Water Dance project completed for Western Australia Highway
Date uploaded: November 26, 2009
Artist Anne Neil and her team have completed a project geared to increasing safety and visual amenities for motorists over a 78km stretch on the new 180 km Forrest Highway - the biggest road infrastructure project in Western Australia.
Water Dance is part of a larger series of works which primarily includes low relief geometric design work on 6 bridges. You can read a specially commissioned report by Public Art Online about another project by Anne Neil in this scheme - Roe Highway 7.
Clearly visible from a distance, Water Dance consists of 8 cones and 16 poles made of marine grade aluminium. Situated adjacent to a rest stop, the works sit on an earth mound surrounded by a moat. They are solar powered and lit at night acting as luminous beacons to break the monotony of the journey and to provide a distance signifier.
Anne worked on the project for just under 3 years, including the conceptual phase, design development, fabrication and installation. Artists Mark Datodi and Olga Cironis were part of the design phase for the Mechanically Stabilised Earth (MSE) walls, and along with architect Libby Guj (from Jones Coulter Young), contributed to the conceptual phase of the iconic sculptural work for the highway. Steve Tepper, Mark Datodi, Olga Cironis and Michelle Seah assisted in the fabrication of the complex patterns and the lay-up of the low relief detail in the various cast concrete walls.
