Mural with meaning: veteran artist brings Southbank to life

In the corner gallery space of the Australian National Veterans Arts Museum (ANVAM) at 312 St Kilda Rd, a vibrant mural is quietly capturing the heart of Southbank – both in its sweeping depiction of place and the deeper message behind its paint.

The artist is Keith Ross, a long-serving emergency service worker, army reservist, and self-described “doodler”. But what he’s creating here is far more.

At 2.7 by 1.2 metres, his mural is a detailed, affectionate tribute to the St Kilda Rd precinct, including its most recognisable icons: the Arts Centre spire, Victoria Barracks, the Royal Botanic Gardens, the Shrine of Remembrance and the Yarra River.

At its centre, nestled among the layers of colour and detail, is something more personal. A figure of an army officer, arms wrapped gently around the historic former Repatriation Clinic at 310 St Kilda Rd.

It’s a symbolic hug – and a statement – in support of ANVAM’s long campaign to secure the long-vacant building as its permanent home.

“It’s a bit of a no-brainer for me,” Mr Ross told Southbank News about the mural’s “subtle” message about 310 St Kilda Rd. “It quietly shifts me into tears that something so simple has to be so hard to make available.”

ANVAM, which has operated out of the small corner site at 312 St Kilda Rd since 2020, has lobbied successive governments to take over the neighbouring Repatriation Clinic. Despite the building being vacant for decades and deemed surplus by the Department of Defence, the government has yet to act.

Mr Ross, who became involved with ANVAM after participating in the Festival of Veteran Arts a few years ago, said his experience with the group had been transformational.

“By day I work in emergency services and volunteer with the CFA, so this [creativity] is just more of a de-stress than anything else,” he said. “I’ll lose the time when I’m doing my art … other people seem to like it as well, which is a bonus!”

Mr Ross’s connection to the precinct is lifelong. He went to school at Melbourne Grammar and remembers the gruelling uphill run along Anderson St, and gathering with family in the Botanic Gardens.

“You take it for granted when you’re growing up, but when you stop and actually look at it, it enhances the importance,” he said.

Painting this part of the city – with its confluence of memory, history, and culture – became both a challenge and a joy.

“I don’t usually do landscapes,” he admitted. “But I was asked to do this piece and at first it was a bit daunting because I’d never really painted on this scale before. But the more I got into it, the more I had a bit of fun with it.”

The mural, painted in acrylics – a departure from his usual oil pastels and temporary paint sticks – has taken around a month’s worth of full-time effort, and has evolved over many weeks.

“Every time I say, ‘this will be my last session’, I find something else to add,” Mr Ross laughed. “It’s definitely the most detailed and the most patient I’ve ever been with a work.”

The finished piece will be unveiled in a special event hosted by ANVAM with support from sponsor Yorkway Private. But beyond the celebration, the mural stands as a gentle but powerful nudge to decision-makers.

“This place, this whole area – the Shrine, Victoria Barracks, ANVAM, the monuments – it all connects back to service and remembrance,” Mr Ross said. “It would really be nice to have that building [310 St Kilda Rd] put to good use. And I know it would be if ANVAM had it.”

“What ANVAM does with such a small space here [312 St Kilda Rd] is just fantastic. I can tell you firsthand that I’ve seen people who have trauma and service-related issues that have come in and have just been able to immerse themselves and they can do as little and as much as they want.”

“I can see the weight being lifted off people emotionally and the happiness that it brings, whether they’re conscious of it or not, and they [ANVAM] could do so much more in that building [310 St Kilda Rd] and it’s been vacant for such a long time.”

ANVAM director Mark Johnston has previously called on the government to deliver on its promises, describing the veteran arts initiative as one that could “save the government millions in veteran health and wellbeing initiatives” and realise key outcomes of the National Defence Strategy.

For now, Ross’s mural offers a quiet but compelling reminder. Through paint, colour, and a soldier’s embrace, it asks Southbank – and the country – to consider how we honour those who’ve served. And what it means to put that commitment into action. •