Katamatite silo artist announced

Katamatite will be Mr Bowtell's third silo art project after completing the St James silos last year and painting six silos at Colbinabbin earlier this year.

He has been involved with Benalla’s Wall to Wall Festival since 2016 and has produced many community murals, including the Ron Iddles mural in Rochester.

The Katamatite Lions Club and Silo Art Group recently conducted a community survey to gather suggestions for the design of the silo art, receiving more than 200 responses.

“So that our local community could visualise some of the artwork suggestions, we decided to use images from our 100-year history book and from the Katamatite museum,” Katamatite Lions Club member Rob Peachey said.

“What started as just a few old photos posted to the local Facebook page quickly became a great pictorial history of the area.

“Many of the local families throughout the district were uncovering wonderful old photos and posting them onto the Facebook page.

“It certainly generated a great deal of interest, chat and support for not just the silo art but more importantly, what the art must reflect and tell about Katamatite and its history.”

Katamatite’s agricultural and farming history was the most popular theme, along with Boosey Creek and indigenous beginnings.

The Silo Art Group is looking at the top five designs and will decide on the winner by the end of December.

The selected artwork will reflect the history of the town and will be chosen for its "wow factor".

The Lions club has lodged an application for a Victorian Government Creative Victoria arts grant in the hope it will fund the bulk of the project.

“It may be a big task, however, with other donations and fundraising, we are confident we can raise the necessary funds,” Mr Peachey said.

If the grant application is successful, work on the silo could start in April next year.

To support and follow the progress of the Katamatite silo art, follow the Katamatite Lions Silo Art Project Facebook page.