A car full of pine needles, a poker machine on a bed of coal, a field full of pom-poms, and a video of three men in monkey suits playing on the monkey bars were some of the weird and wonderful exhibits on show during the 2015 Cementa Arts Festival in Kandos.
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Artists and art lovers came from across the state to take part in the four-day event, with a steady stream of people making their way from work to work on Kandos' main streets.
Cementa 2015 kicked off on Thursday night with a parade of work by students from Glen Alice Public School and finished on Sunday with a film night at the Down the Track Cafe.
Several of the works were exhibited in shop windows, at local landmarks, or in disused buildings.
One work, Kurt Sorensen's I Break Horses, was shown in an old barn that provided the perfect background for photographs inspired by bushranger Jessie Hickman.
Patrons were able to take one of three tours with one of the festival's artists as their tour guide, visiting some of the exhibits, hearing from some of the artists about the inspiration for the pieces and their usual art practices, and listening to the tour guides offer insights about the other works.
'Although I'm sure there are a few locals who have their lip curled up because of the number of people in 'their town’.'
“I think everyone's an artist. We're all very visual so you can find art in everything,” Cementa visitor Melissa Murray said.
Dubbo artist Kim Goldsmith exhibited her work, Indicatus, in the chapel of the old Spanish convent.
“I had to put a rug down to dampen the sound part of my work but it's become a bit of a highlight and almost part of the installation,” she said.
“It's great to watch, because the kids and dogs walk all over it, but most of the adults walk around the outside like they're not sure if they should touch it or not,” she said.
Djon Mundine's mural of Jimmy and Peggy Lambert, was almost complete by Saturday afternoon with the help of descendants of the Lamberts and local Aboriginal people.
“We had quite a few people help on Saturday morning,” Mr Mundine said.
“It's been great to watch because non-Aboriginal people have been coming along to help and sharing stories of their families and how they knew or knew of the Lamberts.”
Kandos local Gay Ryan said she hadn't heard anyone coming to look at the works on display at the CWA Hall say anything bad about the festival and its exhibits.
“Everyone has been really excited about it really,” she said.
“Although I'm sure there are a few locals who have their lip curled up because of the number of people in 'their town’.”
Visitors were also invited to join in workshops focussing on recycling discarded and everyday items into works of art, ranging from new ways to use electronics, to creating home made synthetizers from garden lights and the fine art of flag making.
Cementa is a biennial festival and will return to the region in 2017.
