Heather Horrocks, Footscray writer, artist and community leader, has dedicated herself to revealing the true heart of the Footscray community for more than two decades. She chatted to Benjamin Millar.
What forms of art do you practise and why are you still creating?
I make things. Using nanna-technology, I recycle and repurpose discarded material, currently black and blingy video tape. And I draw with simple materials: graphite and charcoal. Why? Because it makes me happy: it’s my activism, my meditation and how I make sense of the world.
What is your connection to Maribyrnong?
We came here over 20 years ago. It was just the name of a river and a suburb. Then, in 1997, Footscray was abolished [municipally-speaking] and my husband, Bill, became a councillor then mayor of the City of Maribyrnong.
What’s your fondest memory of living here?
So many: little kids from newly arrived families with Aussie accents in Bulldogs jumpers in Nicholson Street; people weeping with happiness at Australian citizenship ceremonies; the car-cruncher machine at a Big West Festival; Franco Cozzo on a red velvet chaise longue introducing local poets in the riverside open air amphitheatre, asking ‘Why you laugh?’ every time he said ‘Foot-is-cry’.
Where is your favourite local place for artistic inspiration?
Footscray arts precinct on the river: Arts Centre, BiGfiSh design workshop, a blacksmith and Happy River Café. All shapes and sizes of artists hang out there: writers, musos, dancers, painters, you name it. You can hear new projects being cooked up, watch collaborations happen and see the results.
What do you love most about the area?
Its mix, its welcoming values, its history, its spirit – all nurtured and delivered by amazing people and local communities. Then there’s public transport, public art, street art, markets, the river, food, parks, Sun Theatre, Bunbury Street tunnel, Larissa MacFarlane’s prints, a full moon rising at night behind Melbourne’s buildings, the port …
What do you think about the rapid pace of change in the area?
That’s Maribyrnong. Used to be smoke stacks; about to be people stacks. Affordable housing made this area a starting point for many families over the years. No more. Even tiny old workers’ cottages are out of reach for newcomers. Small-footprint, high-rise apartment buildings will be the new entry point. They’ll have great views.
Heather is encouraging women to knit socks as part of the ‘Women Wept’ Anzac Centenary project. During October, she will be knitting socks in Maribyrnong’s libraries, Williamstown’s Loom Room and other venues as a way of rediscovering the simple and personal stories about women on the home front during and after World War 1. Contact Heather on 0409 958 638.
