Agatha Bertram Travels

Travels with my aunt and some others

  • Remarkable
    • Communities
    • Exploits and Expeditions
    • Food
    • People
  • Africa & Middle East
  • Americas
  • Asia
    • India
    • Japan
    • Vietnam
  • Australia
  • Europe
    • France
  • Useful
    • Books
    • Events
    • Health
    • Travel
  • About
    • AKA Agatha Bertram
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy

Hanging on the Horizon – Lake Ballard

June 23, 2015 by AggieB Leave a Comment

2015 gormley womanSome people call it Lake Ballard, correctly because that’s where it is.   Some people call it the Gormley statues, equally correctly because that’s what it is.   It is one of my favourite places in the world, and is ‘quite remote’.

What

A group of 51 statues created by English sculpture (Sir) Antony Gormley in 2003.   The group is spread over a 10 sq. km salt lake.   Each statue is a replica of one of the residents of Menzies but 2/3 in size and with no clothes or skin. As in – they are made from metal so only the main measurements are replicated.   Pardon me while I get a bit guide book here because I’ll need to get the story straight.

From antonygormley.com – “The 51 works are positioned about 750 metres apart; wherever you are positioned within the field of the work there are tiny, hair-like verticals hanging from the horizon. Viewed in the heat and sharp light, they constantly draw you to the edge of your perceptual field”.

Why

I think the question here is ‘why is it unique’?   Well Antony Gormley also created a few other famous 2015 Lake Ballard close upinstallations, probably the best known is the Angel of the North outside of Newcastle in the UK.   He was initially commissioned to build a temporary installation for the 50th Anniversary of the Perth International Arts Festival, but the project turned into a permanent piece.   And its made from steel, with a titanium base and ITS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

Where

Lake Ballard is approx. 45 km from Menzies.   The closest town to Menzies is Leonora to the north (100km), and Kalgoorlie to the south (150 km).   It’s a pretty good road between Kalgoorlie and Leonora and then a reasonably good gravel road from the turn off at Menzies into Lake Ballard.   I’ll have to add a disclaimer here that I’ve driven between Leonora and Kalgoorlie a few times in the past few years, but havn’t been into Lake Ballard for more than five years.   I don’t think it will have changed that much. Oh, and Kalgoorlie is 600km east of Perth, the capital city of Western Australia, and Perth is one of the most remote cities in the world – but relatively easy to fly to.

How 2015 Lake Ballard AmigosSome people fly into Kalgoorlie and then jump on a bus tour to Lake Ballard.   Or hire a car in Kalgoorlie and drive out. I did a four day trip out from Perth one year, for Easter. My brother lives half way so I stayed with him on the first night.

How Much

Yeah – not cheap if you don’t have your own car.   Could catch a train (the Prospector) to Kalgoorlie and then hire a car there, but you’d need to take camping gear if you want to get the best shots (see ‘when’).   But SO worth it.

When

For photographic purposes it is best to be there at sunrise and sunset because of the shadows, but the trick is there is no accommodation within about two hours drive so it means camping onsite with pretty basic facilities.   I don’t mind, some (my sister, my nephew) do.   Probs better to be there not in summer, because it would be hottish.  And if it is likely to be hot i.e. the six summer months, you’ll need a hat, sunscreen and heaps of water. If you choose to drive at dusk or during the night then beware of kangaroos and emus jumping in front of the car, they can cause major damage to the car and to themselves.   During the day – beware of wedge tailed eagles eating the dead kangaroos and emus because they are fat from eating and take off slowly.   Don’t worry about wild goats – they are clever.  Mmm. Snakes – I didn’t see any. If you have any concerns just make a lot of noise.

Links & references:

Lake Ballard – Australiasgoldenoutback

Sculptor – Antony Gormley.com

More information about Antony Gormley’s other works – www.artsy.net

2015 Lake Ballard access

Follow AggieB’s board ‘Destinations’ on Pinterest.

Save

  • Tweet
  • Share 0
  • Reddit
  • +1
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn 0

Filed Under: Australia, General, Travel Tagged With: Outback

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe to receive periodic wraps of the most popular posts.

Search

Thought for today

Fact 1: The state changed its name in 2000, and caused a lot of bitterness because of the amount of stationery that had to be changed.  Uttarakhand was formerly known as Uttaranchal.

Dehradun, May 2019

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

#Aggiebtravels

This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

Error: No connected account.

Please go to the Instagram Feed settings page to connect an account.

#allaboutfrance

Lou Messugo

Affiliates

Web Hosting

Categories

Africa & Middle East Americas Asia Australia Books Communities Equipment Europe Events Exploits and Expeditions Food France General Health India India Japan Japan Markets Movies Oman People Remarkable Snapshots St Etienne Travel Uncategorised Useful Vietnam

Archives

  • July 2020 (1)
  • June 2020 (1)
  • January 2020 (1)
  • December 2019 (1)
  • November 2019 (1)
  • February 2019 (1)
  • January 2019 (1)
  • December 2018 (1)
  • November 2018 (1)
  • October 2018 (2)
  • July 2018 (1)
  • June 2018 (1)
  • March 2018 (1)
  • January 2018 (1)
  • December 2017 (1)
  • November 2017 (1)
  • October 2017 (1)
  • August 2017 (1)
  • July 2017 (2)
  • June 2017 (2)
  • May 2017 (2)
  • April 2017 (1)
  • March 2017 (2)
  • February 2017 (2)
  • January 2017 (1)
  • November 2016 (2)
  • October 2016 (1)
  • September 2016 (1)
  • August 2016 (2)
  • July 2016 (4)
  • June 2016 (3)
  • May 2016 (2)
  • April 2016 (2)
  • March 2016 (3)
  • February 2016 (3)
  • January 2016 (2)
  • December 2015 (3)
  • October 2015 (1)
  • September 2015 (1)
  • August 2015 (1)
  • July 2015 (5)
  • June 2015 (3)
  • April 2015 (2)
  • March 2015 (5)
2016 03 bike_white

Privacy Policy Terms and Conditions

All content, layouts, designs, and graphics are my own unless otherwise noted. Logo and Illustrations by Ignacio Brito
2016 03 suitcase_white

Copyright © 2023 · Magazine Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This site uses cookies: Find out more.