourne Street artist Dvate.
Dvate is known for his striking renditions of endangered animals from across Australia. Dvate has created another monumental artwork depicting an endangered bird of prey from the area.
The Barking Owl painted on the concrete silo is a tribute to this endangered species. With fewer than 50 breeding pairs in the wild, the Barking Owl is the most threatened owl in Victoria. North East Victoria remains a stronghold for wild populations.
Ironbark is the Barking Owl’s habitat. This tree is depicted in the forefront of the typical, Australiana farming scene on the second silo.
The third silo features three Clydesdale horses that resided in Goorambat. Clydesdales are an intricate part of the Goorambat area. They are literally the work-horses of the country and rural areas like Goorambat might not exist without them.