PIPE DREAM: Christopher Trotter with his new work outside Cathedral of St Stephen in the Brisbane CBD. Source: The Courier-Mail
Trotter's "City Roos" installation is in George St. Source: The Courier-Mail
Aquatica Botanica, at the intersection of Wynnum and Riding roads, Hawthorne, in Brisbane's east, is a 4.5m-tall recycled steel floral sculpture. Source: The Courier-Mail
Fish fossil made of metal in concrete. Source: The Courier-Mail
HE might be Queensland's favourite public artist but Christopher Trotter's latest work could confound his fans.
And if you think his scrap metal sculpture Listen to a Pipe Dreaming looks like something out of a Dr Seuss book - you'd be right.
It sprouts from a garden bed outside the Cathedral of St Stephen in Elizabeth St, in Brisbane's CBD, and is drawing the attention of passersby, who might note the literary connection.
"Lately, a lot of my work has tended towards looking like something weird and wonderful out of a Dr Seuss book," Trotter says. "All sorts of people will interpret it in different ways."
There's also a Dr Seuss look about his recent commission from Brisbane City Council - Aquatica Botanica, at the intersection of Wynnum and Riding roads, Hawthorne - a 4.5m-tall recycled steel floral sculpture.
His work peppers the city and suburbs. Well known pieces include Fish Fossil at Kangaroo Point Cliffs and Bio-Mechanical Pelicans by the river near the Queensland Maritime Museum.
He also has works at Geebung (Crazy Chook Machine), Corinda (Family Attitude), Acacia Ridge (Fossil) - all among his 35 completed commissions across Queensland.
Mucker Duck at Mt Isa is based on mining history and a 15-tonne, 4.5m-high seahorse fossil, embedded in concrete on the Millennium Boardwalk at Tannum Sands is another popular attraction.
Trotter, 45, is sponsored by Sims Metal Management, for obvious reasons. He has been working with and exhibiting his scrap metal work for 22 years and lives on Boonah acreage littered with old planes, boat parts, engines, rusting farming equipment and other industrial detritus he turns into art.
"Right now I'm working on a 5m-tall piece called the Blumbergville Clock for the Scenic Rim Regional Council," Trotter says. "It's basically a new town clock for Boonah."
Everyone's favourite Trotter remains his 1999 City Roos, four metal marsupials, one of which rests on a bench on George St in Brisbane's CBD.
"They are so popular the Federal Government borrowed them for World Expo 2012 in Shanghai, where they were displayed at the entry to the Australian pavilion," Trotter says.
Listen to a Pipe Dreaming is on loan to the Catholic Archdiocese to help publicise a March 16-18 art show, Restoring the Lost and the Broken, staged by the Cathedral of St. Stephen Art Group.
Trotter says his sculpture was inspired by ideas of "water, growth, life".
Dean of the Cathedral, Dr David Pascoe, says the work will "engage with the multitudes of people passing through and not just churchgoers".
"My first reaction was - I have no idea what it is but I'm excited about putting it into the precinct because people will react to it," Dr Pascoe says.
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WHAT THE PUNTERS SAY
Rebecca Matthews, 29, HR adviser, South Brisbane:
"I don't know if it suits the location. I like it and it is eye-catching but it may be too modern for the historical buildings around it."
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Adam Boevink, 28, environmental scientist, Aspley:
"I love his City Roos and I love the form of this one, especially the arcs and curves. It's a nice contrast to the square blocks and the stone of the cathedral. Even though it's made of steel it seems gentle."
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Melinda McConnell, 29, admin officer, Alexandra Hills:
"I'm no art critic but at first glance I don't think it's that attractive. I just don't know what it is. Is it a watering can of some sort? Art is not my bag but I do like his kangaroos."
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Richard Smit, 41, banker, from Veghel in the Netherlands:
"We just arrived and I have heard about his kangaroos already. I think this one looks like some sort of trumpet and I do like it. We have some public art in Holland but nothing like this."
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