SuniTAFE Diploma of Graphic Design (CUA50720) students painted grain bins in Werrimull earlier this month, in preparation for the upcoming Werrimull Oktoberfest event.

The inaugural Werrimull Oktoberfest will be held Saturday 14 October on Councillor Ian Arney’s farm. The day will focus on farming practices and will feature live music, art, and even a sheep race. 

SuniTAFE students worked alongside commissioned artist Liv McCarten and Cultivator’s Mark Haynes, in conjunction with Millewa Sustainable Farming, to plan, design, and paint two grain bins to be displayed at the event. 

Education Delivery Manager – Creative Design, Sophie Cook says that the students, under the expert direction of Liv McCarten, created highly relevant artworks that illustrate the rural lifestyle of Werrimull. 

“We did a lot of research on the Tuesday. We looked at environment, we looked at community, we looked at man-made objects versus natural objects. We also looked at other things like farming life, native plants, flora, and fauna,” she said. 

“In the end, we decided it would be nice to have the silos themed to tie together, that way they would have a really nice colour and stylistic connection. We ended up going for a day and night theme. One side has really warm daytime colours like the sun, and the other is a cooler tone.” 

This opportunity to use their skills outside of the classroom was a highly valuable learning experience for the Creative Design students. 

“By doing this project, the students covered a unit of their course. The knowledge and skills required for the unit was achieved through the preparation, the planning, and then the execution of the project. It was a really relevant and hands-on project,” Sophie said. 

“They were able to work with a real client. It was also a project outside of our classroom space, so it meant that we were dealing with different external factors. It was also in a remote location.”

“This meant we had to do a lot more planning than we probably normally would. But it gave the students a realistic indication of how the design process meets a project management process as well. It was really great of them to give us that broad scope.” 

“We also thought it would be an added benefit to work with an industry professional, which is why we got Liv McCarten on board.”

Sophie is proud of her students who went above and beyond for the project. 

“The students did a really great job. It was an intense project, to get something like this completed in three days,” Sophie said. 

“They’re really proud of what they’ve achieved too. They had to deal with some really challenging aspects. It was quite warm conditions and there were so many flies to contend with. Plus, the really tight timeframe was an added challenge. But everyone was so resilient.” 

General Manager of Millewa Sustainable Farming, Ben Israel is really happy with the artwork created by the SuniTAFE students. 

“It’s really great that these grain bins that have a functional purpose are now visually exciting to look at, and it will be this way for a very long time, they’re permanent installations,” he said. 

“But it was also really lovely to have the students here painting them. We set up a tent, we had food and drink, the dogs were running around, just being with the people and the sense of community was wonderful. That’s a big part of what our Werrimull Oktoberfest event is about.”

Be sure to go see the student artwork yourself on 14 October. 

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