We worked closely with Lendlease and the Kingsford Smith Design Joint Venture (KSDJV) on the development and delivery of a program of significant public artworks for Brisbane City Council’s Kingsford Smith Drive Upgrade project.
The two key artworks commissioned are a series of ‘Art Beacons’ by Kenji Uranishi and ‘Women’s Journey’ by Judy Watson.
Kenji Uranishi’s Magnificent Flying Machines are a series of art beacons developed to mark the journey along Kingsford Smith Drive, and they make a feature of the approach into Brisbane. Their gentle aesthetic was inspired by the Orchard Swallowtail butterfly (the largest common local butterfly) and reflect a concept of being ‘guided home’ for arrivals from Brisbane airport. They also connect Kingsford Smith Drive’s function as a transit corridor between the airport and the city to the remarkable achievements of aviators such as Charles Kingsford Smith and the recently recognised Lores Bonney, both of whom once lived in nearby Hamilton.
bandarra-gan chidna:strong woman track / track of strong women, by Brisbane-based international artist Judy Watson, is a series of ground plane artworks that explore artefacts, stories and narratives specifically related to Brisbane women. This artwork interprets important and under documented history with imagery that reflects this uncovered history of the area.
Judy Watson created a series of ground plane interventions in key areas along the pedestrian walkway at Kingsford Smith Drive. The works reflect and reveal the untold stories of the women of this place, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous. The artworks are located both at key navigational junctures and along long stretches of walkway. Ultimately this work became more than just its physical presence as a public artwork on this stretch of the river.
Judy subsequently developed a beautiful artist book/publication – women of brisbane – to thank the community who contributed their stories, memories and writing to the public art project, bandarra-gan chidna: strong woman track/track of strong women (2019). “women of Brisbane describes events that are both uplifting and distressing, caused by the colonisation of this Country. It relates stories of the women who survived adversity. These stories of the women who survived adversity. These stories are our stories”. Judy Watson.
Images: AJ Moller.