Rail Explorers might like to go exploring in Byron Bay at the Lone Goat Gallery to see the exhibition “Rust On The Rails” by artists Maryanne Shea & Rick Molloy exploring in paint and pencil the deterioration of the railways and station buildings in Northern NSW.
This exhibition of paintings and drawings reflects upon the sad deterioration of the Northern Rivers railway.
The railway from Lismore to Murwillumbah runs through the dramatic landscape of the Northern Rivers. It was opened in 1894 and closed in 2004. Since the line was closed, the infrastructure has been left to fall apart. Lines are overgrown and impassable in places. Two bridges have been removed and other bridges, many of heritage significance, are being left to rot away. Many stations have been abandoned and vandalised.
A number of uses of the line have been proposed. However, the artists believe that unless a serious attempt is made to take preventative measures against the further deterioration of the railway, then the line will be unfit for any conceivable use, other than hauling off any salvageable material to the scrapyard.
The artists hope that this exhibition helps draw attention to the plight of the railway, its stations and bridges, and that action is taken to preserve this historical feat of engineering which strikes with a raw beauty, as it runs and curves through the landscape.
6 – 18 February
For further information visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1538512626428527/
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