Sculptor Lis Johnson has commenced work on a statue of Australian football legend Norm Smith, the second person honoured as part of the Australia Post Avenue of Legends.
Johnson was successful in a tender process to select a sculptor for the statue, which is scheduled for unveiling in Yarra Park outside the MCG in late-September.
The statue of the six-time premiership coach is the second in the Australia Post Avenue of Legends project, which will see a minimum of five statues placed in Yarra Park, extending from the MCC members entrance up an avenue towards Wellington Parade.
The first statue in the series features Australian and Victorian cricketing legend Shane Warne, which was unveiled on December 22, 2011 prior to the Boxing Day Test at the MCG.
A full-time professional sculptor for more than 20 years, Lis Johnson has exhibited in numerous group, solo and selected exhibitions. She is a figurative sculptor who works with a wide range of contemporary and traditional media.
Johnson has been awarded several public art commissions and completed many private commissions. They include Illawarra Memorial Coalmining sculpture (Wollongong, 1994), Vietnam War Memorial (Dandenong, 2004), St George Illawarra Dragons Centenary sculpture (Sydney, 2011) and a portrait bust of Sir John Gorton (Armadale, 2005).
"Lis was chosen after an exhaustive evaluation of more than a dozen sculptors," said MCC Statues Sub-committee chairman David Crow.
"We have been impressed by the quality of her previous work and wait in anticipation of her interpretation of one of the icons of Australian football."
Future statues will also be subject to tender, ensuring the Australian public has the opportunity to be part of the ground's history.