Art and Activism
Interpretive signage along the Activism theme
Art and Activism
Artists have long been inspired by the hills, trees, ferns and gullies of the Dandenong Ranges, and it is no surprise that many of these artists also wanted to preserve and protect what they loved most about the region. Calls for the protection of the area from logging and for the creation of a park began as early as the 1840s, but it was not until the Dandenong Ranges were made famous by Eugene von Guérard’s painting Ferntree Gully in the Dandenong Ranges in 1857 that the environmental cause gained momentum. Art critic James Smith was at the forefront of lobbying the government to prohibit logging and protect the area, which led to the creation of permanent reserves.
More recently, artist, teacher, poet and conservationist Constance Coleman gifted her 10-hectare home and studio Wanderslore Sanctuary (in the Yarra Valley) to the Trust for Nature prior to her death. Along with her evocative works capturing the Dandenong Ranges, Wanderslore Sanctuary ensures future generations can see and experience the indigenous flora and fauna of the area. Not long after this, on the other side of the ranges, artist and political activist Lin Onus was one of the key people responsible for saving the former Sherbrooke Shire building, now Burrinja Cultural Centre which was named in his honour – Burrinja being the activist artist’s Koori name.