DUNSBOROUGH’S foreshore has its newest piece of public art.
Greg Banfield’s sculpture ‘Family of Four’ won the city’s acquisitive prize at March’s Sculpture by the Bay competition, and was installed on the beachfront at the end of Dunn Bay Road.
Greg said the piece symbolised the region’s lifestyle, and was “more than happy” with the way his work looked on the beachfront.
“It epitomises what you see down on the foreshore in Dunsborough,” he said.
“You see those come down in a suit, those just walking on the beach with their sandals off and the boy is a bit rebellious.
“There’s also the mother at the front and the kids at the back, it’s just the range of people you see.”
Greg received $5000 for winning the acquisitive prize at the event, and was a people’s choice award winner the first year he entered the competition.
The sculpture was created out of jarrah from a paddock near Boyup Brook that had fallen due to wind.
Greg estimated the trees, which he salvaged for furniture and sculpture, as being between 100 and 200 years old.
“They’re a part of WA’s history – it’s better than seeing them go to the mill for chip,” he said.
City of Busselton cultural development officer Jacquie Happ was impressed when seeing the work installed for the first time.
“We think it’s great to have a community event that highlights the high quality and variation of artworks in the area,” she said.
“This piece is a really good reflection of the people who use the back and how the family is interacting with each other.
“Everyone will be happy to stand alongside it and take photos.”
Greg said it was an enjoyable sculpture to produce, and had been an ongoing process to create it.
“I did it over two months as a project rather than something full-time,” he said.
“I knew it had to be done by March, so it fitted in with some other work I was doing.”
