AWARD-winning sculptor Denise Pepper has collaborated with the Bayswater Historical Society to create a sculpture out of timber from the Garratt Road Bridge.
The sculpture is made from a log taken from a bundle of timber from the 1950s and 1970s and has a glow-in-the-dark effect.
It was unveiled by the society and Deputy Mayor Chris Cornish outside Bendigo Community Bank on May 12 as part of the Australian Heritage Festival.
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READ NOWThe City of Bayswater helped fund the sculpture, which is part of the society’s Three Rs Commemorative Heritage Project.
Pepper said she enjoyed creating the sculpture, as it was a challenge to work with a log that had been partially submerged.
“I decided to choose a suitable log with a sculptured surface all of its own caused by the movement of water carving naturally deep and beautiful crevices along its length,” she said.
“I then decided to use photo-luminescent powder pigments that absorb natural light and then re-emit it over a length of time.
“I have added additional colours tinting the photo luminescent powder to colours representing the logs reference to the river and its history in Bayswater.”
Society president Lynn Deering said the society hoped the project was the start of more community art initiatives that reflected history.
“Alongside the sculpture are three plaques which tell readers the history of rivers, rail and roads as they relate to Bayswater township,” she said.
“This is the culmination of two years of work by an amazing group of people motivated by the idea that these timbers could be reused to create works of art that celebrate the timber’s life through to a new future.”
Cr Bull said it was great to see WA’s longest timber bridge captured in a unique piece of public art.