Anyone driving up Mann St over the past week would have noticed some cracks forming in the old Nambucca Heads water towers.
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And one local, Ian Moule, is the man responsible.
“I’ve had numerous people all throughout the day pulling up beside me to have a chat about what I’m doing,” Ian said.
“I hope to give people a fright—which I already have.
One guy was standing right beside the tower on the footpath and asked me if I did it with a dremel.
The cracks have actually been artfully painted with black, white and ochre, and they spread through a painted catchphrase which loudly implores people to “take the pressure down”, flirting with a double entendre.
“If people have to think about it, I’m OK with that,” Ian said.
“I think it’s good to not have everything spelled out for you.
“But I wanted it to reflect the idea that we don’t live in the rat race here—that whether you live or holiday in Nambucca, the pace is kinder.”
For the better part of a week, the sign-writer and fine artist has been braving some sordid weather conditions to turn the lifeless urban space into a destination.
The Business Advisory Committee approached Ian to make a feature of the bland eyesores that impose their presence over the main entrance to Nambucca Heads, after he was commissioned to paint another piece for the BP service centre.
“Council asked me if I had an idea for the water tower, but also said they didn’t have much money,” Ian said.
“I said I did have an idea, but I thought they’d never go for it.”
“I thought they’d want a big humpback whale, or a giant fish tank or something like that.
But full colour is prohibitively expensive, and it fades, whereas this will last for a long time—I reckon it’s good for 20 years.
Ian has been adhering a double-coating of Solagard straight onto the concrete surface, which he says will lengthen the lifetime of the artwork.
Ian said the reaction to his quirky street art has been mostly positive so far.
“Even if they don’t get it, they still love it,” Ian said.
The water tower has about another day of painting to go, but Ian is nudging council to install a water feature onto the side of the tower to add another layer of interest to the design.
“We want to have a garden hose-width stream of water coming out from a pipe attached to one of the cracks in the tower,” Ian said.
“I’m going to push for it because I think it would double or triple the amount of people interacting with it—especially on social media.”
Council general manager Michael Coulter said the council would be happy to go along with Ian’s idea.
“We just have a few things to consider, like vandalism, but I don’t see why it won’t be feasible,” Michael said.
There is also word that council may even construct a small carpark for the use of visitors stopping to take selfies.
Ian said he would love to have a go at a full colour mural in the future, perhaps on one of the other water towers in the Heads.
For now, he’s happy to have contributed two distinct artworks to build up the Valley’s post-bypass image.
“This is just what I do. I wanted to be proactive in doing something positive with my work,” Ian said.
Ian’s four-metre canvas mural has also now been hung in the service centre and greets highway tourists as they stop off for fuel for their cars and stomachs.
The painting was completed in Ian’s living room and features a couple of Valley locals in a rusted Holden, riding a wave and being escorted by a curious bottlenose.
“The dolphin is straight from an experience I had. I came through the waves in a tinny one time and the dolphins were so close you could touch them,” Ian said.
“I just love the fun and the absurdity of it.
“I heard they always want to make a service station better than the last one, so I approached them and said ‘why not put some culture in it?’ and they said ‘sure!’.
“It’s a cross between comic book and fine art, and it’s a hell of a lot better than corporate art.”
Ian said his motivation was to create a mural that draws people in off the highway.
And he’s quietly pleased at the poignancy of his rusty Holden tribute mounted in the very same year that Holden had its last hurrah in Aus.
“I love it, it’s sorta nice, hey,” RAMPAGE service centre developer, Chris Page said.
“It’s got that message that we’re in a nice beachy environment and we love our cars.”
And the best bit: Ian is satisfied that the Maccas-facing mural is hamburger and milkshake-proof.