Art flutters into Blackwood

By Lachlan Ellis

A Blackwood artist has had one of her pieces displayed publicly by Moorabool Shire Council, showcasing themes of connection with the environment, and displaying a local avian resident.

Kathy Holowko’s ‘Water is Life’ has been put up on Martin Street in Blackwood as part of the 2023 edition of Council’s ‘Paste Ups Program’, with the three-dimension diorama depicting fairy wrens nesting by a waterway.

Ms Holowko said it was fantastic to see her work on display in her hometown.

“I live in Blackwood so it’s lovely to be able to contribute a work locally. The artwork is three dimensional, with layers of images and objects utilising the museum trope of the diorama to create a replica of an ecosystem. It includes natural history illustrations captured in the pristine environment of 18th century Australia. I view it as a contemporary interpretation that reflects upon the idea that a healthy waterway is the lifeblood of a habitat, that allows plants and animals to flourish…including the human animal,” Ms Holowko told the Moorabool News.

“We are very lucky in Blackwood to live in animal habitat, that’s the way I see it anyway. The fairy wren is a local resident that provides us with ‘encounter value’ – a scientific term used to describe the meaningful worth in chance meetings with wild animals. It is a way to understand and appreciate these moments that we get to experience because of the life blood that is the Lerderderg River provides.”

Council’s Paste Ups Program seeks to create public spaces that are unique and engaging and offer immersive creative experiences for the community.

Other artworks pasted up around Moorabool for the 2023 edition of the program include Adam Bennet’s ‘Beryl’ at The Shambles in Gordon, Min Chiang’s ‘Carnival Undersea’ at First National Rayner in Bacchus Marsh, and Samantha Thompson’s ‘From Above’ at the Ballan Mechanics Institute.

For more information on the Paste Ups Program, visit www.moorabool.vic.gov.au/PUP.