“Shellpod” was created by a group of artists led by Gaby Porter from the Wombarra Sculpture Garden after being rejected for a Wollongong City Council cultural grant. The group were too excited for the project so decided to make the work anyway; now it’s complete the creatives are trying to find it a permanent home.

“We would really love to see it somewhere on a headland, on that coastal walk council are wanting to make from Stanwell Park down to Wollongong,” Porter said.

The 2.5 metre sculpture is an abstract shell design and created from ferro cement and covered with mosaic tiles. It was made possible thanks to “modest funding” from Wollongong’s independent arts advocates Culture Bank.

Porter said Wollongong City Councillors Janelle Rimmer and Tania Brown had so far both welcomed the generous donation though the idea was still in talks.

While Porter has also been approached by someone who thought it would work well on Sydney’s northern beaches, where another of her works is to be installed at Bilgola Headland.

“It could be good, if we don’t get anywhere down here, but this is our preferred [location],” she said.

“We love the Illawarra, we think our headlands are beautiful, the whole coastline is just so amazing.”

Cr Rimmer said she was in discussions with Wollongong council officers with the hope of the work to be installed in the new year.

“Public art is something that gets people talking,” she said. 

“We have many locations on the coastline it would be perfect for … it’d be a shame for us not to have it on display.”

Meantime Cr Brown said she thought this kind of artwork should remain in the Illawarra and would only make the northern walk more attractive.

The artist also suggested “Shellpod” may work well somewhere along Shellharbour’s coastline but was yet to speak with their council.

At present the work can be viewed amongst 60 other artworks at the Wombarra Sculpture Garden which is open by appointment.

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