This New Year's Day (2018) I decided it was the perfect day to "do" the Victorian Silo Art Trail.
This is something that's been on the back of my mind for a while. I've seen a few images of the giant murals, but seeing them in real life is just something else!
For those not in the know:
Founded in 2015, Silo Art Trail is Australia’s largest outdoor gallery. The trail stretches over 200 kilometres, linking Brim with neighbouring towns Lascelles, Patchewollock, Rosebery, Rupanyup and Sheep Hills.
Providing an insight into the true spirit of the Wimmera Mallee, the trail recognises and celebrates the region’s people through a series of large-scale mural portraits painted onto grain silos, many of which date back to the 1930s.
The project saw a team of renowned artists from Australia and across the world visit the region, meet the locals and transform each grain silo into an epic work of art; each one telling a unique story about the host town.
The Silo Art Trail was conceived in 2015 after the success of the first silo artwork in Brim. What started as a small community project by the Brim Active Community Group and artist Guido van Helten resulted in widespread international media attention and an influx of visitors to the region. It was here that the idea for a trail was born.
The Silo Art Trail was created as a partnership between Yarriambiack Shire Council, international street art agency Juddy Roller, Victorian Government, Australian Government and GrainCorp, who donated the silos as canvases for the artists’ work.
All text in italics taken from www.siloarttrail.com
The first silo is around 1 hour past the town of Ararat in Victoria's west (2.5 hour drive from Melbourne), the trail then takes around 2 hours to complete. That makes it a 5.5 hour trip from Melbourne to the end of the trail. Being a photographer, naturally I wanted to be there for sunrise, so I drove to Ararat on New Year's Eve and stayed the night.
Nerd alert: I drove to Ararat with Star Wars: The Last Jedi soundtrack playing. The golden rays of the setting sun over the plains set to John William's score was just perfect!
I was up at 4:30am to get out to the first silo in the town of Rupanyup by 6am. I made it JUST as the morning sun started to light up the top of the silo, absolutely magical! I had a chat to a retired plumber on his way home from getting the paper, he thought I was the earliest person he had ever seen there!
... the work of Russian mural artist, Julia Volchkova. Departing from the artist’s usual focus on various communities’ older generations, the work represents a faithful portrayal of the small farming town’s love of sport.
The featured faces belong to Rupanyup residents and local sporting team members, Ebony Baker and Jordan Weidemann. Fresh-faced and donning their sports attire (netball and Aussie Rules football, respectively), Baker and Weidemann embody a youthful spirit of strength, hope and camaraderie...
I jumped back in the car eager to get to as many of the silos as I could, wanting to take full advantage of the morning's soft, golden sun. Next up was was a silo in the town of Sheep Hills.
I spent quite a bit of time here trying different angles and even shooting a bit of drone footage. These silos were just so impressive towering up in the middle of the dusty scrub. The colours used are really vivid and dark on a black base, the rest of the silos are quite monochromatic.
...Melbourne-based artist Matt Adnate has been called to tell the stories of Indigenous people and their native lands, particularly those of Aboriginal Australians. In 2016, Adnate developed a friendship with the Barengi Gadjin Land Council in north-west Victoria and found his inspiration for the Sheep Hills mural.
Adnate’s depiction of Wergaia Elder, Uncle Ron Marks and Wotjobaluk Elder, Aunty Regina Hood alongside two young children from the community acknowledges the area’s Indigenous history and seeks to celebrate the richness of its culture.
Spanning four silos (built in 1938) and visible from kilometres away, the evocative work portrays four faces against a backdrop of a starry night sky. The night sky represents elements of local dreaming and the overall image signifies the important exchange of wisdom, knowledge and customs from Elders to the next generation...
Remembering the sun, I jumped into the car and set out for the next silo at the town of Brim.
As I got out of the car and saw the sun's position at the PERFECT position behind the silo I gave a little internal squeal of excitement! Beautiful beams of light were spilling out between the central gap and sides of the silo. The sun was visible slowly rising up the centre of the tower, perfect for composition! There was a band of fast moving cloud approaching the sky directly above the silo, perfect for cloud streams! I had so much fun here playing with all the different elements I had to work with. I took some of my favourite shots here.
