Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

On a recent visit to the Laratinga Wetlands in Mt Barker I was intrigued to see four very large pieces of art work on display in the picnic grounds. This was the first time I had seen these paintings. By large I estimate that they are about 3m x 1m in size. Both their size and subject matter make an immediate impact on the viewer.

The Laratinga Wetlands are a series of about a dozen ponds on the eastern edge of Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills in South Australia. They about a half hour drive from the Adelaide CBD and a similar distance from my home. The wetlands make up the purification plant for the local sewage works, the clean water being recycled for watering and irrigation in local parks and farms.

I can find no reference online to the history of these works. If any of my readers can shed a light on this art installation, please leave your information in the comments, or use the contact form and send me an email.

I would appreciate some help.

In fact, I would dearly love my readers to add comments to this post, and other posts on this site. There is a wealth of information scattered throughout this site and it can be access via the archives or the links on the side bar.

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Just over a half hour drive from home is a place I like to visit but don’t get to as often as I would like. The Laratinga Wetlands in Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills section of the Mt Lofty Ranges is a mecca for local and interstate birders. The wetlands consist of about a dozen ponds which make up the sewage works of the nearby town.

By the time the water reaches the final ponds it is purified enough to be used on nearby farms as irrigation water. In the meantime, the various ponds play host to a wide range of water-birds including ducks, ibis, herons, egrets, grebes, cormorants, dotterels, plovers, swamphens, coots and moorhens.

Purple Swamphen

Purple Swamphen

The area around the ponds and the entrance paths have been wonderfully landscaped, with lawns, shelter sheds – it rains frequently in Mt Barker – barbecues and public toilets. Around the ponds and picnic area many trees, bushes and smaller plants which add the great environment which attracts many bush birds, including parrots, cockatoos, lorikeets, honeyeaters, finches, pigeons, doves and swallows.

You can see more photos of the birds seen here on my other site Trevor’s Birding.

Further reading:

Galah

Galah

Grey Teal

Grey Teal

Laratinga Wetlands on a cold misty winter's morning

Laratinga Wetlands on a cold misty winter’s morning