Gunyah
An inflatable, moveable art-space that will take the form of a giant crab shell 16m wide and 22m long. The exterior ‘shell’ is an artwork in its own right representing the land, water and sky.
Gunyah was selected as the winning entrant for the Indigenous Cultural Expressions, a State Government public art commission run by Creative Victoria. The award was highly significant as it was the largest investment that has been made by the State Government in a single Indigenous art project. Against strong statewide competition, the Lakes Entrance-based artists Lennie Hayes Gunai/Bidawal, Frances Harrison Gunai/Yuin/Monaro, and non Indigenous artist Catherine Larkins were awarded $200,000 by the Victorian Premier, Ted Baillieu.
The artists collaborated with local designer Mark Simnett who created the drawing and plans. Internationally recognised UK company Inflate will be engaged to build the state-of-the-art inflatable shell. When the venue is built it has the capacity for 156 people for staged performances and 200 people for concert or cinema configuration. A 20ft shipping container is integral to the design. It will contain both storage and plant equipment in one half and a multi-purpose space in the other half which can be used for a servery, kitchenette, bar or ticketing office. The internal space will be enhanced by the Kangaroo Tales installation, comprised of five large sculptural forms covered in kangaroo skins and a large grass weaving. The kangaroo skins are embellished with intricate hot wire burnings of land and water-based animals from GunaiKurnai country.