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The Winner is...
Raven Esque.
See the winner's project description of the newest project of the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk: "Revive".
Creative Mullumbimby
Creative Mullumbimby Inc. is a volunteer community organisation with the aim to initiate and facilitate local creative endeavours. Mullumbimby town-ship, hinterland and Brunswick River valley, has a unique and vibrant quality - creativity is at the heart of this uniqueness. Creative Mullumbimby has created the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk.
Watch our Videos
Watch our videos on the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk Youtube Channel.
Watch the exiting development from the fund raiser campaign in Mullumbimby to the construction of the first sculpture "Enter Here" on the Mullumbimby Sculpure Walk and the opening ceremony of the Sculpure Walk. Stay tuned for the newest developments.
Outcome of the Revive project
After several hours of careful deliberation the panel arrived at a clear decision to award the commission for REVIVE to Raven Esque of Mullumbimby.
His “Living Sculpture’ proposal most aptly addresses the project brief and utilises the existing disused barbecue base by tiling the various faces of the structure and planting local species in the well. The tiles will be handmade by him and fired in his own wood fired kiln.
Mullumbimby Public Art Forum
MULLUMBIMBY PUBLIC ART FORUM
1. ART FORUM – Evolving Sculpture in Mullumbimby
Saturday 4 March from 9 am to 2 pm at the Byron Community College, Gordon Street Mullumbimby.
This forum is a “meet & greet” opportunity for artists, project partners, the general public & the Creative Mullum team,
Together we will:
Investigate the concept of ‘site specific’ public art;
Explain the process of creating sculptures;
Outline commissioning and judging process of the Mullum Sculpture walk
Ask questions & share ideas.
Featuring an expert panel as well as guest speakers, Sydney based Art Curator Eva Rodriguiz Riestra and local artist Joey van der Werven.
2. Public Art Appreciation Course
Monday 6 March 6 pm – 9 pm at the Byron Community College, Gordon Street Mullumbimby
What can public art add to Mullumbimby?
How can public art tell our local stories?
How will it reflect our culture?
What are the elements that influence the design of outdoor site-specific art?
Rather than “plonk art”?
These questions will be debated in this fun informal course.
Local artists & educators will present great examples of public art to stimulate discussion.
$10 admission at the door or register at: https://www.byroncollege.org.au/course/PublicArt
Revive Project Submission Extension
The Revive project submission deadline has just been extended (on popular demand) until FRIDAY 17TH FEBRUARY 6:00 pm
Please use the process as described here please don't send any files. Any questions call Vasu 0419 473 257
Expression of Interest
MULLUMBIMBY SCULPTURE WALK
Expression of Interest
To prepare design concepts for a new Public Art Work in Mullumbimby
ReVIVE
Public Art Project
Creative Mullumbimby announces
our inaugural expression of interest process
to develop a concept for this exciting art project
Supported by:
Creative Mullumbimby 
Background
The successful introduction of a drinking water fountain near Santos has created the motivation to attempt a more ambitious public art drinking fountain project. Meanwhile in Rotary Park, on The Terrace, council was going to demolish a barbecue including its concrete and brick base, which has a water tap nearby. Out of this initial simple notion emerged the broader idea of recycling these humble utilities to create an environmental work of art about water …
REVIVE
Context
Located within the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk, Palm Park on Brunswick Terrace is a cluster of items including:
- A disused unloved public barbecue earmarked for demolition by Byron Shire Council;
- A water tap; and
- A red lid wheelie bin (which will be removed as part of this process)
And in close proximity to:
- A streetlight
- A large picnic table and seating; and
- Pathway lined with native grasses, shrubs and trees alongside the Brunswick River.
This Project has A BUDGET of AROUND $6,000; Currently holding around $4,000, with the balance will be raised through Crowd Funding campaign.
Project Brief
The tap and barbeque are unloved and neglected pieces of park furniture in Mullumbimby that are to be incorporated into a single environmentally themed work of public art that reinvents a drinking fountain
Thematic elements to inform and inspire the brief include:
Mullumbimby's own rich history includes the building of a weir on Wilsons Creek in 1926 to provide for its own water needs.
The natural water cycle, particularly as it relates to nearby Brunswick River.
Public drinking fountains, which were once ubiquitous, have almost disappeared.
What is the alternative? It tends to be water in single use plastic bottles. In this form it costs roughly 30,000 times as much as water from a tap, yet it adds considerable environmental pollution and use of fossil fuel energy.
Why is the water we get from our taps is not viewed as special? Is it because it is now just a mundane utility, or do we suspect its safety? Tap water generally has to meet a higher level of chemical and biological safety standards than bottled water.
