Stanthorpe sculpture decided

The Southern Downs Regional Council is now putting together a funding submission to Art + Place after deciding on the concept for the new iconic sculpture in Stanthorpe.
A public vote was held in September after three artists had come up with markedly different design ideas for the new Climatic Art Piece.
Artists’ names and point of origin were kept under wraps during both the public vote and the council consideration process so as not to unduly influence any decision.
The decision was based on 288 submissions from the public where 219 (77.9 per cent) respondents listed Concept 1 as the preferred choice and 12 respondents (four per cent) didn’t like any of the concepts.
The council agreed with the majority of respondents and decided to go with Concept 1, which was designed by Queensland based artist group KUUKI.
The shapes of the final design can be amended from the concept if required.
The other two concepts were designed by international artists.
The winning concept seeks to capture the magical feel of Girraween and the areas around Stanthorpe. The artists are inspired by the dynamic colour palette of the area’s vegetation as it changes across the four seasons, the eternal constant of granite’s lichen and quartz patina, and the region’s unique, delicate wildflowers.
The cast white brass or aluminum sculpture would be an irregular cluster of spindly forms, inspired by stamen of a rare wildflower found in the region—Grevillea scortechinii.
These stylised stamens, internally lit with LEDs, become ‘light poles’ that record and poetically display real time weather and temperature data using patterns of colour and light.
The work is also interactive, responding with varied intensities of light as visitors come within range of embedded sensors.
An intuitive colour code enables people to ‘read’ the temperature at a distance, while an embedded LED text display will provide the exact temperature and details of historically notable weather events.
Real time weather data from the Bureau of Meteorology will cause special light patterns. For example, the lights may flicker during times of extreme wind, show particle effects when snow is predicted, cycle up or down as barometric pressure rises and falls, and ‘bloom’ with the fruit blossoms in spring with the white and red of apple, apricot, peach and cherry trees.
The artists believe the concept may be augmented with a website, connected works in other locations and an interactive touch screen in the visitor information centre.
What the panel said: “This concept totally complies with the brief. It is both iconic and interactive, represents the four seasons and changes in temperature, and incorporates the natural environment. There is some concern that the sculpture shapes could be seen as too reflective of male reproductive systems, but we understand the shape can be adjusted in the development phase.”