VICTORIA’S SILO ART TRAIL
Peruse Australia’s largest outdoor art gallery on a road trip through the under-the-radar towns of Victoria’s Wild West. Wimmera Mallee is a prolific grain-growing area that’s home to many small, vibrant communities whose locals are being recognised and celebrated through a 200-kilometre Silo Art Trail. Brim, Rosebery, Albacutya, Patchewollock, Lascelles, Sea Lake, Nullawil, Sheep Hills, Rupanyup, Goroke, Kaniva and Serviceton are linked through a series of huge murals writ large on the sides of grain silos – many of which date back to the 1930s. The creators, who are some of the world’s most celebrated street artists, visited and spent time engaging with their respective host towns in order to capture their spirit in a unique art project that is still evolving. Highlights include Guido van Helten’s iconic mural in Brim depicting a multi-generational quartet of female and male farmers, the first silo artwork to appear in Victoria, and the inspiration for the project itself; Rone’s reflection of local farming couple Geoff and Merrilyn Horman in Lascelles; Russian mural artist Julia Volchkova’s impression of rural youth culture in Rupanyup; and Matt Adnate’s celebration of Wergaia Elder Uncle Ron Marks and Wotjobaluk Elder Aunty Regina Hood in Sheep Hills. In between eyefuls of art, stop at country pubs for hearty meals, browse in quirky stores and seek out unique heritage and culture at places like Dimboola Print Museum, the site of the former local newspaper with its still-operable printing presses and associated machinery on display. The Silo Art Trail is 200 DISTANCE: kilometres. After being purchased by a STAY: group of locals, the 10-room Royal Hotel Sea Lake has been restored to its former glory.