Talented: Tim Bowtell and Lachlan Cumming in front of one of the murals at the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden.
Murals by Benalla’s Tim Bowtell at the Southern Aurora Memorial garden in Violet Town have made the final of the Australian Street Art Awards.
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The murals were planned and painted by Mr Bowtell and Lachlan Cumming.
They are complemented in the Memorial Garden by signage designed by Chris Mann, who is also named in the application for the awards.
“It’s been a great honour to be given the opportunity to paint murals at the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden,” Mr Bowtell said.
“Especially ones which are such an important bit of history for Violet Town.”
They are up against 45 other amazing artworks from across Australia, with winners announced on February 10.
Mr Bowtell said he only found out about the nomination on Wednesday, January 18, and had not had a chance to see the other nominated artworks at this stage.
“I really enjoyed painting this one, as my sons Sam and Jake helped out too,” he said.
Touching: One of the murals at the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden in Violet Town.
“We created a lot of it from photos taken after the crash.
“They had just had an exhibition to mark the 50th anniversary of the crash and had put together an exhibition.
“But it was a case of picking through those to find the most appropriate.
“There were some images that were quite confronting and gory.
“We wanted to find photos that showed the tragedy, but mainly the human side.
“So we chose images featuring people helping to rescue survivors.
“There were a lot, so it was difficult to narrow it down.”
The Australian Street Art Awards describe the finalists as the best street art experiences in the nation.
Awards director Liz Rivers said communities that promoted their street and outdoor art understood that it was a unique landmark — an attraction that visitors could see in only one place.
“(They) make their destination immediately identifiable, highly attractive and a drawcard for art-loving tourists,” Ms Rivers said.
Memorial: The series of murals in Violet Town tell the tragic story of the Southern Aurora train crash in 1969.
“Being shortlisted in these awards further cements the reputation of these destinations as aspirational ... for everyone who loves to discover visually stunning experiences.”
With rigorous judging by tourism leaders, plus second-tier auditing and due diligence, being named as a finalist carries weight in the tourism sector.
Southern Aurora Project historian Bruce Cumming said it was an honour to be named a finalist.
“We are very proud of the work Tim and Lachlan did,“ he said.
“The application for the award allowed us to name three contributors, and I wanted to include Chris (Mann).
“He is from Euroa and has a connection to the Southern Aurora crash, in that his uncles were involved with the fire brigade that day.
“He went over and above with the graphical design of the signs in the garden.”
Mr Bowtell, whose art is much sought after, is currently working on two murals.
“I have the Katamatite silos coming up, and also the Cressy Water Tower,” he said.
“Those have been ongoing for a couple of years due to COVID restrictions.
“It will be nice to get started, and it’s great to be back out painting after all the problems during the pandemic.”
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