Words by Jay Dillon Images supplied
Regional Victoria is a natural home for artists working in all types of mediums. Perhaps they are drawn to the natural environment for inspiration, or perhaps its the slower pace of life that provides the mental space for inspiration to form. For these artists working in remote regions, the problem has always been the lack of spaces to actually display their work. In South Gippsland, the local council has decided to step up and support their local artistic community.
Next time you are travelling through the lush green landscape of South Gippsland, you might just spot a few colourful little additions to the landscape. The ArtCubes are designed to be portable, off-grid artist sanctuaries where local creatives can either set up a temporary gallery for their work or else, actually utilise the space as a working studio.
The ArtCubes is an initiative of the South Gippsland Shire Council with the support of the State Government’s Outdoor Activation Grant, and as Shire mayor Nathan Hersey tells us, the spaces have been developed with a few different goals in mind.
It is our hope that the ArtCubes will bring extra tourism to the area as well as send a message to our local artists that they are actually valued by our community and valued by our Shire.
The adapted shipping containers have been given a new lease on life with mood-lifting murals on the external walls by local artist Melanie Caple. Inside, the pods are lined with ply and the end doors can be opened right up to allow visitors to easily enter and engage with the artist and their work.
The three ArtCubes are solar-powered and completely self-sufficient, meaning that they can be placed in unexpected locations across the Shire, either all together or separately.
‘The ArtCubes are currently sited at Coal Creek Korumburra, after which they will move to Loch, Mirboo North and then over to Fish Creek’. Mayor Hersey tells us. ‘These towns all have fantastic artist communities, so it will be interesting to see what they do with the ArtCubes’.
That’s the wonderful thing about an initiative like this where the council provides the platform for the local artists to express their work and their community in their own unique way.
Applications will remain open for other South Gippsland towns and private businesses to host and utilise the ArtCubes for creative exhibitions and performances by contacting Arts Development Officer Mary Sullivan (mary.sullivan@southgippsland.vic.gov.au)
For those keen to catch the installations in the wild, keep an eye on the council social media feed for all the details (details below).
THE DETAILS
What: ArtCubes
Where: Coal Creek Korumburra
When: Now until the end of July, then moving to Mirboo North
More info: Visit South Gippsland
