'Where the Garden Gathers' Sculpture St Arnaud

Developed by Council in collaboration with the Queen Mary Botanic Gardens Advisory Group, the new Corten steel sculpture, Where the Garden Gathers, is intended to become a central feature of the Buddleia Garden, which is currently being designed for an underplanted section of the Queen Mary Botanic Gardens.

The sculpture brief invited artists to create a design that was 'of the natural world and relevant to regional Victoria'. Its organic form has been carefully designed to remain visible above the mature height of the buddleia plantings that will surround it. Positioned at the centre of the new garden bed, the sculpture is intended to be viewed from the existing gravel paths, providing a focal point for visitors as they move through the gardens.

An unveiling event to celebrate the installation of Where the Garden Gathers is scheduled for early September 2026, once the Buddleia Garden is planted out.

Project Timeline

Step 1.Brief Development: December 2025 - January 2026

Brief development in collaboration with Queen Mary Botanic Garden Advisory Group.

Step 2.Request for Quote: February - March 2026 

Quotations sought from appropriately qualified and experienced artists to deliver community engagement, design and installation of Public Art (Sculpture).

Step 3.Tender Assessment: February - March 2026 

Assessment by Council's Public Art Internal Working Group.

Step 4.Successful Contractor Notified: By March 30, 2026.

UnitedMake is the successful artist.

Step 5.Stakeholder Engagement: April - May 2026

Design development in collaboration with Queen Mary Botanic Garden Advisory Group.

Step 6.Installation: July - August 2026

Sculpture installation scheduled for early August.

Step 7.Buddleia Garden: August-September 2026

Planting of Buddleia Garden.

Step 8.Sculpture Unveiling/Opening: September 2026

Community event to unveil/open the new Sculpture and Buddleia Garden.

The Tender Process

The Tender Process (Request for Quote)

Northern Grampians Shire Council sought quotations from appropriately qualified and experienced artists to deliver community engagement, design and installation of Public Art (Sculpture) at Queen Mary Botanic Gardens in St Arnaud. This artwork is intended to be the centre piece of a new Buddleia Garden that the Queen Mary Botantic Gardners Advisory Committee are establishing.

  • The design brief was developed in collaboration with the Queen Mary Botantic Gardners Advisory Committee.
  • The opportunity was advertised through ArtsHub for a period of 4 weeks.
  • Councils Public Art Working Group assessed twenty-three quality submissions through a robust process in line with councils Public Art Guidelines.
  • Council awarded the contract to experienced multi-disciplinary design studio UnitedMake.

The Where the Garden Gathers sculpture is on the lands of the the Dja Dja Wurrung peoples represented by Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation (known as DJAARA).

 

Artist Statement: United Make

'Where the Garden Gathers'

is a sculptural meeting point between flower, pollinator, light and landscape.

 

Rising from a single stem, its clustered forms unfold like a bloom, part flower, part honeycomb, part imagined habitat.

 

Nestled among the Buddleia of Queen Mary Botanic Gardens, the work reflects the quiet intelligence of nature, with many small structures coming together to create something larger, stronger and alive.

 

As sunlight and shadow move across its weathered surface, the sculpture changes throughout the day, inviting visitors to pause and notice the hidden patterns that connect all living things.

 

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