A real monster of a task

If you thought dinosaurs were long since gone from Australia, you would be wrong.

Standing three metres high in a Calista residential garage last week, was the long since extinct Muttaburrasaurus — a herbivorous ornithopod which lived some 112 million years ago.

There had been no shortage of raised eyebrows from neighbours in the quiet street when they spotted the giant monster, which towered high above sculptor and artist David Stockdale.

He was commissioned to create the piece for a museum in New South Wales, a project which he said presented something of a challenge.

“It’s different to what I normally do, which is abstract sculpture,” he said.

“But, then, most of the things I do, I have never done before.

“I’ve been working on it part time since January — it has definitely been a challenge.”

Made from steel, acrylic and polyurethane foam, the impressive sculpture took several months to create and was due to travel by car to its new home in Wentworth, near the South Australia border, last weekend “Even though he’ll be covered up — it’ll be the funniest thing ever driving over to New South Wales with him in the trailer,” Mr Stockdale said.

“It’s been really entertaining building him and seeing the neighbours’ reaction — they have been wondering what on earth I’m up to.”

Mr Stockdale had a background in carpentry but decided to head to the UK in 2003 to spend four years studying sculpture and art.