The migrant sojourn that has shaped the lives of so many Australians is being celebrated in Melbourne’s northern greenfields, with a giant illuminated compass by Tasmanian sculptor Folko Kooper.
Kooper created the artwork for developer Villawood Properties, which installed the gold-coloured wayfinder at the entrance to its 1100-lot Rathdowne estate at Wollert.
Kooper has a lengthy catalogue of giant sculptures he’s designed for the developer but this one has assumed a special significance for the Dutch-born artist.
“The design brief included ‘migration’ and Rathdowne Street in Carlton is a street filled with migration evidence and is a symbol of new Australia,” Kooper said.
“The expected customers for this community were new Australians, which has turned out to be the case. They hail from ‘All Points of the Compass’, the official name for this piece, and so this honours the residents in Rathdowne.
“The compass sculpture itself is mounted on a 10-metre tall compass needle pointing north as Rathdowne is the Villawood jewel in Melbourne’s north.
“The stand-out element in this corten/stainless steel sculpture is the lights. This is the first major sculpture with internal lights. They turn the compass into a starburst when it is dark and it is very spectacular.
“Add to this the fact it is so tall. We had logistical and engineering issues due to the lights that made this quite a challenge to build.It took some gleaning from lighting designers and a great fabrication team to get it off the ground.”
Companion pieces to the compass are situated in the central community park at Rathdowne –a series of carved granite and bluestone suitcases by Kooper.
Villawood chief executive Alan Miller said the developer was keen to help people build a sense of community at Rathdowne.
“We have people who come to live here from all different places, many from overseas. They don’t know who their neighbours are going to be. They want to meet new people and make new friends. How do you meet each other? We try to provide them with a melting pot of activity,” he said.
“So at Rathdowne we’ve got a cafe, a parents’ lounge where they can bring their kids to play in the pool, the courts, the barbecue area. If they want a bit more fitness, we’ve got a fantastic gym. There’s a social hub with a function room where there will be lots of kids’ birthdays, twenty-firsts. We’ve even had weddings in our residents’ clubs.
“The club is a great spot. People can all just meet each other, it becomes just a straight melting pot.”
