Exhibition uncovers uni staff’s artistic inklings

THE unexpected creative lives of a cohort of employees from La Trobe University Bendigo, ranging from academics and advisors to coordinators and technical officers, are currently being showcased.

Running until Friday 15 August, the 2025 Staff Art Exhibition at the on-campus Phyllis Palmer Gallery features works that reflect the depth of creativity that thrives beyond job titles and departments at the university.

Exhibition participant Juan Alberto Molina Vilca, a science technical officer at La Trobe since 2022, previously spent his days as an ornithologist at Museo de Historia Natural de la Universidad Nacional San Agustín in Arequipa, Peru.

When he migrated to Australia he said he was compelled to swap fieldwork for a laboratory – a transition he found difficult, but one that led to his current artistic pursuit.

“The shift from the wild to the lab wasn’t easy,” he said.

“I had to release a scientific identity I’d built over many years and adapt to a more practical, structured path. In that transition, painting birds became my lifeline.”

For many of his colleagues, this year’s exhibition will be the first time they see his creative side.

“It might surprise a few people,” he said.

“But, that’s the beauty of this exhibition, you realise that the people you work with every day have talents and passions you’d never expect.”

The Phyllis Palmer Gallery, located on the first floor of the campus’ Visual Arts Building, is open to the public Monday to Friday from 10am to 4pm.