Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) is proud to be a host of Me and UooUoo: The RCH150 Anniversary Art Trail which launches today, seeing two UooUo’s  “Umbrella Girl” by Be Free and “Crystalline.Opal.Dream” by Christy Chudosnik displayed outside MCEC from today until March 21.

To mark the 150th anniversary of The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) Melbourne, the RCH Foundation is displaying 100 colorful UooUoo (pronounced you-you) sculptures in laneways, streets, parks, beaches and public spaces. Together, they form walking trails of adventure throughout Melbourne and Geelong, encouraging communities to reconnect with their cities and be active by visiting the unique art sculptures.

UooUoo is an imaginary creature created by award-winning Melbourne artist Alexander Knox, who also created the iconic sculpture ‘Creature’ that stands in the main foyer of the RCH.

Each of the 100 UooUoos is individually designed by an Australian artist. MCEC is proud to host not one, but two UooUoos; Crystalline.Opal.Dream by Christy Chudosnik and Umbrella Girl by Be Free. Each will be located outside the Clarendon Street entrance and along Dukes Walk respectively.

Umbrella Girl by Be Free

Artist Bio:

Be Free is a Melbourne artist who has been putting art out on the streets across Australia and around the world for many years. The little girl that keeps popping up is a fun-filled character who runs around watering plants, scribing on walls and making a mess with paint. Keep your eyes out and you just might see her in your travels.  

Design Description:

Umbrella Girl by Be Free: “Days may be cloudy or sunny, we're in or we are out of the money, yeah, but I'm with you always, I'm with you rain or shine” - Ray Charles

Crystalline.Opal.Dream by Christy Chudosnik

Artist Bio:

Christy Chudosnik is a photographically based artist, working across collage, painting, sculpture, textiles, film, screen-printing and oracle printing. In a synthesis between analog and digital practices, works are often photographically seeded, highly process-driven and involve fusing multiple forms of traditional and experimental applications across a variety of mediums. Her practice is stylized by the use of hundreds of her own images, creating heavily embellished scenes, rich in tactile dexterity and obscurity. Christy’s work focuses on themes regarding the environment, science, philosophy, religions and mysticism.

Design Description:

Crystalline.Opal.Dream by Christy Chudosnik is a multi-medium manifesto of textiles, painting, collage and photography. This UooUoo uses hundreds of photographed images, scanned, digitized and collaged; rendering a landscape of minerals, crystals, sand beds, coral, shells and fossils to create patterns of various shapes and spectacles. Crystalline.Opal.The dream is a metaphor for human life, symbolically acknowledging the way minerals undergo vast amounts of pressure to eventually transform into beautiful, multi-faceted wonders.

Peter King, Chief Executive of Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre said MCEC is proud to be part of the art trail and contribute to the enduring legacy of the RCH for future generations.

“Me and UooUoo will be a wonderful opportunity to bring the community back together after such a long time apart, as well as supporting The Royal Children’s Hospital's exceptional work over the past 150 years.”

At the conclusion of the art trail, the full collection of UooUoos will be housed at MCEC until they can be auctioned to raise funds for the RCH.

Me and UooUoo further extends MCEC’s long term relationship with the RCH, with the venue having been the home of the annual Good Friday Appeal fundraiser event for six years running.

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