FEATURE - Artistic undercurrent

It is always a pleasure to sit and talk with Steven Thompson. He is the kind of man who will be regailing you with some fascinating anecdote from his life one minute, and then all of a sudden he is conversing with a passer-by in his trademark warm and direct manner, such is the nature of a small town.

By Travis Earsman

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Steve Thompson is absolutely at one with the lifeblood and undercurrent of Maleny. I didn't know quite how much until I sat down to speak with him again recently. 

From his childhood in 1960s semi-rural Box Hill, Steve has had a many-storied life. He has been a hitchhiker who travelled around Europe and somehow ended up getting a job with fish poachers in Scotland, an excavator operator who mined for opals in a 100-tonne excavator, and a door-to-door encyclopaedia salesman, to name a few.

However throughout all this time, behind all these roles and identities, Steve was always an ‘artist in denial’.

“I was born an artist, really. I've been an artist this entire time, in complete denial. Facing another direction, doing other things.”

His artistic side made a few brief appearances during his youth, in the form of occasional drawings, a job making stained glass windows and learning how to make crystal wands from his friend Fergus Reilly. 

This really was a turning point, because when Steve came to visit Fergus and his wife Tran in Maleny, he was immediately taken with the town. He was inspired by the multitude of artistic people and particularly by The Upfront Club, which was the hub of local culture back then. 

Steve knew that Maleny was where he wanted to bring up his son, and after moving here in 1995, he quickly became swept up in the artistic undercurrent.  

“Steve Langton and Steve McLeish were the first and most impactful artists I met. It was Steve McLeish that invited me to work at the first Chai Tent at Woodford Folk Festival. That was a real breakthrough in terms of getting a feel for the place.”

For a number of years he ran a theatrical swordplay group called the Malenyax, which performed at Woodford Folk Festival on multiple occasions. 

After this, Steve worked with Jamie Moyes, an engineer, welder and inventor. This really attuned his mind to problem-solving in the combining of components, and he found himself relishing the creativity involved in putting complicated things together. This skillset served him very well when he discovered steampunk.

“When I discovered steampunk around ten years ago, I wondered where it had been all my life, because it just fitted. It combined a whole lot of things I love doing, and a whole lot of the things I'm capable of.”

Steve combined his blooming artistic mind and his engineering skills to create a body of work built from various components sourced from op-shops, dump shops and garage sales. 

The first piece he made in this manner was ‘Remlap,’ a dog sculpture made from part of an industrial sewing machine. Since then Steven has made elaborate rayguns, rocketships, robots, ‘tensegrity’ sculptures and more, all built from components he has found and all in the steampunk aesthetic. 

These works found their way to being on display for sale in two art galleries, as well as at the Maleny Wood Expo. The pieces were received very well by the public, and they started to sell.

“It was gradually building, it was very encouraging. It provided me with funds to bring in materials, to buy all the stuff I needed. I was thinking, wow, I'm getting somewhere. And then COVID hit. The galleries both closed their doors.”

That, and the reality of ongoing back pain, has forced Steve to put aside the steampunk art for now, though he still has pieces for sale. Whilst he may return to steampunk in the future, right now he has been immersed in oil painting. This not only brings him a lot of joy, but he has taken to it very quickly, despite this being a new artform for him.

Steve is a very protective person, and is all about giving people encouragement to find their voices when issues occur. He has never been shy to stand up and fight for what he believes is right, and to speak for people who are shy of attracting derision.

“The difference between an activist and a whinger, is whether you agree with them or not.” 

This quality is most obvious in his activism, most notably when he kicked off the community campaign against Woolworths in 2004. Even though the construction went ahead, a number of threatened businesses were able to transition into the new era because of the boycott that followed. This action also effectively put a progressive hippy stamp on Maleny, which helped it grow into the town it is today. 

“I still know for a fact this is the best town I've ever lived in, and I've tried a few. The views are fantastic, but the people here make the place what it is. The core of progressive decent people is the key to the unique brilliance of this town.”

His work can be viewed on Facebook at Steve Thompson Steampunk Sculpture