Omnibus Art is a studio and gallery complex in Inglis Street Ballan and is home to artist Velislav Georgiev.

Velislav works as a public artist, making sculpture for parks, buildings and other public settings in and around Melbourne. He frequently works for local governments, but is also commissioned to create art by property developers, landscape architects, architects, builders, schools, churches and private individuals.

Commissions

Councils that Velislav has worked for include the Cities of Greater Dandenong, Wyndham, Darebin, Bayside, Ballarat, Kingston, Whitehorse and Frankston. His most recent local government commission was to create a sculpture for the City of Casey for Wilson Botanic Park.

Still Moment, Wilson Botanic Park, ©Velislav Georgiev 2007

Velislav has made sculptures for a number of different schools, including Elwood Primary School, Nepean School, The Grange School, and Belmore School. Making sculpture for playgrounds is a highly specialised artistic area because of the expectation that the work will be interactive but safe. Usually, Velislav works on playground sculptures in collaboration with a specialist landscape architect and a playground equipment auditor, working to strict Australian Standards.

Sculptural Handrail, Nepean School, 2001. This sculpture was created in collaboration with Mary Jeavons Landscape Architects. It was designed to be fun for children with specific physical disabilities.

Materials

Most public artworks need to last at least 10 years and some are expected to last for hundreds of years. Velislav often works in metal because of its ability to withstand outdoor conditions over a period of time. Favourite materials include rusted mild steel, gold and stainless steel. Past projects have seen Velislav using many other materials such as glass tiles, rammed earth, bronze, limestone and recycled timber.

Inspiration

Unlike gallery-based artists, public artists work to a brief and within a budget. Inspiration is essential but it generally arises from the context of the commission. Velislav often works on community focused projects where he talks to local people about the area where the sculpture will be installed and about the art and art images that excite them. Inspiration comes from these sorts of conversations as well as from the natural, constructed and social environment in which he is working.

Mulga Bill, Mary Bell park, City of Kingston, ©Velislav Georgiev 2006. This sculpture is based on the poem by Banjo Paterson about Mulga Bill falling off his bicycle. The idea to create a bicycle inspired sculpture for Mary Bell park arose when Velislav saw all the cyclists riding down the nearby Nepean Highway.

Water Kite, Tirhatuan Park, City of Greater Dandenong, © (in the photograph) Mike Wilson © (in the sculpture) Velislav Georgiev, 2003. The idea for this sculpture arose from discussions with local school children about what they never do when they visit Tirhatuan Park.

Roadside Marker, Frankston City Council, © Velislav Georgiev 2006. This sculpture sits on the Nepean Highway at the entrance to Frankston. This inspiration for the sculpture arose from images of commercial shipping and recreational sailing.

Public Furniture

In 2005 Velislav was invited by the City of Greater Dandenong to make the boardroom table for the new Drum Theatre at the redeveloped Town Hall in Dandenong. The commission involved using some of the floorboards from the old Town Hall Ballroom. Workers cut out a big chunk of floor with a chain saw, which then travelled to Omnibus Art in Ballan. Velislav cleaned the boards and re-worked them in an American cherry frame.

Boardroom Table, City of Greater Dandenong, ©Velislav Georgiev 2006.

Training

Velislav was born in Sofia Bulgaria and studied Fine Art (sculpture) at RMIT in Melbourne. He believes that a fine arts degree is not something that artists always fully appreciate until they have been working as professional artists for a couple of years. He remembers being disappointed in first year that he wasn’t learning more practical skills. He now views his degree as an education in ways of seeing and ways of being creative, which allows him to apply something like welding in a way that a welder wouldn’t normally consider.

Private commissions

Velislav accepts private commissions, which can involve him in creating some very different work from his public art practice. He paints, and also he designs furniture and architectural fittings.

All public and private commission enquires can be directed to Tor Roxburgh at torrox@iinet.net.au

Omnibus Art is located at 148A Inglis Street, Ballan. Appointments via email: torrox@iinet.net.au or call Tor 0417148532.

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