Yarram Street Art Trail (Heesco Town)
World renowned street and silo artist Heesco Khosnaran has transformed the town of Yarram into a multi-mural canvas, resulting in the widely acclaimed 'Heesco Town' project.
Heesco painted the initial murals over a five-week period in early 2020 and honour those who made their mark in the history of this region, and those who continue to shape the town today. The artwork is so striking that it scooped up gold at the 2020 Australian Street Art Awards.
There are now 24 murals throughout Yarram's town centre that collectively create Yarram's street art trail.
The Friends if Heesco Town have produced a quality 40 page booklet that covers the amazing Yarram Heesco Town story from 'go to whoa' - 24 murals in 24 months and winner of the prestigious 'Australian Best Street Art Trail Award' two years in a row. Meet the team that made this happen, discover the back stories behind the images, find out who the wall owners are who commissioned these murals.
Get yours free at Yarram Ship Inn Motel (480 Commercial Rd, Yarram) or Yarram Information Centre (9 Rodgers Street, Yarram).
Recently Heesco has painted the Yarram water tower.
Photos:
Map of all mural locations (not to scale)
The mural locations are:
1. Yarram Golf Club - 42 Golf Links Road, Yarram
Legendary golfer Gary Player, who visited Yarram in 1956. This mural is about 5km out of town.
2. MG Trading - 39 Commercial Rd, Yarram
Bill McKenzie was chosen as the subject since he has been involved with the Company for over fifty years. Bill was a tanker driver for Murray Goulburn for a number of years, and also worked at the Trading Store as a delivery driver. Bill and Marg are dairy farmers who have always supplied their milk to the one company, for many years it was Murray Goulburn and more recently Saputo Dairy Australia. Bill has just recently retired from dairying but is still a great supporter of the store. Bill, one of the districts outstanding characters sits with a very handsome Border collie named Toby.
3. Mechanics' Institute Hall - 4 Church Street, Yarram
Ada Crossley, who was born just down the road in Tarraville, sang at the Yarram Mechanics Halls to raise funds for Yarram's first hospital and the famous singer had a connection to the Titanic.
4. Wynne's Building - 200 Commercial Road, Yarram (above the shop)
A wave was out on the mural because of the proximity to the 90 Mile Beach and Wilson's Promontory with dolphins in the wave as there are so many in the local inlets and Bass Strait.
5. Brown Wigg - 191 Commercial Road, Yarram
The mural of the sheep farmer shearing a sheep with his dog beside him represents the Brown Wigg business perfectly, what they do for the community and for Wendy (the building owner) where she has spent her childhood growing up on a sheep farm in the Yarram area.
6. Yarram Indoor Sports Centre, Cnr Smith Street and Grant Street, Yarram
Mongolian settlers came to the area in the 1850's. Chin Langtip arrived as a nineteen-year-old from Mongolia and soon after arrival established his own prosperous market garden business in Tarraville. In 1870 Chin married Ron's great grandmother Mary Ann Prout and several years later, Mary Ann's sister, Elizabeth, became his second wife or 'friend' as she was then known as. Between them they had 17 children.
In February 1916, four of the sons, Leslie, Bertie, Ernie, and Henry were assigned to the 16th Reinforcements for the 4th Light Horse Regiment. They all returned home to Victoria in 1919 after having fought in the battle of Beersheba ending a crucial battle in the Sinai Palestine campaign of World War One. In honour of this, Heesco has created this huge 26 metre long mural.
7. Cafe Aga, 219 Commercial Road, Yarram
Mural shows the small back room of the cafe that features their famous Aga stove.
8 & 9. Yarram Bakery - 222 Commercial Road, Yarram (side alley)
Liem Nguyen, owner of the bakery settled in Yarram in 1983 as a refugee from the Vietnam war. He has never forgotten the welcome he received from the then Fraser Government as a boat person fleeing persecution. He remembers vividly the warm welcome into Australia, people with open arms. It was quite a different time! The mural was painted to say thank you to Australia for welcoming him as a refugee.
This mural shows what Liem had imagined Australia was going to be like. It captures the colour, the wide-open spaces, the wildlife and the original owners of the land.
10,11,12 & 13. Bull Bar & Gallery - 258 Commercial Road, Yarram (three murals inside and one behind the building in the rear garden)
The owner had previously worked with Heesco on community street art projects around Victoria and invited Heesco to come and paint the now famous Bull inside the Bar. The artist has been back twice since, painting the external walls in the beer garden and more recently both walls inside the dining area.
14. 251 Commercial Road, Yarram (above building)
The mural represents the wonderful Jersey cow's presence, and dairy families' tradition in the local area and depicts Marg and Gordon Lowrie's two kids taken on their first day of ownership of the 329 acre property "Brookfield" in the Greig Creek valley at Won Wron. They were only the 3rd owners since selection and had been held by the McLean family for over 90 years.
With the property they also purchased the Brookfield Jersey Stud and so began their 35 year career in dairy farming and their love of the Jersey breed. Still today there is a large nucleus of Jersey cows in the Won Wron valley.
