ALMOST four years in the making, Pooncarie’s Big Yabby was installed in the middle of town recently, offering a new tourist attraction for road-trippers travelling on the recently sealed road to Menindee.
The sculpture’s creator Lindsay Butcher said originally he wasn’t keen to create the artwork due to the meticulous detail required.
“I wasn’t overly excited because I knew how much work it would be,” he said.
“But the town had their hearts set on a yabby. It’s something different and quite synonymous with the town.”
Butcher said he hoped the landmark would encourage visitors to stop and have their photo taken with it.
Executive officer at West Darling Arts, Cathy Farry said the project came about in 2021 when the government was handing out money for regional arts networks in light of recent events such as the COVID pandemic.
“I’d been speaking with the people in Pooncarie and public art had been discussed a couple of time and they an interest in more public art in town,” she said.
“So I set aside a chunk of money and gave it to the Pooncarie and District Development Association and we put out a call for expressions of interest from artists.”
Butcher, who lives in the Pooncarie region and works in mining, was one of the artists who responded to the callout and was awarded the job.
“I’m a tradesman, not a full time artist, so it’s my part time hobby to make art,” he said.
Butcher said he spent 12 months physically working on the design, and installed it just before Christmas.
He also said the response from community had been highly positive.
“So far there’s been a lot of positive comments,” he said. “I think something new in the region has been very welcomed.”
