Elise Archer,Minister for Arts
The Tasmanian majority Liberal Government is an avid supporter of the arts and our creative industries.
As Minister for the Arts and Heritage, and Member for Clark, I am proud of our Government's support for a new project which connects the arts, tourism and heritage sectors.
The new From the Shadows project follows on from the hugely successful Footsteps Towards Freedom statues installed on the Hobart waterfront in 2017, which we also supported.
High quality bronze sculptural installations will be placed at the World Heritage Cascade Female Factory Historic Site in South Hobart and the State Heritage listed Orphan School site at New Town.
The statues are being created by internationally renowned Irish sculptor, Rowan Gillespie, who was responsible for the evocative convict figures on Hobart's waterfront. They will commemorate the lives of female convicts and orphan school children.
The artist's similar well known work is Famine (1997) on the Custom House Quay in Dublin, haunting life-sized human figures depicting the Irish famine and subsequent mass migration, drawing many visitors from across the world.
The From the Shadows statues will create a significant heritage tourism route linking sites integral to the convict story – the Hobart waterfront, the Cascades Female Factory and the Orphan School.
They will be a tourism and educational drawcard for all Tasmanians, highlighting the linkages that exist between these three physical locations, while commemorating the lives of the convict women and their children.
