West Perth Aware

This story doesn’t want to go away, does it!

During my time running for council, I spoke often about a core belief of mine, that "the city" should be the caretakers of public art.

This Tuesday, that conversation came alive at Council House, where many visitors gathered to speak about Perth’s Ore Obelisk and its proposed $75K digital afterlife.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The Ore Obelisk is often nicknamed
"The Kebab"

This iconic 1971 monument, designed by architect Paul Ritter, has been in storage since 2021 after an 80kg rock fell from the structure and engineers declared it a public safety risk.

Rebuilding it would cost $390K and is considered near-impossible, with less than 45% of original materials reusable.

Instead, the City of Perth is recommending an augmented reality commemoration, with an on-site plaque pointing visitors to an online version.

The Ritter family has backed the move, with a rep saying Paul Ritter “would not have considered reinstatement good use of city funds,” and a final decision is expected at the April 28 council meeting.

Let’s hope that the memory of this sculpture can be preserved in some way in our city and not get forgotten about.

There is a story on this today on Perth Now by Sophie Gannon, where I found these photos!