City Murals by Maria Caesar

     Scattered throughout Charters Towers are numerous displays of local works of art. There are even paintings upon decorative timber boxes that cover the public rubbish bins in the main street. Each of the wooden enclosures on this surprising avenue for a “Heritage Link” feature different historical buildings such as the Church of Christ with its bell tower and the School of Mines. Other examples of city art can be found in the form of several large wall murals depicting various scenes of Charters Towers’ yesteryear.

     In the restaurant of the Charters Towers Civic Club there is a beautiful floor-to-ceiling mural that stretches the length of the dining area. The colourful artwork is divided into three sections. One captures the scene of a lawn bowls game being played c.1950. Players donned in their white attire occupy a field with the Charters Towers Bowling Club as their backdrop.

      The other two sections of the wall painting are set in Lissner Park. A woman dressed in an elegant ankle-length gown and carrying a dainty parasol strolls with her equally well-garbed partner within the lush green landscape. Both the Lissner Park rotunda and the fountain feature prominently on the mural. If you look closely you can see the bats hanging from the tree branches; they had been added to the painting in recent years.

     The Civic Club was originally known as the Londoner’s Club (a gentleman’s club) and in the room adjacent to the dining section you can play a few rounds of billiards on one of their two 100-year old tables.    

     Other city murals can be located at Centenary Park and next to the Westpac Bank. The painting in Centenary Park depicts a sepia image of Mosman Street c.1890, whereas the Westpac Bank mural shows the Pyrites Works on Towers Hill during its glory days c. 1895.

     The largest and perhaps most famous mural in Charters Towers has been painted onto the wall of the Arthur Titley Centre in Mosman Street. The images on this grand-scale work of art, unlike the others scattered throughout the city, are almost cartoon-like. The two-dimensional imagery includes several historical buildings such as Stan Pollards, the Arthur Titley Centre, the local Post Office, and the Stock Exchange Arcade. Tall chimneys and clusters of mullock heaps sit alongside the old miner’s cottages as the scene, despite its dimensional shortcomings, provides a remarkably accurate glimpse into the Charters Towers mining heyday. The mural was originally painted in 1986 by Mark Sutherland then due to long-term exposure to the elements required careful restoration in 2010.