15. The Bean Pedlar, 251 Commercial Road, Yarram (inside and outside)
Depicted on the right-hand side of this Heesco artwork is Victor Hugo Mattern who is one of the sons of Franz Peter Mattern who established the original hardware store established in this building in 1887. He is the grandfather of Peter Williams - a fourth generation family owner. Mattern's Hardware was established here in the 1880s and the Bean Pedlar mural aims to honour this rich heritage. The mural reflects a transition in the history for the store - from the Mattern family until now, a fine coffee roasting and 'coffee to go' outlet.
16. Betta Home Living - 262 Commercial Road, Yarram (rear of building)
Kara Healey, who had an important role in the history of Tarra Bulga National Park. Kara came to the Park in 1949 and after the death of her husband Jim became effectively the first female park ranger in Victoria in 1952. As well as being the Park caretaker Mrs Healey collected an impressive range of specimens from the Park and sending them to places like the CSIRO and The National Museum of Victoria. The image of the lyrebird is a reminder that the national Park is a home to many native animals. One of the most popular animals is the lyrebird and many visitors are lucky enough to see one on the numerous walking trails that intersect the Park.
17. Men's Shed, 22 Bland Street, Yarram
Some local men from the town.
18. Yarram Tyres & Exhausts, 21 Bland Street, Yarram
With the building having a pole and beam construction harking back to the days of blacksmiths and stables for working horses, the theme for this mural was apparent. Over the years the building has seen many businesses come and go that support the local agricultural and rural community.
19. Federal Coffee Palace - 305 Commercial Road, Yarram
Ralph Vale, was an enormous character and represents the early settlers that made this area what it is today. Ralph used to walk his bullocks down the main street of Yarram every year during the annual Tarra Festival.
20. Star of the South - 310 Commercial Road, Yarram (inside)
Star of the South is Australia's first offshore wind project. Proposed to be located off the south coast of Gippsland, it has the potential to supply up to 20% of the State of Victoria's electricity needs while creating jobs and investment. If developed to its full potential, Star of the South would generate up to 2.2 GW of new capacity, powering up to 1.8 million homes across the state. The offshore wind farm is proposed to be located 7-25km off the south coast of Gippsland near towns such as Port Albert, McLoughlins Beach and Woodside Beach.
Turbines would be installed out at sea and spaced apart to allow room for boats to navigate through.
21. Memorial Gardens - 312 Commercial Road, Yarram
COVID Heroes - In 2020, After seeing the Heesco Town murals on a recent ABC news report, The Office of the Governor of Victoria commissioned Heesco Khosnaran to paint this impressive 7X4 metre mural to recognise and thank the many frontline workers who have cared for Victorians throughout the devastating summer bushfires of 2020, and the subsequent COVID-19 pandemic.
The Governor's Office said: "While it wasn't possible to include a representation of every organisation that has had an impact this year, it was intended that the image serve as a reminder that those on the frontline are ordinary people who do extraordinary things, stepping up for others, as and when needed. In realising this project, it was also important to recognise the devastating blow suffered by Victoria's creative industries during COVID-19. To that end, hoarding being used towards the end of a ten-year repair and conservation program at Government House was seen to be a perfect canvas for this artwork, painted by Melbourne Street Artist Heesco.
The mural was on display at Government House for several months, where it formed the backdrop to a range of 'Thank You' events and has given many Victorians the opportunity to view the incredible work up close. The mural has now been donated to Yarram (Heesco Town) at the request of the artist.
22 & 23. Ship Inn Motel - 480 Commercial Rd, Yarram (About one and a half kilometres south of the town)
Galleon battle scene and a very busy pirate scene with a bar filled with pirates, skeletons, treasure chests and a Mongolian Warrior Queen.
24. Victoria Hotel - 52 Turnbull Street, Alberton (in town of Alberton about 5km south of Yarram)
A heritage image which is hotel related, a gentleman unloading old kegs by hand and a cart pulled by horses.
Additional murals not included on the map are:
Yarram Community Church - 142 Commercial Road, Yarram
The mural tells the story of escaped prisoner Edwin John Eastwood who broke into a small regional school in Wooreen, Victoria, and took a teacher and his nine students hostage at gunpoint. After a car crash with the hostages, some members of the public stopped to help and were also taken hostage. Eastwood now had 16 hostages bundled in the back of a Kombi van and took them to a bush camp.
Eastwood's plan was to hold the victims for ransom. He demanded the release of 17 of the state's most dangerous inmates, an arsenal of weapons, seven million US dollars and a supply of illicit drugs.
One of the captives, Robin Smith, a 25-year-old logger successfully freed himself from his chains and escaped to a farmhouse more than 10 kilometres away. Police were directed to the campsite, but by that time Eastwood had noticed his disappearance and forced the remaining hostages back into the van. A high-speed chase ensued, with Eastwood firing shots at the policemen. After a dangerous car chase, police were able to stop the vehicle and apprehend Eastwood, who had been shot in the leg. All of the hostages were saved, and most were uninjured. Robin Smith was recently awarded the Australian Bravery Award which honours citizens who in a moment of danger or threat have acted selflessly and courageously.
See the full story.
Yarram Water Tower - 7 Nightingale St, Yarram
The top part of the tower features local tourism highlights and the lower part of the tower has Indigenous imagery and embedded stories and symbols.
Location
258 Commercial Road, Yarram 3971 Map
Web Links
→ Heesco Town Yarram
→ Heesco Town - Yarram on Facebook