...Guido van Helten’s iconic Brim mural was the first silo artwork to appear in Victoria, infusing the town’s community with newfound energy and optimism. After gaining widespread local and international attention, Brim’s silo art success shone a spotlight on the Wimmera Mallee region and inspired the establishment of the Silo Art Trail.
Completed in 2016, with limited financial resources, van Helten’s mural depicts an anonymous, multi-generational quartet of female and male farmers. Portrayed across four 1939-built silos, the subjects’ expressions capture the strength and resilience of the local farming community.
By rendering the figures as both central and peripheral, present and absent, the work explores shifting notions of community identity at a time when rural populations face both immense economic pressure and the tangible consequences of climate change.
Using the documentary style of humanist street photography as studies, the translucent aerosol technique conjures a sense of ghostliness. The resulting characters are transient manifestations, profoundly connected to their chosen place and providing the landscape with a comforting, familiar presence...
Very satisfied that I had some great shots to work with, I set off for Rosebery for the next mural. The sun was starting to climb high in the sky, but I still had time to make use of long shadows and beams of light. This silo was really impressive and I got some great shots here using the sun, a gum tree and the iconic bush characters on the mural.
...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 the Rosebery silos. After a month-long immersion, Kaff-eine identified elements that she felt best captured the spirit of the Mallee and its people.
Completed in late 2017, Kaff-eine’s artwork depicts themes that she feels embody the region’s past, present and future.
The silo on the left captures the grit, tenacity and character of the region’s young female farmers, who regularly face drought, fires and other hardships living and working in the Mallee. In her work shirt, jeans and turned-down cowboy boots, Kaff-eine’s strong young female sheep farmer symbolises the future.
The silo on the right portrays a quiet moment between dear friends. The contemporary horseman appears in Akubra hat, Bogs boots and oilskin vest – common attire for Mallee farmers. Both man and horse are relaxed and facing downward, indicating their mutual trust, love and genuine connection...
On to the next one! The town of Lascelles beckoned.
Rone's mural is outstanding, and a beautiful depiction of the 'wise custodians'. Seeing them look out over the landscape gives you a feeling of permanence, that your forebears will always be there looking over you and the land. The sun was almost directly overhead and it was tricky to get many shots, unfortunately Geoff's image is only partially visible in the light. I would love to come back and re-shoot this one in particular one day.
...Melbourne-based artist Rone knew that he had to learn about the town from people with a lifelong connection to it. In this work, he depicts local farming couple, Geoff and Merrilyn Horman, part of a family that has lived and farmed in the area for four generations.
Rone says that he wanted the mural to portray his subjects as “wise custodians of the land” – sage elders nurturing the town’s future with their deep knowledge, vast farming experience and longstanding connection to the area.
Completing the mural over two weeks in June 2017, the artist says that he went to great lengths to paint the mural in the 1939-built silos’ existing raw concrete tones to produce a work that would integrate sensitively into its environment...
One last stop to make - the town of Patchewollock. The sun was quite high in the sky, it was now the middle of the day. No great composition opportunities, apart from the silo itself! The second mural with some colour, although very muted weathered tones reflecting life country Victoria. The figure is depicted in an iconic, blue Aussie 'Flanney' - flannelette shirt.
...Brisbane artist Fintan Magee booked a room at the local pub, immersing himself in the community and getting to know its people. When he met local sheep and grain farmer, Nick “Noodle” Hulland, Magee knew he had found his subject.
Why Hulland? According to Magee, the rugged, lanky local exemplified the no-nonsense, hardworking spirit of the region. Perhaps more importantly though, he says that Noodle had just the right height and leanness to neatly fit onto the narrow, 35-metre-high silo canvas (built in 1939)...
To really get a sense of the size, scale and detail of these amazing works, and their incredible remote locations, I took some video with my DJI Spark drone: