Art in the heart of NSW

Varanus: A monumental beginning

Varanus, the mammoth goanna, takes roadside ‘big things’ to a whole new level. At 20m from tongue to tail and over 5m tall, there’s nothing brightly coloured or kitsch about it. A tracery of steel strips, it’s an intricate work of art that took sculptor Glen Star 3,500 hours to construct.

The sand goanna (varanus gouldii) is a Wiradjuri totem animal and looks at home among the eucalypts at Gum Swamp Wildlife Refuge outside Forbes. It’s one of 13 sculptures immersed in the landscape between Forbes and Condobolin in Central New South Wales, part of Sculpture Down the Lachlan (SDL), which follows the Lachlan River – the fourth longest in Australia.

Conceived by the Forbes Art Society to attract tourism and diversify the rural economy, the SDL trail has transformed the region into an open-air cultural experience.

Exploring Forbes

We make it a three-town triangular road trip by adding Parkes. Forbes radiates civic pride with manicured Victoria Square surrounded by grand gold rush era buildings, and a QR-coded Heritage Trail that keeps history buffs busy for hours. Townsfolk are welcoming and chatty, as we discover over lunch at the Vandenburg Hotel.

There are 12 SDL installations around town, from the avant-garde Pyramid by Gillie & Marc to a poignant collection of sculptures and story poles depicting Wiradjuri culture beside Forbes Lake, weaving through the township.

Staying at Top Paddock Silo Stay

We stay rural at Top Paddock Silo Stay, an architectural collage by owners Kylie and Adrian Mathews. They transformed two 60-year-old wheat silos into bedrooms and a lounge, joining them with a light-filled dining room and kitchen.

Hot wind whips dried seed heads across the patio on arrival, but inside is cool and calm, smelling of tea tree. It’s relaxed rustic-chic with cowhide rugs on polished concrete floors accented with timber furnishings.

In the morning, we join Kylie for a farm tour before following the SDL to Condobolin.

Sculpture Down the Lachlan: Forbes to Condobolin

Large-scale sculptures are placed roughly every 10km along the Travelling Stock Reserve, a corridor of Crown Land once used for droving cattle and sheep. There’s ample parking for caravans and motorhomes.

Materials vary – from wood and bronze to stainless steel chain and Corten steel. The works evoke emotions or offer commentary on topics as diverse as roadkill, conservation and Indigenous injustice.

Heart of Country

A statuesque Corten steel Indigenous figure strides across the landscape, looking pensively over his shoulder. Titled Heart of Country, the sculpture is magnificent from a distance and rich in detail up close. Artist Damian Vick describes it as “the most powerful and important one of my career to date.”

The Heart of Country statue.

Condobolin: Utes in the Paddock

Art takes a quirky ‘ute-turn’ at Condobolin – known locally as Condo. Utes in the Paddock began when the then owners of Burrawang West Station visited Cadillac Ranch on Route 66 and decided to recreate the concept using Holden utes.

Dilapidated utes were donated from sheds and paddocks, and renowned outback artists were enlisted to paint them. When Burrawang West Station was sold, the utes were offered to Lachlan Shire and now pop out of a paddock behind the new Lachlan Shire Visitor Centre.

The creativity is ingenious – from UteZilla (kangaroo with joey) and Drizakubra (farmer’s attire) to Ute-opia (outback landscape).

Dame Edna’s Looute

I meet Condo artist Karen Tooth, who transformed a 1965 HD Holden into Dame Edna’s Looute – “an icon (Dame Edna), on an icon (outdoor dunny), in an icon (Holden ute).” She’s produced an info-cum-colouring book on the evolution of Utes in the Paddock packed with fascinating tidbits.

Wiradjuri Study Centre

The first ute was painted by John Murray of Lightning Ridge in 2008. He recently collaborated with local Indigenous artist Bev Coe on a ute now displayed inside the Visitor Centre. More of Bev’s work appears at the Wiradjuri Study Centre, which features carved timber doors, crafted furniture and large murals.

We learn that the inspiration for the Heart of Country sculpture was the Wiradjuri warrior Wyndradyne, who is depicted here in timber.

Staying in Condobolin

We’re the first to stay in motel-style accommodation at the Condobolin RSL and enjoy a drink there before dinner at the bustling Railway Hotel.

The next morning begins with a climb up Mount Tilga, once claimed to be the geographical centre of NSW, offering a 360-degree view of surrounding plains.

An alfresco breakfast at Cafe Romo is followed by a visit to manmade Gum Bend Lake, popular for water sports, fishing and birdwatching.

An Elvis-inspired mural in Parkes.

Parkes: Science, Elvis and public art

Parkes is known for the CSIRO radio telescope featured in the film The Dish and for the annual Elvis Festival, which doubles the town’s population for a week of rock ’n’ roll revelry.

This explains the Elvis outfit on the rhinoceros at the entrance to the Henry Parkes Centre – once part of a Taronga Zoo conservation awareness program. The complex houses the Visitor Centre, Motor Museum, Henry Parkes Museum and the King’s Castle Elvis Exhibit containing Presley artefacts collected by Wiggle Greg Page.

The newest installation is the Gates of Graceland, a life-size replica of the famed Memphis mansion gates, which include the Parkes Wall of Fame honouring Australian musicians.

Staying at Buchanan 1894

We stay in our own mansion, Buchanan 1894, lovingly restored by farmers Steve Lindsay and Dave Johnstone into one-, two- and three-bedroom suites. Built in the gold rush days, it features high ceilings, marble fireplaces and a baby grand piano in the drawing room.

It’s an easy walk to the main street for dinner at Eric’s Table in the Broadway Hotel and breakfast at Cafe Bella.

Parkes Public Art Trail

Parkes CBD buzzes on Saturday morning as I walk the Public Art Trail. Murals cover themes of Indigenous heritage, agriculture, literature, astronomy and pop culture.

There’s a statue of ‘Father of Federation’ Henry Parkes – and Elvis, of course – but the bright orange astronaut nicknamed Jaffa steals the show for sheer quirky charm.

The writer was a guest of Central NSW.

Learn more at sculpturedownthelachlan.com and plan your trip at visitcentralnsw.com