It’s been 10 years in the piepline but there’s a renewed push to establish a statue of musician Nick Cave in his birthplace of Warracknabeal.
Conversations around the creation of a statue have circulated since 2008, when Mr Cave himself was pushing the idea.
Now a group of Warracknabeal residents are planning to set up a crowd-funding campaign to help make the dream a reality.
Project co-ordinator and Warracknabeal Arts Council member Peter Loy said the campaign had been more than two years in the making.
“The Arts Council has been working hard to get him more recognised in town,” he said.
“His mum and dad, Dawn and Colin Cave, were well known in the community and were very involved in the local arts scene.
Read more: Nick Cave mural rumoured for Warracknabeal
“We want to pursue the idea because of the tourism draw it would have.
“The majority of people I have spoken to about it have been very positive.”
Nick Cave was born in Warracknabeal in 1957, and his family moved away from the town in 1960.
Mr Loy said the initial idea of a sculpture started in the mid-90s.
“London sculpture Corin Johnson came up with the concept for the sculpture with Cave in 1995,” he said.
“I contacted Corin and he was very enthusiastic about continuing the idea.”
The prototype of the statue depicts Mr Cave riding a horse shirtless.
Mr Loy said the sculpture would be “very similar” to the original concept and would stand at more than four metres high.
“It was a reaction to how the media were treating him at the time, and how he felt he was being perceived,” he said.
“We’re about to set up a crowd-funding page very soon and we don’t have an approximate costing at the moment, but Corin is busily figuring that out.
“We also don’t know where it’s going to be.”
Warracknabeal Arts Council president Judy Drage said the group had been busy prompting Mr Cave’s connection to the town.
“About 12 months ago, we organised to put signs up at the entrance of town saying that it was his birthplace,” she said.
“We also collected some information about him and got it into the tourist centre.”
Yarriambiack Shire Council mayor Graeme Massey said council was supportive of the proposal.
“Our position is that it would increase tourism and public interest for the shire,” he said.
“There are quite a few people on council who are big Nick Cave fans and they are very happy about this idea.
“We hope to work closely with the group to help find them a site and make sure permits are all sorted.
“Council won’t be putting any funding into it, but we’re always in favour of anything that helps bring people to the region.”
