Lummo's new murals

Four new murals depicting parts of the town’s history have been installed painted by local artist and tradesman, Andrew Strathie. Mechanic Peter Lummis said he had been wanting to put up some murals for a while, and that it took a bit to find an artist that would paint on his shop’s corrugated iron walls. 

After Mr Lummis and Mr Strathie connected, the artist decided it was easier to paint the murals on four boards, that have now been installed onto the exterior walls on the Morris Street side of the workshop. Mr Lummis said each mural represents a story of the town. 

The first board (pictured above) tells a story about Walter Thomas, who reportedly chained his car to the verandah pole of the workshop on Bridge Street during the 1955 flood event. The other three boards are a nod to the Indigenous history of the district, the presence of the migrant Chinese population and their gardens, along with the Coo-ee Marcher. Painter Andrew Strathie said he had undertaken similar artworks previously when he lived at Orange, but this is the first of his artistic talents on display locally. 

“Each board took about six hours total to paint,” he said. “It’s becoming very popular; a lot of little towns now do mural or silo art.” 

These latest artworks join and complement the existing Bridge Street murals and the other artworks and murals in the township. 

Gilgandra Shire Council is also progressing a murals project as part the Gilgandra Cultural Precinct activation strategy however, many local businesses have already taken it upon themselves, like Mr Lummis, to commission artworks on the sides of their buildings, such as the 2 Miller Street landscape painted by Sam Brooks, and the newer Amy Naef murals on the laneway at the Meating Place.