WA artist shares eco message through Open Studios

Leon Pericles is one of the most visited artists during Margaret River Region Open Studios, but this year he is using his high profile to campaign for Nature Conservation Margaret River Region’s Arum Lily Blitz.

A prolific printmaker, painter and sculptor whose celebrated career has spanned decades, Pericles developed a love of the Australian environment growing up in outback WA, felt through his art that affectionately depicts our great outdoors.

As a long-term local, he’s also an enthusiastic supporter of the Arum Lily Blitz and has spent years helping to control the invasive weeds on his 5-acre property near the river at Burnside.

First the priority was eradicating another problem weed – blackberry – followed by removing arum lilies.

“Every year I check the property and remove any arum lilies. That way they never get a chance to establish,” Pericles said.

“However, on some other properties in the region, they are staggeringly thick. It’s considerable and it shows how landholders need to work together and all do our bit.”

An ambassador for Nature Conservation, Pericles is a regular at workshops and volunteer days, and advocates for action, awareness and participation in protecting our precious biodiversity. He urged anyone with arum lilies on their property to sign up.

“It’s a good way to get connected to the land, and you can tap into an incredible amount of knowledge, advice and assistance when it comes to how to control arum lilies, what species to choose once you’ve got rid of them, and generally how to look after our precious ecosystem.”

Pericles said he loved his bush garden even more than his art, but said weeds like arum lilies combined with a drying climate was putting more pressure on bushland everywhere across our region.

“I’ve never seen the dry as bad as it was this year. Thirty years ago, there were rock pools that always held water and this year they were bone dry. We were losing trees on our bush block – marris and jarrahs.

“But there are many things we can do. We can make sure we leave water out for wildlife, plant native species to create habitat, and do whatever we can.”

He said conservation and the Blitz would be his message to up to 650 people who visit his home each day during Open Studios.

“We need to shoulder a lot more. We need to get stuck in. We need everyone involved because we’re running out of time. It’s very, very urgent.”

Almost 2000 landholders are signed up to the Blitz, along with government agencies and volunteer groups, controlling Arums over more than 23,000 hectares. See www.natureconservation.org.au to find out more.