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Southern Cross Installation

• Panoramic View of Site
• Design Draft (Harry Williscroft)
• Southern Cross Land Donors

News Media

• "The Mercury" April 9, 2002
• "The Advocate" April 5, 2002
• "Launceston Press" Beach for the Sky October, 2002

Launceston Press October, 2002: Tasmania, Australia

SEEING STARS: Harry Williscroft demonstrates his dream for Lillico Beach. Picture: PETER LORD

Northern Tasmania has taken on one man's dream to make the stars of the Southern Cross sparkle brighter than they've ever been seen in our skies.

Three hundred schools so far and a number of businesses from across the North will be part of a giant art installation to be con-structed on the grassy slopes rising up from Lillico Beach, near Devonport.

They will help fulfil Launceston man Harry Williscroft's dream to make the State's giant, peaceful statement to the world.

The huge installation, rep-resenting the stars of the Southern Cross, will be set up in the Lillico Beach paddock for a month next March -- the quietest time, weather-wise, for the more-than 1000 banners expected to waft in the breeze as part of the larger-than-life art work. It will also be the time when the major structure will have the least impact on the well-known adjacent penguin and muttonbird rookeries.

The banners will come from schools, painted by primary, high-school and secondary-college student participants. Many of the materials and help with the construction of the star installation will be donated by North and North-West businesses, including the dozens of poles required from Tasmanian Pole Replacements.

It's extraordinary what comes from a lunchtime chat at an international music conference, says Mr. Williscroft, a dreamer and air-conditioning engineer.

It's extraordinary what comes from a lunchtime chat at an international music conference, says Mr. Williscroft, a dreamer and air-conditioning engineer.

That's where Mr. Williscroft met US academic Lou Rizzolo and hatched the plan to set up a series of these giant community art works throughout the world.

The West Michigan University professor was Mr. Williscroft's tutor at the painting workshop in which he had enrolled to fill in time while his wife attended the main music conference in France four years ago.

It has taken Mr. Williscroft the past three years, working in his spare time, to organize the Tasmanian contribution.

Tasmania was the first place in the world to join Prof. Rizzolo's vision to see a series of international outdoor instal-lations constructed. Other countries now mounting similar events include Norway, China, the US and Italy.

The 250m-long Tasmanian Southern Cross will be designed to be viewed from the air, filmed from space and turned into video and possibly a book.

The stars of the Southern Cross will be represented by poles with high-intensity solar powered lights with a viewing platform around the uppermost star.

Stainless-steel wires stretch between the poles will adorned with the 1000 or m( banners made by Tasmanian school children.

Some of the banners will la~ go on display at Parliament House, Canberra.

Mr. Williscroft traveled across Northern Tasmania searching for a suitable site for the installation before settling on Lillico Beach paddock.

"I wanted it to be near the water no back lighting," he said.

Mr. Williscroft has permission from the necessary local court and government bodies for Lillico Beach display as well provision of the space by land owner Noel Robinson.

For more information, contact: Mr. Williscroft on 0419 317 09