It’s full steam ahead now that the Southern Downs Regional Council has approved the mural for Allora.

Community consultation meetings were held last week at Allora with the attendees given the opportunity to air their views and ideas on what they’d like to see depicted on our mural. The artists from The Brightsiders, based in Brisbane, showed examples of their work and indicated that they are passionate about working with the locals to paint a mural that complements the beauty of the town.

A discussion then took place as suggestions were needed about something special or unique to Allora.

Many thoughts were thrown around including our streetscape, original buildings, Allora’s Light-horsemen, the weir crossing, birds, heritage machinery, heavy horses, skinks, Mary Poppins, landscapes, sunsets, farming, sunflowers and local faces or sportspeople. The artists Jordan and Steve were interested in the ideas and took notes to follow through on possibilities. They were so impressed with the level of interaction during the consultation meetings and the community connectedness that is such an important part of Allora. During Saturday’s meeting the attendees talked about it as the important ‘X-Factor’ that sets Allora apart.

For locals who couldn’t attend the consultation meetings you still have the opportunity to participate via a survey link https://surveys.usq.edu.au/index.php/371197 which should be accessible on any device, including mobile phones.

The first mural will be painted on the IGA dark grey side wall so the size will determine the design. This mural could then lead into the second mural to be painted on the silos at a future date.

The artists will develop two initial designs and only Allora locals will be asked to vote on the mural to be painted.

These designs will be displayed at the IGA and will be published in The Allora Advertiser during September. The mural will then be painted in October and should take about a week.

This article appeared in the Allora Advertiser, 30 August 2023.

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