Ever want to experience art outside of a boring museum? I’m one of those people who can feel really stuffy in an enclosed, busy space for too long, but I still love looking at art! I also love nature and the great outdoors, so why not combine these two beautiful things? Well, someone has obviously had the same idea, because Sculpture on the Farm is a new way to experience contemporary Australian art in the stunning scenes of Dungog.
Sculpture on the Farm, beginning in 2017 by Philippa Graham, is a not-for-profit organisation combining her love for the arts and the local community. The first event was held in 2018, with the aim of attracting more people to the small, rural area, while also giving local artists a chance to show off their work. Since then, the event has grown more popular, with people travelling to Dungog each year for Sculpture on the Farm.
When we arrived, it was already fairly busy, with all the open-air works up front, tents for the indoor sculptures and workshops, and live music from local artists. For such a small Aussie town, they were certainly making it into a big event. But that’s exactly what the area and artists need! We started our journey up the Sculpture Trail first, walking up a gradual mountain slope to look at a variety of different sculpture mediums. I really wasn’t expecting a walk when my parents told me we were going to an art exhibition, but I quite enjoyed mixing some physical activity with viewing art. Although I did get winded quite a few times walking up the mountain!
The Sculpture Trail had a lot of modern and contemporary style Australian artworks, where you had to think about their meanings to understand what the artist was trying to portray. I’m not usually the person to understand or even like some sculpture art sometimes, but the artworks here at Sculpture on the Farm were really beautiful, and some of them held a lot of meaning about the country and society. The one thing I didn’t like however, was people’s disregard for the artists’ work, to go ahead and touch as many sculptures as they want. Just because we weren’t in a museum doesn’t mean you can touch the art! These people worked really hard to create something beautiful. Hands off!
After viewing all of the artworks along the Sculpture Trail, we started walking back down the hill to see the open-air and indoor sculptures. As we walked back down, we had an amazing view of the trail below, and the farmlands on either side of us; nature’s art! Now back down at the open area, we had a gander at the indoor sculptures first. There were some amazing pieces in here, a standout would have to be a woman carved out of a tree trunk as if she’s emerging from it. I actually loved the statues and figures of the female body that many artists created, like one painted with farmlands and native flora, and another of a child reading a book. Unfortunately, I couldn’t look at the indoor sculptures for too long, because they were all in a large tent, and it was a very sunny day. So, out to the open air works!
More beautiful and unique sculptures with media you wouldn’t think to use as a lowly spectator! There were sculptures made of rocks with wire wrapped around to shape them into a person sitting in deep thought, or a majestic horse. There were also a variety of Australian bush and farm birds made of painted chicken wire. Everywhere we looked, there was just so much creativity! And for the older audiences, there was a guest appearance from the one and only man from the moon, Mr Squiggle! Although he’s looking a little rusty lately.
All in all, today was pretty fun for something that’s looked down on as such a boring activity. Sculpture on the Farm has done an amazing job at bringing in new audiences to view artists and art mediums that these people wouldn’t typically go out of their way to observe in other settings, like museums and galleries. They’ve made this experience a fun, energy-driven event, combining the love of art with the love of country and travel. Now that’s my way of doing it!
The Travel Journal 
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