ON the first Saturday of each month, artists are invited to meet at the Dereel Community Centre to work on their projects and chat with like-minded creatives.<\/p>\n
The Art in Dereel get-togethers have been running since 2019, and co-convenor Lisa Hunter said it\u2019s part in her efforts to build a local artistic community.<\/p>\n
\u201cI first got involved in art when I moved here in 2012 through GP Arts Inc\u2019s Arts Trail. In Dereel, art always brings people out where other things don\u2019t,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have shops or a pub here. Unless something\u2019s organised, people just don\u2019t get a chance to meet so the idea of this was to bring art to Dereel and establish a creative community here.<\/p>\n
\u201cArt\u2019s positive, life-affirming and something you can do whether you\u2019re a beginner or experienced so this is providing that space where people don\u2019t have to travel elsewhere for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The initiative began in 2018 when Hunter and co-convenor Glynis Bryden received a $5000 grant from Golden Plains Shire to host about eleven art workshops.<\/p>\n
The Art in Dereel movement also used the money to host the Songs and Stories concert and arts open day at the community centre which saw the creation of two permanent murals.<\/p>\n
Leftover funds from the initial grant are now spent on holding their regular get-togethers and Bryden said Art in Dereel has had an impact on the local arts community.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though Art in Dereel isn\u2019t necessarily spearheading anything at the moment like when it started, Dereel artists are doing things,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do know who are our artists are now. In some councils, you could go down the street and not know there was an artist the next street over.<\/p>\n
\u201cCOVID\u2019s still lingering, so the challenge for us it about what we can do to rejuvenate the movement with new ideas and new things to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil then we\u2019ll continue to run our meetings as long as we can, which are really just fun social chats where people can work on their art in a safe, encouraging space.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Art in Dereel sessions are free to attend and run from 10am to 2pm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ON the first Saturday of each month, artists are invited to meet at the Dereel Community Centre to work on their projects and chat with like-minded creatives. The Art in Dereel get-togethers have been running since 2019, and co-convenor Lisa Hunter said it\u2019s part in her efforts to build a local artistic community. \u201cI first […]<\/p>\n