By Tina Seirlis<\/p>\n
For locals seeking inspiration from art, one Moorabool town is lucky to be home to an annual Art Show which takes place over the now King\u2019s Birthday Weekend each June. <\/p>\n
Those who lingered a little longer at this year\u2019s Bacchus Marsh Rotary Art Show event may have also had the good fortune to meet the Show\u2019s artist in residence, and local living treasure Janice Webster.<\/p>\n
Apart from being a surprise, \u201cit was an honour\u201d, Ms Webster told the Moorabool News.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know whether they\u2019ve had that many Artists in Residence, and they don\u2019t have one every year. I was very surprised and also very nervous. Watercolour is such a thinking process,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Ms Webster spent the early years of her childhood not far from Essendon Football Ground and moved to Bacchus Marsh when she was ten, after her father received a job transfer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a very shy person in primary school and I didn\u2019t find my schooling happy until I came to Bacchus Marsh. The country atmosphere here was fantastic and I had friends everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Being a smaller country town, Ms Webster said you could ride your bike around everywhere. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was pretty normal and pretty happy. I had wonderful teenage years, getting dressed up and going to wonderful balls. I met my husband and got married at 21. I lived in the town at that stage, we didn\u2019t have the farm yet. Then we bought the farm at Werribee Vale Road, it was a bit of a shock to the system, an old derelict house. It was an old dairy and it was pretty run down. We had to clear all the boxthorn and start from scratch for a market garden property. I worked out on the property alongside my husband, and my sons later on. From a city girl to the country, I was eased in gradually and ended up loving the farm. A great place for our boys to grow up,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She describes herself as a realist impressionist artist using watercolour paints, and whilst her works take inspiration from many directions, she likes to specialise in flowers and also paint the local area. However, it may be surprising to discover that art was not her first calling, and it was by chance that art discovered Janice, rather than vice versa. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy husband took up golf, and I thought there has to be something for me. It\u2019s funny to think I had wanted to get into patchwork class and make quilts, but the classes didn\u2019t fit with hours at the farm. I just happened to stumble on art. It was through going to the Laurels that I decided to take up painting and that\u2019s where it all started in 1983. <\/p>\n
Ms Webster said she painted in oils originally. <\/p>\n
\u201cWatercolour is the last frontier and is totally the opposite way to paint, you start from light to dark, whereas with oils you start with dark to light. We were lucky enough to have an OAM Edward Heffernan who taught the classes, and took the class on watercolour painting trips. I learned so much over those four years.\u201d <\/p>\n
The story continues where she went on to co-convene the original Bacchus Marsh Artists Society (1986-96), along with running her own local art gallery, through to evolving her former Werribee Vale Road farm to include an art studio, winning many awards, and sharing her knowledge via teaching. <\/p>\n
\u201cI ended up teaching nearly every other day. It was really quite a good little business including art supplies, and I had many years of enjoyment. I taught up until 2016. Teaching people, teaches me too.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a member of the B-MAC Gallery, Ms Webster said they are advocating for a permanent community art gallery in Bacchus Marsh.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really need a place for local and new artists to call home, which is why B-MAC is working so hard. There are many art people in different art categories around Bacchus Marsh. But you don\u2019t see them because there is nowhere to display work.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reflecting on 40-years as an artist and her greatest achievements, Ms Webster has fond memories.<\/p>\n
\u201cOverall it\u2019s the friends that I\u2019ve met through art and being able to teach people. I get a great thrill out of other\u2019s success, and I\u2019m proud of my past students. I\u2019ll keep plodding along while I\u2019ve still got my eyesight, and keep painting as long as I can, and keep my painting friends around.\u201d<\/p>\n
To conclude, Ms Webster said, \u201cI\u2019ve had fun.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Tina Seirlis For locals seeking inspiration from art, one Moorabool town is lucky to be home to an annual Art Show which takes place over the now King\u2019s Birthday Weekend each June. Those who lingered a little longer at this year\u2019s Bacchus Marsh Rotary Art Show event may have also had the good fortune […]<\/p>\n