Forest Hill silo mural: Economic growth depends on more than just silo art says Griffith Business School report

With analysis of community consultation for a series of silo murals at Forest Hill being finalised, a Queensland university warns silo art alone won’t save regional economies.

With Lockyer Valley Regional Council in the process of finalising analysis of community consultation for the proposed Forest Hill mural project, a report by the Griffith Business School warns silo art alone won’t save regional economies.

Stage 1 of community feedback for the project to prepare designs and a project plan for a potential art project on the GrainCorp silos adjacent to the rail line in Forest Hill closed in June this year.

A spokeswoman for Lockyer Valley Regional Council said submissions and survey results were still being analysed.

Silo art at Thallon in Queensland. Photo: Alana Beutel.

This comes as Griffith Business School’s Dr Amelia Green and Professor Scott Weaven released the first Australian Silo Art and Wellbeing report with a suite of recommendations based on over 1,100 responses to the first national silo art survey focusing on the experiences and perceptions of visitors, residents and local business owners.

Dr Green said while the report confirms that silo art consistently attracts visitors, the extent to which it directly stimulates local economies and individual businesses varies widely across each of Australia’s silo art sites.

“What happens after visitors view silo art is shaped by what they interact with when they arrive,” Dr Green said.

Silo art at Brim in Victoria. Photo: Adrian Tusek.

Of the 183 local business owners surveyed, 64 per cent reported that silo art attracted customers to their businesses. Only 47 per cent responded that it had a noticeable positive impact overall on the businesses in their town.

“Whether an individual business benefits from silo art visitors depends on many factors such as where the business is located within the town, if other businesses are closer to the silo art site and if the business offers facilities like toilets,” Dr Green said.

“While some business owners and managers attributed the survival of their business entirely to silo art visitors, others reported that silo art has made no difference to their trade.”

Griffith Business School's Dr Amelia Green.

The report recommends that silo art towns provide up-to-date online information about the art, local businesses and opening hours to assist visitor’s trip planning. Similar information should also be displayed at the site with a map identifying walking or driving distances to local business and other nearby experiences.

Dr Green said silo art presents a ‘golden opportunity’ economically, but the broader challenges lie in deepening the visitor experience, inspiring return visits, and reframing silo art as a launching pad for broader tourism strategies and revitalisation.

“Our findings reinforce the potential for silo art to benefit visitors and local communities alike,” she said.

“Now is the time to plan strategically and make informed actions to foster the potential and longevity of this art tourism movement.”