Sculpture Down the Lachlan take Two

The remaining sculptures are located around Forbes, a number are alongside Lake Forbes which loops around Forbes probably an old course of the Lachlan River. There are a series of wonderful parks alongside the lake with a well lit walking paths. The first two sculptures are in Whego Park.

The one on the left is a representation that we are all connected on the journey of life. The three stainless steel intertwined loops, spanning one metre in diameter, form a knot to symbolise strength, courage and peace, and represents the complexity of us all. The artist is Lachlan Ross an Australian sculptor whose body of work consists primarily of large-scale modern contemporary forms in stainless and Corten steel.

The one on the right is called Shadows on the Landing. The stairs to the first landing can be walked on and the partially open door encourages further investigation. The artist is Ingrid Morley who received traditional Atelier style training with Tom Bass Studio School in the 1990’s and now has a workshop based near Jenolan Caves in the Central Tablelands of NSW.

The next sculptures are in Sir Francis Forbes Park and are the Wiradjuri Dreamimg Story Poles with another pole on the east side of the lake. The poles have sculptures of native animals that were important to the Wiradjuri people. One of the artists is Rosie Johnston who is renowned for her large-scale colourful abstract canvasses. Rosie is also the brainchild behind the Sculpture Down the Lachlan trail concept. In 2012 Rosie set about to lobby for funding to create a permanent, inland sculpture trail to generate tourism for our region and diversify the rural economy.

Most of the remaining sculptures are in the centre of town near the post office and town hall. They are an interesting array of artwork.

The final sculpture is of a couple of Wiradjuri women walking together. Also located on the shoreline of Lake Forbes, this bronze sculpture helps to tell the story of Wiradjuri culture. It depicts two Indigenous women with child returning from gathering food. This piece was developed in close consultation with the local Wiradjuri community.

The sculptor Brett Garling is widely known as ‘Mon’ to friends and collectors alike. Mon has had over forty group and solo exhibitions and is an exhibiting member of the Sculptors Society and The Australian Plein-Air Artists Group.

A fascination for the technical aspects of casting his sculptures in bronze led Mon to establish his own foundry in conjunction with his art gallery, Garling Gallery in 2004. This allowed him to have a permanent collection of both his paintings and sculptures.

So that is Sculpture Down the Lachlan, well worth the visit. I have enjoyed my stay at Forbes, a very pleasant place to while away a few days. Tomorrow I’m off heading further north, I may get to Coolah but depends on how the day rolls out, it is a 450 Km trip so I may fall short.

This entry was posted in 2022. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *