TAFE NSW creative graduates shine

EMERGING creatives from TAFE NSW Murwillumbah and Kingscliff showcased their work at their 2025 graduate shows this week.

The exhibitions featured a range of work from visual arts, ceramics, design, fashion design, screen and media, graphic design, and photography, featuring a fashion runway, film screenings, open studio workshops, exhibitions and public information sessions.

According to the Arts Northern Rivers Who We Are report, the region has the highest concentration of cultural workers in Australia outside of a major city. More than 5,200 people work in cultural and creative industries, almost as many as those employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing.

Certificate IV Photography and Digital Imaging student at Kingscliff, Nicole McKenzie, relocated to the region after a two-decade career in the Sydney publishing industry.

At 57, the ardent photographer is now inspired by the Tweed’s rivers, sugar cane fields, and sweeping landscapes after a drastic life event precipitated the change.

“I took my daughter to see Cold Play in Bangkok and on day two of our holiday in Phuket. We went out on a long boat. The water was so high, we went up into the air and slammed down against the boat,” she said.

“My vertebrae got compressed, and after a week in the hospital, I was lying at home on the lounge for six months.

“One day, my partner came home and said, ‘You’re depressed. I’m done, what do you reckon?’ And that was it.

“It was a big deal, 27 years in the same house where we raised our kids, and it took us three months to pack up the house, sell, and move up here. Life shifts suddenly. You can breathe a bit better here.”

McKenzie was effusive about her experience as a mature-age on-campus student at TAFE and is excited about building a new career.

“They were extremely supportive. I had had a negative experience when I attempted to do something externally, and it just didn’t flow,” she said.

“But going every two days a week, you really felt supported. They were there for you. They got that life was happening as well; it was so refreshing, acknowledging people’s lives.”