Baw Baw Shire owns 342 artworks, but over half are in storage. Now it wants to unwrap them

More than half of Baw Baw Shire’s art collection of 342 paintings is gathering dust in storage.

A new council policy will seek to display more works in libraries and community hubs while exploring the possibility of digitising the collection.

What happened: Baw Baw Shire mayor Kate Wilson told the Monitor the council holds 220 “public” artworks, which are pieces located outside in parks and public spaces around the shire.

It also owns a “civic” collection of 122 artworks, which are pieces that hang inside galleries. Most of these civic paintings, sculptures and photographs are displayed in the Drouin Council Office or the West Gippsland Arts Centre.

The policy will endeavour to display more of the stored art in libraries, community hubs and public spaces.

Wilson said without a clear art policy, maintaining the collection “can be a little bit unruly” because the council is constantly receiving new artworks, either by acquiring them through capital works projects or as gifts from community groups.

Wilson said council staff will rotate the artworks in West Gippsland Arts Centre to ensure the collection is able to be viewed by the public.

A digital gallery 

To help make Baw Baw’s art more widely available, the new policy will get quotes on digitising the collection.

Favourite pieces 

Wilson said among her favourite pieces in the collection is work by Kurnai Elder, Dr. Auntie Eileen Harrison. 

Her Art from the Air piece is an acrylic painting exhibited in the West Gippsland Art Centre. The work inspired the landscaping of the Indigenous Garden in Warragul’s Rotary Park and includes six wooden totems sculpted by local artist Paul Stafford under the guidance of Dr. Aunty Eileen.

“It's incredible to see her work brought to life in that way,” Wilson said of the sculpture.