By Emily-Rose Toohey
Warwick Christian College celebrated its 15-year milestone on Wednesday 27 July and to commemorate the day, the school commissioned artist Coedie Tandy to create a mural.
Coedie first became involved with the project after Warwick Christian College principal Jason Gay approached him over two months ago.
“We came up with the story together, I created the concept painting and then we agreed on the final artwork,” Coedie said.
“The colours are based around the school (blues and golds), and the green area is to brighten the painting up but also to represent the green country.
“The rest of the painting are animals, which all have a meaning, and elements of the Warwick area were added, such as the Condamine River.”
Furthermore, Coedie said this was the largest mural he had ever created and as a result, he asked his mother-in-law Desley for assistance.
“I was given two months to complete it and pretty much worked nearly every second day for a whole month,” he said.
“It was a lot of work, a lot of hours, and a lot of long nights.”
But the result was worth it, as Warwick Christian College principal Jason Gay said the school loved it.
“We’ve had a lot of parents driving in who have commented on how beautiful it is,” Jason said.
“We are going to get a plaque made up about what the different elements mean.”
In terms of coming up with the idea of commissioning a mural to commemorate the school’s 15-year milestone, Jason said they noticed a large bear wall on the campus.
“And we thought we needed to do something about it,” he said.
“It’s also to acknowledge our Indigenous culture which we need to do more of and be proactive about, and the ideas came together perfectly.
“Coedie’s art is fantastic – he’s done work with us before and was here for multicultural day this year.”
The work was officially unveiled to staff and students last Wednesday, which was the first event of a jam-packed day planned for the school’s celebration.
Photos from the main event are on page 14.
