Bunyip coming to Gungahlin
Statue campaign pays off
Alexander Bunyip from the famous childrens book The Monster that ate Canberra will be immortalised in bronze outside the new Gungahlin Library.
The Gungahlin Community Councils campaign for a public art piece recognising the popular childrens book by Michael Salmon has been successful, with ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope approving the idea for a sculpture.
This is the book that introduced many Canberra children to reading, by allowing us to relate the book back to local monuments we knew so well, said GCC President Alan Kerlin.
GCC suggested such a statue would be ideally located outside the new Gungahlin Library currently under construction on the corner of Hibberson and Gozzard Streets in the Gungahlin town centre.
From this location, pedestrians can look down Gozzard Street straight to the Telstra Tower on Black Mountain, which Alexander Bunyip thought was a double yum ice cream sundae with nuts on top and so proceeded to eat it.
I am taken with the Gungahlin Community Councils proposal and believe an artfully executed sculpture of the bunyip placed outside the new Gungahlin Library would be a very popular addition to the town centres landscape, said Jon Stanhope in his reply.
The bunyip is certainly an icon for those of us who lived in Canberra during the 1970s and 80s, and still features prominently on the shelves of our public libraries, he said.
The idea for the statue came during a lively debate on the Canberra blog site the-riotact.com. GCC committee member Estelle Sydney-Smith said I reckon we should get a statue of that iconic Canberra legend Alexander Bunyip, The Monster That Ate Canberra. Alan Kerlin replied Im picturing a statue of the bunyip biting a chunk out of the Telstra Tower, placed outside the new Gungahlin library! A tribute if you like to the books role in teaching kids to read.
GCC went on to promote the idea through its website gcc.asn.au, its widely renowned community newsletter Gungahlin Smokesignals, childrens colouring competitions, and even sending copies of the books to MLAs like Andrew Barr and Jon Stanhope. The idea met with strong support across the board, striking a chord with both adults and children.
Author Michael Salmon soon found out about the idea, and has actively supported the campaign with books for competition prizes and promotion.
The early years of a childs education are critical, and a strong start to reading is the cornerstone of that education, said Alan Kerlin. If this statue helps foster more early reading, we will have achieved our goal by creating a lasting legacy.
We also realise the government has had mixed reactions to some other urban art pieces. But were sure this will be something most people could easily relate to.
Loading...
2:59
The Bushman of Bunyip Billabongby camedser12,394 views
@BoraxMan25 I do... although my children haven't seen the show, they know Michael Salmon.
lazyppublishing 4 months ago
@inkmagnet Yes they certainly did...Google images for Alexander Bunyip
lazyppublishing 4 months ago
Any monster that eats Canberra deserves a statue.
mgo26 9 months ago
I am a LEGEND!!!!!
DZeitgeist 11 months ago
Does anyone remember the Alaxander the bunyip TV Show that used to be on in the early 80's?
BoraxMan25 1 year ago
Did they make this?
inkmagnet 1 year ago