Melbourne’s best public artworks
WANDER through Melbourne’s busy streets and laneways or take a trip into the suburbs and you’re bound to find a piece of art to marvel at.
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WANDER Melbourne’s busy streets and laneways or take a trip into the suburbs and you’re bound to find some kind of public art.
All different types of artwork can be found hidden in nooks and crannies across the city.
From shiny golden bees on the city’s tallest tower to a fake hotel, a busy freeway and a portrait of a much-respected Aboriginal elder plastered on a 30-storey building, there’s always something artsy to marvel at.
These are some of the city’s most well-known artworks and the reasons behind their design and placement.
Eureka Tower’s bee colony
The bee colony on the side of Melbourne’s tallest building catches the eye of many visitors to Melbourne as its shiny gold exterior stands out from the building’s grey and white features.
There is no historical link to the bees, but the Queen Bee was developed by Richard Stringer for a series of studio works in 2003-04.
Nonda Katsalidis and Stringer have discussed the idea of making a permanent installation on various building projects as his design worked with the golden glass apex of the Eureka Tower.
Melbourne’s cheesesticks
The 70m yellow steel beam and accompanying 39 red sticks are officially called the Melbourne International Gateway.
Designed to create a gateway to the city alongside the yellow beam which is a nod to the Gold Rush era, the red poles represent the wheat industry of Australia.
It’s been said you can see the bright structure from the moon.
Federation Square
Formerly home to the city morgue, a fish market, corporate offices and railyards, Federation Square has become the centrepiece of public space in Melbourne.
Originally hated by many Melburnians due to its confronting design, the square itself is made up of a series of interlocking and cascading spaces.
The design was heavily influenced by the idea of ‘federation’ and bringing separate parts together to form a coherent whole.
It uses three cladding materials, sandstone, zinc and glass.
Templestowe’s apple peel
The bright green wave of metal is known by locals as the apple peel roundabout. This artwork was created by artists Michael Bellemo and Catriona Macleod in 2000, drawing on the local heritage and surrounding landscape.
The design imitated the Yarra River as it bends and turns through the area and also represents the peel of the apple — a nod to orchading in the area.
Pixel Building
Grocon embarked on a plan to build the first carbon neutral building in the world in 2009. Situated in Carlton, the corner building has a colourful facade made from recycled products that is based not only on aesthetics but also science to allow maximum daylight, shade, views and glare control.
Fido in Fairfield
The six-metre hardwood dog statue, created by Ian Sinclair, Jackie Staude, David Davies and Alistair Knox, sits just outside Fairfield Railway Station.
Built from recycled hardwood it also had sensors to wag its tail, wiggle its ears and light up at night.
FIDO, which stands for Fairfield Industrial Dog Object, is now broken and sits sedentary.
Aboriginal leader’s face on city building
The 30-storey portrait celebrating the life of indigenous leader William Barak needed to undergo a facelift just days after it was unveiled as the portrait was so big his face was distorted.
Barak is believed to have attended the signing of the first treaty between white settlers and Aboriginals in 1835 with Melbourne’s founder, John Batman.
Members of the Wurundjeri community and Barak’s descendants worked closely with the developer on the project.
Fake hotel on EastLink freeway
Constructed from steel, concrete and glass the 20-metre hotel has confused many a tourist wanting to book accommodation.
Albeit a smaller version of an actual hotel and having no rooms, it stands out in a relatively baron grassland beside the freeway.
It’s one of twelve art installations that feature on EastLink, including an ellipsoidal sculpture, a giant black bird, a boy looking up at the sky and a steel structure that could be a fallen tree or obsolete agricultural machinery.
EastLink says those travelling on the freeway go on a journey in the comfort of their own vehicle, to discover artworks from internationally recognised Australian artists.
Tell us your favourite artwork in Melbourne in the comments below?
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