Jan Mitchell (1940 – 17 March 2008) was an Australian artist, born in Melbourne, known for her painted

bollard A bollard is a sturdy, short, vertical post. The term originally referred to a post on a ship or quay used principally for mooring boats. It now also refers to posts installed to control road traffic and posts designed to prevent automotive v ...

s and work as a television graphic artist. She spent her formative childhood years near Healesville, Victoria, before working in Ireland for 18 years, in the graphics department at

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...

(Irish National television). Her pioneering work in Ireland included designing and creating the country's first pre-school television show, named after its red-haired central character

Bosco Bosco may refer to: People Given name Bosco * Bosco (drag queen) (born 1993), Drag Queen * Bosco Lin Chi-nan (born 1943), Taiwanese bishop * Bosco Frontán (born 1984), Uruguayan soccer player * Bosco Hogan (born 1949), Irish actor * Bosco Lo ...

. She returned to Australia in 1986 after 20 years in England and Ireland, and settled in Geelong in 1990, turning to book illustration, painting and printmaking. She created her first bollard art in Barwon Heads as part of an artist-in-schools program. She took the concept of the Baywalk Bollards to

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

city commissioners in 1994, and by 1999 there were over 100 brightly painted bollards, made out of recovered wharf pylons, scattered along the foreshore, depicting notable characters relating to Geelong's history and culture. Her bollards can also be seen at Melbourne Airport and Avalon Airport. Mitchell died of cancer on St Patrick's Day 2008, in Geelong. At her request, her ashes were scattered beside the lake at Glendalough, Ireland.

Jan Mitchell Memorial Art Prize

The Zonta Club of Geelong Inc. celebrates

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

with an art exhibition titled "Women - a Celebration", presented by artists of the Geelong region using a range of different media. The first prize is the Jan Mitchell Memorial Art Award. In 2006 Mitchell received an Order of Australia medal for her contribution to Geelong's waterfront transformation.

References

External links

Geelong Bollards - City of Greater Geelong
1940 births 2008 deaths 20th-century Australian painters 20th-century Australian women artists Artists from Melbourne Australian expatriates in Ireland {{Australia-artist-stub