– faded glory days and resilient determination –
The silo art trail in north west Victoria is becoming a major tourist attraction. We’d seen a string of painted silos on our drive from Benalla to Echuca and more were yet to come. But this was going to be a long day of driving south from Mildura to Daylesford. So we decided that the best way to punctuate what could have been a monotonous day was to make an adventure of it. We were going to visit as many silos as we could fit into the daylight hours!
what is there to see on a silo art trail?
Why visit? Because artwork on a large scale is almost always a triumph of technique and occasionally breathtakingly beautiful. But that’s not all. These silos, now mostly disused, represent a brighter, more optimistic time in Australia’s European history when hopes of driving economic development in rural areas instigated grand plans and big infrastructure spend. They are now only poignant, ghostly reminders of this fairytale time alongside the bygone railway stations, severed railway tracks, closed-up and boarded shops and empty streetscapes that once pulsed with human activity. It’s very sad. And yet still hopeful, because these now-tiny communities are trying once again to put their towns on the map and draw in visitors by reviving these silo dinosours and broadcasting their local stories.
the north western silo art trail
You can find local silo art sites, by simply typing in “Silo Art Victoria” in a Google Map search. There are also at least two websites, at the time of writing, that feature detailed information on the silo art (please note that we aren’t sponsored by either of them!) This website covers the north west victoria silo art trail that we had decided to take on this trip. The second website more broadly covers painted art throughout Victoria and the rest of Australia, plus painted water tanks and art towns. They’re a useful read on the way to each site – something for the passenger to do to pass the time and entertain the driver! However, I’d recommend downloading the information before you leave as mobile coverage is almost non-existent in-between towns.
We started early and enjoyed the surreal drive across the Mallee countryside shrouded in mist and fog. Beautiful on a crisp Autumn morning.
patchewollock
As we had just left Mildura, we were travelling in the reverse direction to most visitors – who would probably be coming up from Melbourne. So our first stop of the morning at Patchewollock was deserted.
This silo was painted by Brisbane artist, Finton Magee. It’s pointless repeating the information you’ll find on the information boards or elsewhere on the net. The photos speak for themselves.
Just be sure to take the time to check out the now abandoned railway station.
And make sure you stop and look at the clever mallee fowl sculptures nearby.
lascelles
This very subtle work was painted by Melbourne artist, Rone.
Be sure to walk to the other side of the silos so that you see both of the art works. The artist has cleverly made the most of the natural colour of the silos.
The ghostly remnants of the town of Lascelles are also worth investigating.
At this point we could have detoured to visit the latest silo art at Albacutya before moving on to Rosebery, but we knew that it would make us late for the StickShed at Murtoa (more later!). If you’re travelling in the opposite direction from Melbourne, you would have more time to make this stop.
rosebery
There’s not much more to see at Rosebery other than the silo art.
This was painted by artist Kaff-eine.
brim
By the time we had arrived at Brim, we had caught up with the tourist buses. This is the first and therefore probably most visited of the silos on the trail and there were loads of people milling about at the viewing site across the main road.
The work is exquisite. Painted by Guido van Helten (whose work we had already discovered in the Winton Wetlands), it makes the most use of the colour palette actually provided by the concrete used to construct the silo.
striking vivid images
Another artist we had encountered on our road trip through country Victoria was Adnate. In Sheep Hills we found some more of his highly vivid imagery. He’s not afraid to make maximum use of colour.
a bush cathedral
The next stop of the day was at the Murtoa Stick Shed. It was another grand vision that has been left to haunt us with the passage of time. Thank goodness for the far-sightedness of the locals who fought to have it preserved. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to save the second, larger shed which was demolished some years ago!
I can only describe it as a cathedral to lost dreams. Awe-inspiring and truly breath taking. And so, so startlingly unexpected.
We were lucky to have arrived just 20 minutes before closing time which meant that we had avoided the tour buses and were left to explore the cavernous space entirely on our own. The Shed is open everyday, but only between 10am – 2pm so you need to be careful if timing a visit whilst on the silo art trail.
The Murtoa stick shed is the only remaining shed of its type left in Australia. It was built during the second world war as emergency storage for wheat but fell into disuse as the practice of stockpiling wheat on open ground became more standard.
The shed was constructed with limited equipment with posts milled from locally available timber because steel was in short supply at the time – although the expansive roof accounts for a vast sea of metal. It’s an enormous space and an incredible feat of engineering given the circumstances. Definitely a must-see.
By this stage it was time to grab some lunch. As we made our way into town, we noticed a Water Tower which housed a museum. Unfortunately, they appeared to be closing up so we continued on, only to later discover that it housed one of the largest taxidermy exhibits in Australia. Murtoa surprises again! Near the tower there is also an old classroom from Murtoa’s first Concordia Lutheran Seminary and the recently refurbished railway station. Worth a closer look I reckon.
rupanyup
The next silos were painted by Russian artist, Julia Volchkova. It’s interesting that the community chose an outsider to represent them.
There was also the defunct Railway Station nearby which is now in private hands.
saint arnaud
The final stop on our personal silo art trail was at St Arnaud. It was relatively late in the day, and most of the stores were closing but we managed to catch a coffee before heading to the next silo.
We’d read about the work of local artist, Kyle Torney who has painted not only the town’s silos but a number of sites around town.
Kyle lives and works in St Arnaud – something I can attest to having bumped into him at the end of his work day while we were visiting one of his pieces in town. Before long, it will be possible to create a full art trail in St Arnaud, just viewing Kyle’s work – he’s that prolific. And his work is very good – drawing on the chiaroscuro traditions of the Italian Renaissance and re-adapting it to an Australia country-town context. No mean feat.
our final take
A brilliant route if you’re travelling between Mildura and Bendigo. It’s a great way to turn a drive into an adventure.
If you want to travel the route simply to see the silo art then you’ll need to organise an overnight stop as it will take a whole day to see the art. You could also use the extra time to visit some of the sites we missed and linger a little longer in some of the towns, like Murtoa and St Arnaud.
Definitely a recommended drive!