What is safe drinking water? In the early 20th century Chlorine was added to drinking water across the world and has been regarded as a successful public health initiative, yet in recent times the combination of new filtration technology and doubts about both the taste and longer term health effects, has caste doubt on added Chlorine?
Water is essential for virtually all life to exist. Over 70% of the molecules in our bodies are H2O. For most of human history, water has been viewed as precious, particularly water that sprung miraculously from the ground.
"Wherever there was a spring, there was life; wherever there was life, there was a spirit"
Water has a special role, both physically and symbolically, in all religions.
"The offering of water at Buddhist shrines symbolises the aspiration to cultivate the virtues of calmness, clarity and purity with our body, speech and mind."
The provision of drinking water is regarded as a human right, UN Resolution 64/292 in 2010 is the most recent to reaffirm this, while informing us that 884million people or 1 in 6 people on the planet do not have access to safe drinking water. (http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/human_right_to_water.shtml)
Finally, the commodification of drinking water, as happens with bottled water is at odds with the attitudes of most people across cultures throughout history, where free access to drinking water was been regarded as sacrosanct.
Good References:
Drinking Water: A History by James Saltzman
The Drinking Water Book: How to Eliminate Harmful Toxins from Your Water by Colin Ingram
Site specific elements of the brief are:
- Reuse the barbecue base and garden tap in a surprising and inventive way.
- Recognise that the simple brass garden tap is used for bush regeneration along the river; this purpose does not require filtered water.
- The artwork should be "site specific" responding to its physical and cultural context. Particular physical elements nearby are the picnic table, the overhead light, the walking & cycle path and the Landcare regeneration project along the river.
Functional elements of the brief are:
- The existing tap fitting can be moved or a new fitting added closer to the barbecue if it creates more functionality, a certified plumber will need to be involved.
- The provision of water should allow for refilling reusable water bottles, larger water containers of up to 25litres and as a drinking bubbler.
- There needs to be provision for incorporation of water filtering technology.
- The artwork can include a simple landscape plan of the area around the artwork.
- The artwork is to have a minimum 10 year design life, be suitable for an outdoor location, be resistant to damage from weather, exposure and vandalism.
- It should be easily maintained for the stipulated lifespan, and consider principles of sustainability in terms of life cycle, design, maintenance and management, choice of materials and energy use.
- Byron Shire Councils Public Art Policy will be used as a guide to the Process of commissioning http://www.byron.nsw.gov.au/public-art
Expression Of Interest Requirements
- Complete Online Project Submission Form, that includes:
- Name and contact details, and ABN if registered;
- A short conceptual statement interpreting the Artwork Brief
- 1 page artists CV stating experience with similar projects
- Provide up to 5 images of previous work
- Present and upload concept as electronic images as part of your online submission (drawings, photos of a model, photomontage etc) Maximum of 5 images.
- There should be no personal identification on any of the concept drawings so that concepts can be mounted without the artist being identifiable. You can include a title/or the name of your project.
Notes:
- Try to make sure electronic images are practical in size and proportion for mounting on the web. (under 2MG each)
- If your submission is shortlisted, the artist will have the opportunity to present non electronic materials such as a model at the Artist Presentation
- This project does not seek to exclude amateur or student artists. If your concept is selected we would seek to pair you with a professional artist in order to for the project to be realized. If you require assistance this should be stated in the EOI submission form.
Expressions of Interest and Concept Selection
The following is the expression of interest and concept selection process and timetable.
Timetable
| Call for EOI submissions | Wednesday 14 December 2016 |
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Closing date EOI submissions At which time the online submission form must be completed and a minimum of three electronic images of the concept are uploaded |
Friday 17 February 2017 |
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Assessment of EOI submissions Our selection panel will shortlist three to five successful concepts |
Friday 24 February 2017 |
| Shortlisted concepts will be mounted on our website for public comment | Shortly after |
| Successful and unsuccessful artists are notified | 24 -28 February 2017 |
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Artist Presentation Shortlisted artists have opportunity to present concept to selection committee |
Friday 3 March 2017 |
| Successful shortlisted concepts are displayed at "Evolving Public Art in Mullumbimby" Forum | Saturday 4 March 2017 |
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Selection and Announcement of Successful Concept and Artist This will depend on coordination with BSC Public Art and Assessment Panel. |
During March |
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Technical Clarification of Concept (Optional) The artist will be engaged by Creative Mullumbimby, depending on the concept chosen some further technical clarification of the site and equipment to be incorporated within the work may be required. On this basis the artist may be given a small amount of money to further develop their concept. |
April 2017 |
| Crowd funding campaign | April 2017 |
| Fabrication of public art work | May and June 2017 |
| Installation of public art work | To be announced |
| Public Unveiling | To be announced |
Selection Method & Criteria
Shortlisted concepts and then the final selected concept will be judged based on the selection criteria below, with concepts first being judged anonymously based on the artistic merit criteria. The concept would then have to meet the other three categories.
- Artistic Merit
- Conceptual integrity
- Originality
- Answers the brief
- Will be a lasting and significant public art asset within the town
- Feasibility
- Meets budget
- Artist demonstrates capability
- Practicality of fabrication and installation
- Use of sustainable materials
- Local Community Benefit
- Community skills exchange
- Financial flow back into the community
- Public reaction and acceptance
- Technical and Regulatory
- Consideration of ongoing maintenance requirements
- Comply with all relevant Australian Standards and building codes
- Compliance with WH&S standards and public safety guidelines
- Consider long-term maintenance requirements and costs including anti-graffiti coatings appropriate
- Must hold public liability insurance policy, with a minimum of $20,000,000.
Budget
The project has a small starting budget of:
- $2000, thanks to excess fund raising for the new drinking water fountain in Burringbar Street by The Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce and our community.
- $2,000 seed funding from the Evolution of the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk project (funded by Arts NSW).
- The balance of funds will be raised via crowd funding.
Administration of the expression of interest process, is funded in-kind as part of Evolution of the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk project.
- If we cannot be satisfied that the budget cannot be met or we will be unable raise the funds required we reserve the right to work with an alternative short listed concept and artist.
The organisers of this expression of interest process do reserve the right to choose more then one concept for fabrication or no concepts depending on the quality of the concepts presented.
Submissions and more Information
A full brief of this project can be downloaded here:
mullumsculpturewalk.com.au/revive
All project submission forms and submissions are to be submitted online at mullumsculpturewalk.com.au/revive
Due date 17 February 2017, 6pm
If you register from intention to submit with a contact email during the expression of interest period we can send you clarifications of the project brief that may be required before the closing date for submissions.
If you have questions please contact Jeannette Martin Ph: 04 1232 2255
or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Detailed program of the Opening Event
Program of the Opening of the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk
April 30th from 10am onwards
| 10:00 | Nyck Jeanes (BayFM) introduction of groups and activities |
| 10:05 |
- Pick up stick competition by Chamber of Commerce - Introductory walks on the future Sculpture Walk - Boy Scouts Rope Bridge construction |
| 10:30 | Song Dynasty Kid's Choir |
| 10:45 | Jenny Cargill-Strong tells a story |
| 11:00 | Nyck Jeanes introduces Welcome to Country |
| 11:05 | Welcome to Country with Delta Kay |
| 11:10 | Speech: Obi McDonald-Saint (Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce) |
| 11:15 | Speech: Suvira McDonald (Artist of the ENTER HERE sculpture) |
| 11:30 | Mayor Simon Richardson opens the Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk |
Catering by the Boy Scouts, Santos Organics and The Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce.
Suvira McDonald
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Announcing official opening
The 
sculpture, which forms the gateway to the walk, is now constructed after months of preparation and painting of poles. At the same time as this construction marks the end of a 3 year process of administration and design, it also marks the beginning of the next stages of the MULLUMBIMBY SCULPTURE WALK. Information about the next stage is forthcoming.
To mark this the official opening will be held on site on April 30th between 10 and 11:30 am. The community is invited to attend.
Presiding is BayFM presenter Nyck Jeanes, Welcome to Country from Delta Kay and with Major Simon Richardson officially opening. The Boy Scouts, Santos Organics, The Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce will all be catering the event. Final program will be announced soon.
Detail of pattern painting
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Poles in Production
With the administrative phase of the project mostly behind us, the production of is now well under way.
We are immensly grateful to LUIS CRISTIA for complex and detailed architectural drawings, PHIL WALLACE for valued engineering specifications and MALCOLM PRICE for navigating a formidable bureaucracy.
Late 2015 saw a visit to the BORAL stockpile site in Grafton resulting in a delivery of 17 poles to us in January.
Since then, on site at DAVID PIESSE'S property outside Mullumbimby, we have been at work preparing the poles.
They have been pressure cleaned, sanded and undercoated by our volunteer crew, outstanding members of which are LEO MCDONALD and ALAN BASEDOW, and now await the final colour coats.
We anticipate a swelling of the volunteer ranks at this crucial fun stage. Thanks to DULUX and MITRE 10 for the generous support of supplying and mixing the paint. There are 42 colours in the the design in which LISSA MALONEY provided critical design consultation.
