Rapid Creek Artist Collective Open Exhibition - 11th. July

Artists in Rapid Creek will be showing off their work and opening their studios.  James Gorrie creates metal art and is inspired by the bushland around Lee Point.   The machine age is dumped on the urban fringe, car parts, metal machinery, the industrial revolution are found in the bush, dumped, burnt and now reinvented into machine art. All components are found or scavenged nothing is new.

• 2 Stone place Rapid Creek 
• 10am - 2pm
• Sunday 11th. July

This Sunday the artists of Rapid Creek will open their studios to the public.  Art work, painting, sculptures, metal art will be displayed and for sale.   Look at the Facebook site  

Corona Virus

The metal sculpture represents Corona Virus. I was inspired by the aggressive images of covid 19, if you get covid you may need oxygen from tanks to stay alive and sadly some do not make it, the cross represents the death toll. The current corona virus strain is so virulent and aggressive, so the sculpture had to look mad and angry like a wild beast. The circular saw blades are symbolic of the virulence and speed that the delta strain can cut through the immune system. It is made of tradie tools, old car parts and stolen burnt out cars that were left in the urban fringe around Darwin.

Backyard Sprinkler

The weekend is all about turning on the sprinkler and doing a bit of gardening, cleaning up, pruning trees and watching the water irrigate the green grass.

Tesla Electric Car

The electric car is the future, within our lifetime we will all own one.  Steering wheel, minibike exhaust, battery, electric motor, carby, horn, speaker, ipad.

Heavy Metal

The clash between the urban fringe and the stolen cars.  Piston, grader foot rest, hills hoist, car jack, dogs, trolley.

A Gardeners Day

As a young man my first job straight out of school was apprentice in horticulture. Back then there were no electric hedge trimmers or blowers. The tools needed manual labour, we carried them in the wheelbarrow and pruned, chipped weeds, cut vines, pruned roses, dug weeds, this was all done by hand. The metal art sculpture reminds me of the old days pre electric batteries, Wi-Fi, internet. Some would say the good old days.

Fast Car 

All the parts were scavenged around Darwin, the cars were burnt out, someone’s workmanship and pride has been left in the bush and recycled into a garden sculpture. Oil filter, fuel filler, manifold, bumper bar, steering wheel, tools, drive shaft, exhaust.

V8s Rule

The bigger the engine the bigger exhaust, the more cylinders the more exhausts, power, speed is expressed through the exhaust system. The steering wheel and the accelerator gives you the power, long live the V8. Holden, Ford exhausts, accelerator.

Earth Mover

The auger represents the ability to dig holes and the uni joint offers a flexible force to direct the power, the diesel pump runs the show and it all sits on a stolen NT Government removalist trolley.

Tradies Chair

The tradesmen have many tools and is usually emotionally attached to certain implements. At morning tea and lunch, they sit on chairs surrounded by their tools, this makes them feel comfortable.

Left Wing

Metal table, shovel handle, rio steel, cyclone mesh, cast-iron park bench.

Right Wing

Hills hoist, cast iron park bench, Holden springs, sprocket drive shaft, metal table legs.

First task fix the sledgehammer,  welded a new handle on and steel grinded to remove rust.  Most remote towns have allot of steel and old car parts that can be used to make useful things.  Welding is one of the best skills to learn as you can do so much whether its maintaining yards, gates or fixing tools or being creative and making sculptures.

Train Safe NT can travel to remote Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory and run welding courses for the shire council or ranger groups or CDP groups. The training is very useful as you can learn how to use a mig and arc welder so you can fix steel structures or make things that you need for your job. The last group make bush BBQs that are simple and strong these are great for an open fire, you just place the BBQ over the fire and feed the logs in.  100% recycled steel not one (1) bit of new steel was used.  Learn about a welding course

100% recycled steel not one (1) bit of new steel was used.  I want to do a welding course

Art Work Welding Sculptures

Welding Art made by trainer and displayed at training room in Winnellie.  The installation is called 'pre start check"