''Larry La Trobe'' is the name given to a popular, cast bronze statue of a dog situated on the northern end of Melbourne's City Square (corner of Collins Street and

Swanston Street Swanston Street is a major thoroughfare in the centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is one of the main streets of the Melbourne central business district and was laid out in 1837 as part of the original Hoddle Grid. The street vertical ...

). Along with the

Burke & Wills ''Burke & Wills'' is a 1985 Australian adventure film directed by Graeme Clifford, starring Jack Thompson and Nigel Havers. The film is based on the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition across Australia. The film follows Robert O'Hara Burke and ...

monument, the statue is one of only two free standing art works in the City Square precinct. The statue now located in the square is the second statue of 'Larry', the original having been stolen.

History

Melbourne artist

Pamela Irving Pamela Irving (born 1960) is an Australian visual artist specialising in bronze, ceramic and mosaic sculptures as well as printmaking and copper etchings. In addition to her extensive art work, Irving has lectured in art and ceramics at Monash ...

created the statue as a result of a commission from the

Melbourne City Council The City of Melbourne is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central city area of Melbourne. In 2018, the city has an area of and had a population of 169,961. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. The c ...

in 1992 and it was the first sculpture for Melbourne's Open Air Sculpture Museum.Keneally, S., Pamela Irving: Happy as Larry, CD-ROM, Susan Keneally and Pamela Irving, Melbourne 2008 Based on her own dog, Lucy, the statue is not representative of any particular breed but was crafted to generate a sense of Australian

larrikin Larrikin is an Australian English term meaning "a mischievous young person, an uncultivated, rowdy but good hearted person", or "a person who acts with apparent disregard for social or political conventions". In the 19th and early 20th centurie ...

ism in the viewer. Irving named the statue after her uncle Larry and the surname 'La Trobe' was appended to represent the relationship with

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

and the state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Charles La Trobe Charles la Trobe, CB (20 March 18014 December 1875), commonly Latrobe, was appointed in 1839 superintendent of the Port Phillip District of New South Wales and, after the establishment in 1851 of the colony of Victoria (now a state of Austra ...

was the first Lieutenant-Governor of the state of Victoria. Despite being anchored by 30 cm bolts, the statue was stolen on the night of 30/31 August 1995.Lunney, Darren., 'Come home Larry – all is forgiven', Caulfield Leader, March 1996 It was thought to have been taken as part of a university stunt or melted down. A campaign was started by the ''Melbourne Times'', a weekly city newspaper, to recover Larry. The publicity generated by this campaign captured the imagination of the public. A two-metre high likeness of Larry was created for the 1996

Moomba Parade Moomba (also known as the Moomba Festival) is held annually in Melbourne, Australia. Run by the City of Melbourne, it is Australia's largest free community festival. The Melburnian tradition is celebrated over four days, incorporating the La ...

to create additional publicity that might lead to the return of the statue. Although the subject of a significant publicity and media campaign, the original statue has never been recovered and nobody has been apprehended for the theft. In 1996, Peter Kolliner, previous owner of the foundry where Larry was originally cast, paid for a casting of a new statue. The new statue was cast in the same mould as the original but Irving reddened the casting material to provide the second 'Larry' with a unique identity. The second Larry was reinstalled in the City Square and officially unveiled on 16 September 1996 by Melbourne Lord Mayor, Councillor Ivan Deveson. The two-metre high replica of the statue used in the Moomba Parade was taken to

Osaka, Japan is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2.7 ...

, a sister city of Melbourne, in 1997 for the Midosuji Parade, where it was awarded the prize for Best Float.

Description

The statue is approximately 70 cm high and cast from bronze. Although it has been likened to a 'dingo type dog', the model for the statue is a composite that does not represent any one breed in particular.

Cultural events

The image of Larry was one of the features of the 1999 Melbourne Comedy Festival. Ceramic sculptures of Larry in comedic parodies of famous international and Australian artists' works were displayed in the windows of

Myer Myer (stylised MYER, sometimes known as Myers) is an Australian mid-range to upscale department store chain. It trades in all Australian states and one of Australia's two self-governing territories. Myer retails a broad range of products ...

on Melbourne's

Bourke Street Mall Bourke Street is one of the main streets in the Melbourne central business district and a core feature of the Hoddle Grid. It was traditionally the entertainment hub of inner-city Melbourne, and is now also a popular tourist destination and tr ...

. A sculpture of 'Larry' riding

Phar Lap Phar Lap (4 October 1926 – 5 April 1932) was a champion New Zealand–bred Thoroughbred racehorse who is widely regarded as New Zealand's greatest racehorse ever. Achieving incredible success during his distinguished career, his initial u ...

and titled 'Phar Larry' was also created by Irving for the 1999

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melb ...

Popularity

The location, accessibility and popularity of the statue have resulted in it becoming one of Melbourne's most photographed statues.

Gallery

Image:Irving Bronze Sculpture Larry La Trobe 1992_1996 a.jpg, The second bronze statue of Larry La Trobe, Melbourne City Square. Image:Irving Bronze Sculpture Larry La Trobe 1992_1996 b.jpg, Larry La Trobe statue with the statue of

in the background. Image:Irving Bronze Sculpture Larry La Trobe 1992_1996 c.jpg, The second bronze statue of Larry La Trobe created by Melbourne artist

, Melbourne City Square.

References

External links

Public Art Around the World: Larry La Trobe StatuePamela Irving Website
{{Coord, 37, 48, 55.93, S, 144, 58, 0.74, E, region:AU_type:landmark, display=title Culture of Melbourne Landmarks in Melbourne Tourist attractions in Melbourne Sculptures of dogs Outdoor sculptures in Australia Bronze sculptures in Australia 1992 sculptures 1996 sculptures Statues in Australia 1992 establishments in Australia 1996 establishments in Australia Stolen works of art Buildings and structures in Melbourne City Centre