SHARING THE SWEET SIGHTS OF SUGARCANE

The colours and familiar sights of the iconic Queensland sugarcane now adorn the entranceway to the CANEGROWERS Brisbane office, a strong visual representation of the industry for all that enter the Charlotte Street office.

Lavinia Letheby, a fulltime fine art visual artist who creates two-dimensional art pieces in varying mediums and surfaces, was commissioned to create the work of art by CANEGROWERS.

CANEGROWERS contacted Lavinia to seek her interest in doing this project, after seeing her mural on the Murray Upper Rural Fire Brigade building, when the QCGO Board visited the Tully district to participate in the October 2022 growers shed meeting.

Lavinia had first-hand experience with sugarcane vistas having spent time as a youngster in North Queensland and gained an even greater knowledge of the industry after moving back to Mission Beach, with her partner and two young boys.

According to Lavinia the hardest part of any painting is the design phase, once that part of the process has been finalised, she said the fun can begin with each new piece becoming a favourite.

The CANEGROWERS mural was a creative collective work styled from North Queensland landscapes and industry photos.

“The design phase for this piece was a little different, as images were blended or merged to represent an overview of well-known industry images. “Some photos I used to paint from were gathered when I was driving around Tully way, and in the shed is a haulout like the one my husband used to drive,” Lavinia said.

“I’ve pulled little bits and pieces together to create the whole piece, by putting different ideas together and then working with the CANEGROWERS graphic designer Justin, and CANEGROWERS photos as well as mine, it's kind of a collaboration piece.”

It’s a long way from painting Christmas scenes on shopfront windows while still a teenager at school, where Lavinia started her love of painting large scale scenes to working full time creating murals and large canvas works, keeping her busy for the past six years.

Lavinia’s artwork style varies, with many pieces depicting amazing Australian landscapes to spray can portraits, flora and fauna, through to more pop art inspired artworks reminiscent of vintage poster art, some of her murals adorn buildings, streets and walls across the top end of Queensland while other canvases are gaining interest from overseas buyers, while on display at international exhibitions.

Her business, Art by Lavinia, explores her passion for public art and CANEGROWERS CEO Dan Galligan was impressed by her commissioned artwork.

“It’s remarkable how quickly it’s come together and how much detail is in the picture, both from a distance and up close,” Dan said.

“Lavinia has really caught the essence of the sugarcane industry, we are very proud of the industry we work for and by commissioning this mural for the wall at our Queensland CANEGROWERS office every visitor and staff member will have a visual reminder of the beauty and potential behind the landscapes and images of the industry.”