Goroke Silo Art project moves ahead
Published on 24 September 2020
West Wimmera Shire is one step closer to joining the Silo Art Trail, with painting set to start on the GrainCorp silos at Goroke.
New Zealand-born artist Geoffrey Carran will paint three silos located at the GrainCorp site within the town.
Geoffrey loves painting birds and has experience working on large-scale murals. He has previously painted bird murals at Edenhope, Balmoral, Niddrie, and Naracoorte. He has also had exhibitions in Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, England and the United States.
He plans to paint native birds, significant to the town and region in front of local landscapes.
Geoffrey has worked closely with the local community, West Wimmera Shire Council and GrainCorp to develop the project.
Painting was initially scheduled to start earlier in the year, but was delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Council chief executive David Leahy said it was fantastic to see painting now getting underway.
“This is something the community has been waiting for and we are delighted to see it come to fruition,” he said.
Mr Leahy said tourism contributed almost $8.5 million towards West Wimmera Shire’s economy, and the silo artworks would be an important addition.
“Extending silo art installations into West Wimmera is a significant opportunity for us and it will add to the growing list of attractions that tourists can visit here in the shire,” he said.
“West Wimmera Shire Council aligns at a regional level with Wimmera Mallee Tourism and these newly painted silos will be recognised as an extension of the official ‘Silo Art Trail’.”
Council is delivering this project on behalf of the community, which was successful in getting funding through the state government’s Pick My Project campaign.
A second silo project at the GrainCorp silos at Kaniva is also due to start in coming weeks, following delays due to COVID-19 restrictions.
The new artworks will also be integrated with Wimmera Mallee Tourism’s augmented reality app, which profiles other silo art locations in Victoria.
Anyone planning on visiting the site to see painting in action must abide by all safety measures in place, including exclusion zones.