Early Artist Impression of ENTER HERE
In the following weeks, as the whole project culminates, we will be turning the sculpture site on the corner of Burringbar Street and River Terrace, into a construction zone facilitated by AUSTRALIAN SAFETY FENCES.
Local concreter WAYNE WHELAN will be setting the concrete footings and MULLUMBIMBY ENGINEERING will be assuming control of the installation. During that time, for aproximately 2 weeks, the path and cycle way will be diverted to allow proper curing of the concrete.
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IT support and photo / video documentation by TEKWIZARD.
Update October 2015
Suvira McDonaldAs a supporter you will be happy to know the project is making its way, in its own time through the labyrinthine process to materialisation. Thank you for your support, and I again would like to acknowledge the high level of financial support received from the Mullum businesses and the community. Special thanks go to Santos Organics and Leela Plantations for their most generous backing.
This project has been eight years in the making since its inception. It took two years to navigate the Development Application process in council, who, at the same time, waived the fees involved and then funded the project to the tune of $5000.
With our approval came four pages of consent conditions and which is another word for stumbling blocks. Between then and now we ran the fundraising campaign and have achieved a level of funding adequate to meet the needs of producing the first sculpture, Enter Here. For this we have had the help of local designer and technician, Luis Cristia, who has marvellously represented the sculpture in architectural drawings. These designs will form the basis of the engineering certification produced by distinguished local engineer, Phil Wallace, who currently has the plans. With Phil’s endorsement the plans will head on to Council to make our application for Construction Certificate. A small example of these drawings is included here.
The program then entails actually producing the painted poles and installing them on site, a task to be undertaken by Mullumbimby Engineering. We at Creative Mullumbimby trust your patience will endure through this somewhat arduous administrative phase of the execution.
The team at Creative Mullumbimby
The sculpture project is being carried by a team at Creative Mullum Inc., initiated by Suvira McDonald, administrative stage being carried by Malcolm Price, IT support from Ullrich Wallrodt and admin back up form Susan Fell-McLean. The Crowd funding campaign was a collective effort resulting in the additional $10K grant from Australian Cultural Fund through Creative Partnerships Australia, this has made a huge difference to our position of course and enabled us to proceed with confidence.
Once again your support is immensely appreciated. I will advise more detail about the actual production process in due course when we have a Construction Certificate. If there is more detail about the project you would like to know please reply to this email and I will get back to you.
For a larger image please click the image. To get to the next image please click the image again.
Updates after the Fund Raising
As the fundraising dust settles, we find ourselves in the limbo of having acquired the funds to get started and actually getting started on making the first sculpture. I must say the feeling of having project funding in place is inspiring and a big thanks again to all our supporters.
The first work is a monumental construction of power poles which will form entry portal to the sculpture walk, suitably named 'Enter Here'. I am currently seeking a construction site, ideally in full public view, that all may see the progress. Several possibities are in the air: but it is yet be resolved.
Another thing is the poles themselves which is also in progress as we negotiate with a possible new project supporter. Until this part of the scheme actually gels I cannot say who this is, however I am very keen to do this soon.
The third matter is volunteer power, a vital ingredient for the project because there is much preparation and painting of poles to be done before we install them. We would like to hear from anyone who is interested in working on the project.
I hope to have something to report in the next week or so that will get things moving.
Watch this space...
Suvira
Thanks to all our supporters!
Our first Newsletter is out!
In a late to early morning effort our team has sent out our first newsletter - and guess what - this morning we have an increase from 1% to now 4% of our $10,000 goal. So before you spend your money over the Easter holidays just click on DONATE NOW and contribute.
The Countdown is on!
The clock is ticking and we are working hard behind the scenes towards midnight the 1st of April when our Crowd Funding Campaign is about to start. Our Youtube clips are being edited at the moment, the website gets it's latest updates and promotional material is designed and will be printed soon. If you feel like you would be able to support our 8 weeks campaign in one way or the other by organising and promoting a few hours per week then please go to our Contact form on our website and drop us a line.
Fund Raiser
A BIG THANK YOU
to all our supporters -
we made it!
Click here for a list of all donors of our Dollar for Dollar fund raising campaign.
Work on
Mullumbimby Sculpture Walk
is about to begin.
Standing at the entrance
will be 
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A large and colourful construction of repurposed power poles straddling the cycle path An attraction for locals and visitors, the Mullumbimby Sculpture walk will have a positive impact on the local economy. |
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Our Sponsors
We thank our financial supporters and sponsors
Dr. Rod Tayler
LEELA PLANTATIONS PTY. LTD.
Dulux Paints
Tallowood Estate
Phil Wallace Engineering
Luis Cristia
Creative Mullumbimby
