Living in Alice

Alice Springs is known for its rich cul­tur­al diver­si­ty and vibrant artis­tic expres­sion. Coun­cil have already engaged a num­ber of well-known, local artists through­out the process to pro­vide var­i­ous design ele­ments. Coun­cil is now excit­ed to announce a major art piece project in Todd Mall, devel­oped along­side the Regen­er­ate the Alice Town Cen­tre project. This major art piece is aimed at enhanc­ing the cul­tur­al and artis­tic land­scape to cre­ate a vibrant and engag­ing pub­lic space that reflects the unique iden­ti­ty of our region.

More than just a visu­al fea­ture, this art­work will become a last­ing sym­bol of com­mu­ni­ty pride, cel­e­brat­ing the sto­ries, her­itage and cre­ativ­i­ty that make Alice Springs such a spe­cial place. By inte­grat­ing pub­lic art into the heart of our CBD, Coun­cil is not only sup­port­ing cul­tur­al expres­sion, but also encour­ag­ing foot traf­fic, boost­ing local busi­ness, and cre­at­ing a des­ti­na­tion that res­i­dents and vis­i­tors alike can enjoy.

This ini­tia­tive is a vital part of our broad­er efforts to re-ener­gise the town cen­tre, ensur­ing it remains a wel­com­ing, inclu­sive and dynam­ic space for every­one. Pub­lic art has the pow­er to spark con­ver­sa­tions, bring peo­ple togeth­er, and help tell the sto­ry of who we are – and this instal­la­tion will do just that.

Now, Coun­cil want to hear from you! What do you want to see as the major art­work in the town’s CBD?

Becom­ing Mountains

This sculp­ture pro­pos­al for Todd Mall draws inspi­ra­tion from the Dream­time sto­ry of the cater­pil­lar beings — Ayepe-arenye, Ntyarlke and Utnerren­gatye — whose actions are said to have formed the Mac­Don­nell Ranges and the area around Alice Springs. These ances­tral beings, cen­tral to the Arrernte peo­ple’s cre­ation sto­ries, trav­elled, fought and shaped the land, their move­ments and encoun­ters leav­ing a last­ing pres­ence in the con­tours of the land­scape. The work takes the form of three large, bright­ly coloured cater­pil­lar-like struc­tures. These forms are abstract­ed and sim­pli­fied, allow­ing for a con­tem­po­rary inter­pre­ta­tion while still hon­our­ing the ener­gy and motion described in the sto­ry. The cater­pil­lar shapes rear, arch, and stretch for­ward — sug­gest­ing move­ment, strug­gle, and trans­for­ma­tion. They appear as if caught mid-motion: inch­ing, merg­ing, and press­ing against one anoth­er in a dynam­ic composition.

Locat­ed in the heart of Alice Springs, the sculp­ture aims to con­nect past and present, land and sto­ry. It offers a pub­lic focal point that acknowl­edges the deep cul­tur­al sig­nif­i­cance of the site and its sur­round­ing land­scape. It also seeks to cre­ate a space for reflec­tion, encounter, and con­ver­sa­tion — root­ed in place, respect­ful of Coun­try, and open to interpretation.

Resilience

Draw­ing par­al­lels with how the site, Todd Mall, pro­vides a tan­gi­ble link between Indige­nous cul­ture and the Alice Springs lifestyle through the promi­nent place it occu­pies in the cul­tur­al mem­o­ry of the town, this piece aims to cre­ate some­thing that hon­ours the sig­nif­i­cance of the Lhere Mparntwe/​Todd Riv­er to the Arrente and non-indige­nous com­mu­ni­ty and its impor­tance in the his­to­ry of Mparntwe/​Alice Springs. 

A dry riv­er bed for 95% of the year, Lhere Mparntwe/​Todd Riv­er is pop­u­lat­ed with trees and sites of great sig­nif­i­cance to Arrente peo­ple. This project would cre­ate some­thing that sug­gests a wel­com­ing ges­ture that has sprung up in the mid­dle of the mall that will become a place of sig­nif­i­cance and com­ing togeth­er for all the peo­ple of, and vis­i­tors to, Mparntwe/​Alice Springs.

This sculp­ture would include a curat­ed series of audio seg­ments that would play back sto­ries, mem­o­ries, thoughts and obser­va­tions from res­i­dents of all ages and back­grounds about what it means to live in Alice Springs. Stand­ing at a lit­tle more than 10 metres tall, the sculp­ture would include LED light­ing pan­els that cre­ate a high­ly vis­i­ble and wel­com­ing night time destination.

Fre­quent­ly Asked Questions

Con­sul­ta­tion

It’s impor­tant that any major piece of art that sits in the heart of our town res­onates with the wider com­mu­ni­ty. With that in mind, Coun­cil will be con­duct­ing a series of com­mu­ni­ty con­sul­ta­tion oppor­tun­ties to hear your thoughts on the two projects. Your input will be valu­able in help­ing shape what the cen­tre of our town looks like and we invite every­one to par­tic­i­pate in this col­lab­o­ra­tive process to shape a land­mark that tru­ly rep­re­sents our community’s spir­it. To have your say, please fill in the sur­vey below or come and say hel­lo at our Todd Mall Mar­kets stalls with the dates list­ed to the right.