A visit to Inside Australia was the highlight I was hoping it would be. Lake Ballard is a salt lake 51 km north of Kalgoorlie, and access is restricted if it has been raining as the last section of the road is unsealed. We were so lucky with timing as the next day it truely rained and I expect this trip would have had to be cancelled. In 2002, the British artist Antony Gormley installed 51 metal figures at Lake Ballard. He arranged for the residents of the local town of Menzies to strip naked while he scanned their bodies and then prepared laser-cut metal ‘copies’ having lost a third of their body mass. You will see why I say ‘copies’ when you see his interpretation of the people of Menzies. The sculptures are scattered around a central hillock in the lake, and one is advised to allow 5 hours to see them all. I think we spent about 3 hours but could not walk out too far as the lake was quite soggy and in some places still covered in water. Lawrence has some fantastic drone footage of this place and I will add a link when it is ready for viewing. Indeed, in the photo above, you can see Lawrence as the figure on the lefthandside as he prepares his drone. One of the female figures is on the righthandside. The pattern of peoples’ footprints in the crust of salt also adds another dimension to this piece of art. I would thoroughly recommend a visit Inside Australia as it is a truely extraordinary experience.
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