Kondinin sculptures bring new life to Men’s Shed
Regional Arts WA
Give a town one week to embrace their creativity and a yard full of scrap metal, and the results will speak for themselves.
The Shire of Kondinin received a grant through the Project Fund to complete their Community Public Art Metal Sculpture Project, running throughout March 2017.
The Shire partnered with Kondinin Arts Group and Middle East Engineering to deliver a community arts project which appealed to a broad range of community members.
Tory Young and Tammy Wilkins stabilise The Golfer, as part of the Kondinin Community Public Art Metal Sculpture Project. Picture by Jenny Hardy
The funding helped bring in Sculpture artist Len Zuks to run week-long workshops in creating sculptures out of scrap metal.
The local Men’s Shed opened their doors to the wider community to provide a venue, equipment and welding expertise throughout the project, turning it into a hub of artistic activity throughout the week.
15 locals participated in the workshops and were hands-on in creating a series of public art sculptures for the community.
When all was said and done 11 sports-themed sculptures were completed and proudly installed at the Kondinin Sporting Recreation Complex.
The project resulted in strengthened partnerships between community groups, and left participants with a new artistic skill set to continue practising — keep an eye on the annual Kondinin Art Prize for some incredible new sculptural entries!
Shire of Kondinin Planning and Development manager Tory Young said by the end of the week new friendships had developed.
“Following the completion of the workshops a number of attendees became members of the Kondinin Men’s Shed and continued to come regularly and work on their own metalwork projects,” she said.
“The project served to heighten the profile of the Kondinin Arts Group and the arts more generally in the town as a way of empowering local residents to be involved in the arts and realise the benefits that it can bring to the community.“
The Project Fund is designed to benefit regional and remote artists, arts workers, audiences and communities by supporting and promoting participation in, and access to, art and culture. You can see find info about applying for the Project Fund here.
The Project Fund is made possible by the Regional Arts Fund, an Australian Government initiative supporting the arts in regional and remote Australia. The Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund is provided through Regional Arts Australia.
