We all know and love the Big Pineapple, the Big Banana and the Big Strawberry, but how about the Big Baklava or the Big Kebab?
This is just what the city of Hume needs, according to Cr Naim Kurt.
Cr Kurt introduced the idea of a ‘big thing’ installation in Hume with a notice of motion during the 15 December council meeting.
Under his motion, officers would explore the potential benefits for installing a big thing for a report to be presented back to council.
“Around the country, big things have been really celebrated parts of Australia,” Cr Kurt said.
“If you go up to Queensland, you’ll know the Big Pineapple, if you go to other parts of Australia, you’ll see the Big Apple and the Big Ram and the Big Marino.”
Cr Kurt had a few ideas of what he would like to see as Hume’s big thing.
“Across Hume, food plays a really significant part in the expression of our community culture through bringing people together, from baklava, kebabs and samosa to different versions of these dishes which are shared across much of our European, Middle Eastern, South Asian and African communities,” he said
“A large-scale public artwork representing one of these culturally significant foods would create a playful, welcoming and uniquely Hume statement and explore a big thing installation and an opportunity to … create some local pride.”
However, not all councillors in the chamber were convinced of the idea, with only Cr Jarrod Bell and Cr Steve Gagen voting in support with Cr Kurt.
However, Cr Kurt still believes his idea has merit for Hume, and said it would be a good tourist venture for the city.
“Big things have been such an iconic part of Australian history for some time … they’ve become a tourist point to bring people into the town and get that instagrammable photo,” he said.
“We’ve got the largest multicultural community in all of Victoria, we’ve got a whole lot of food offerings on offer and … I think there is an opportunity to do some artwork and do a big thing that would celebrate our multicultural identity, to celebrate the great food cuisines we have in our community and also to bring people into our community and be a tourist generator and job generator for our community.”
Cr Kurt said he would love to see a Big Kebab, a Big Baklava, or even a Big Vanilla Slice in Hume’s hot spots including Broadmeadows, Tullamarine or Sunbury, considering it a way to bring more people into the area.
“To put one in different parts of Hume I think is really going to work and for me I just really love food and I love our multicultural identity and the fact that it is able to bring our community together.”
Cr Kurt said while his motion may have been lost on the night, he hopes to reignite it to bring more art installations to the city.
