Tony Woodward’s vibrant sculptures aren’t just Tasmanian landmarks, they’re his laughing legacy

It put Sigmund Freud and Leon Trotsky in a car together in the suburbs and a smiling king on the side of one of Tasmania’s busiest highways.

Tony Woodward’s original mosaic and concrete sculptures can be seen across Hobart and the upstate, from Crawfish to Revolutionaries to Fog Personified.

The artist and educator died just days after opening his first solo exhibition in April this year.

But Woodward’s sense of humor lives on through the public artwork that inhabits the parks and streets of Moonah, Montrose, Goodwood, Bridgewater, Rosny, Deloraine and Burnie.

“These are funny, happy things that definitely put a smile on your face,” her sister Margaret Woodward said.

“These are uplifting pieces, and they’re very accessible.

Frida’s wagon

Woodward spent 40 years at the Department of Education, half of which was spent teaching art to hundreds of Tasmanian students.

Several of the public art sculptures were actually made with his students, including the King piece smiling at motorists on the Brooker Highway in Montrose.

Margaret, who is also an artist, became the guardian of certain sculptures.

“It’s a good thing for me to feel like I can take care of them,” she said.

“I have Tony’s voice in my head as I do it saying, ‘Don’t do it like that, scale a little further.’

She maintains Frida’s Carload, a sculpture on Albert Road in Moonah that depicts Sigmund Freud and revolutionary Leon Trotsky in a colorful car with Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, as well as Waiting Room, who lives in Rosny and depicts seated people.

From time to time, the tiles fall.

“It’s like a puzzle, I have to find the right colors to match in the spaces they put down,” Margaret said.

Made in 1999, Frida’s Carload was Woodward’s first public artwork – and remains Margaret’s favourite.

“It’s a very humorous piece, it’s Tony celebrating the life of Frida Kahlo and various other collaborators she’s worked with over the years,” she said.

Exhibition a labor of love

The 59-year-old artist was unable to attend his first exhibition in person as he was too ill, but showed up to its launch via video link.

Woodward was diagnosed with cancer in October last year and died six months later.

The exhibition, Red Star Shining, was the culmination of seven years of work.

It tells the story of 16 years of Labor government in Tasmania through cartoon-like political mosaics, using Italian and Greek religious themes.

Getting the exhibit off the ground was not easy, with many pieces unfinished and Woodward’s health deteriorating.

“We all came together with so much help from family and friends and the Moonah Arts Center and finished all of the artwork,” Margaret said.

The collection of 11 humorous mosaics is a snapshot of Tasmanian politics at the time and depicts the figures of former Prime Ministers Paul Lennon, Jim Bacon, David Bartlett and Lara Giddings, as well as pulp mills, the AFL in Tasmania, the Spirit of Tasmania ferries and other past and present politicians.

Woodward used mosaic craft techniques he learned during an Alcorso Foundation artist residency in Italy.

“The whole exhibit was like a way to end his whole life and work,” Margaret said.

Choose your departure time

While the pieces were being finished, Woodward was in and out of the hospital undergoing treatments.

Woodward’s wife, Jan Stary, said that after the exhibit opened, it was like he felt he could let go.

“After the exhibition opened, Tony was interviewed and an article about him and his work appeared in the Sunday paper, after which he received messages of congratulations and excitement,” he said. she declared.

He died at home surrounded by his family and his works.

A passionate educator

Tony Woodward inherited his love of teaching and art from his parents, Margaret said.

“We grew up in a household where we didn’t have a television, but we were encouraged to make things, paint and draw,” she said.

He went to art school in Hobart and later taught art to hundreds of students in North East Tasmania and the Derwent Valley.

As he transitioned from teaching students to collaborating with teachers in curriculum development, Woodward’s work took him all over the world, and in 2019 he took a team of Indigenous teachers to United States, on what was to be his last trip abroad.

After her death, Margaret became aware of other accomplishments, such as her recognition by the LGBTQI community for pioneering a school program to combat discrimination.

Bridgewater Jerry needs rescuing

The Bridgewater Jerry sculpture, in Bridgewater, has become something of an orphan, originally funded by the owners of a new shopping complex which was later sold.

Jerry was vandalized and lost a lot of tiles.

“It would be a big project to restore it, but it’s not beyond that,” Margaret said.

Brighton Councilor Phil Owen wants Jerry to be moved to a more prominent place and return to his former glory.

He requested that a report be prepared and presented to the board so that Jerry would be retained for the long term.

Not all of Tony Woodward’s plays were loved by everyone – Deloraine’s Mountain Man play caused local controversy, with some residents wanting it moved.

One thing is certain, Tony Woodward’s sculptures will continue to bring smiles to people’s faces for many decades to come.