Brightly coloured scallop shells are hanging from the windows of homes on Queenscliff’s Fisherman Flat as a sign of good things to come. 

The shells have been hand-painted by sisters Rihanna and Tahlia Mercieca, reviving a local fishing tradition.

“Spring was traditionally a time of hope and prosperity for the fishing families on the Flat. It meant fish and shellfish were plentiful, bills were paid and they could look to the future with hope,” said local historian and fellow Flat’s resident Maggie Stowers. 

“Some fishermen decorated their houses with scallop shells. So we came up with an idea to decorate scallop shells and offer them to the residents of the Flat to brighten their houses and bring a little bit of hope.”

Rihanna and Tahlia - St Aloysius Primary School students - collected, scrubbed and decorated the shells during the recent school holidays with some help from their parents. 
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“It took many hours to create the beautiful artwork on the shells, and they look stunning in the windows and on the houses. The project has brought hope and happiness to the Flat,” said Mrs Stowers.
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Organisers of Queenscliff’s annual Sacred Edge Festival have announced it is “full steam ahead” for next month's event.

Normally staged in May, the three-day Queenscliffe Uniting Church (QUC) celebration of diversity – has been pushed back to avoid missing a second straight year.

This year’s theme is ‘Delving deep into diversity.'

“We are excited about the unique and unfolding line up of musicians, story tellers and poets. Many of our booked artists for the [cancelled] 2020 festival are available for the 2021 dates, but there are some new surprises as well,” said spokesperson and QUC Reverend Kerrie Lingham.

Upwards of 30 presenters, artists and performers come from a range of backgrounds, including indigenous, refugee and LGBTIQ.

The initial line up includes award winning writer, speaker and educator Joel McKerrow, regarded as one of Australia’s most successful performance poets. 

Victoria’s Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner Ro Allen and CSIRO Chief Research Scientist and internationally recognised climate change expert David Karoly will be among keynote speakers.

Others include Somalian-born refugee and multilingual writer Awale Ahmed, Indigenous musician Scott Darlow, environmental campaigner Claire Dunn, Australia’s leading klezmer violinist Ernie Gruner and leading refugee advocate Jeanine Hourani.

“Sacrededge is our response to a sometimes harsh and fearful world. It is an opportunity to connect with people from diverse backgrounds,” said Rev Lingham. “Rather than debate and argue about issues Q&A style, this unique festival listens to people from the edge… their stories, music, poetry.

“Our presenters, artists & performers come from a range of backgrounds – Indigenous, Refugee, LGBTIQ folk, Carers for the Earth and Ocean. They are the voices from the edge who are vulnerable and not normally heard,” said Rev. Lingham.
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Sacrededge will run from September 3-5. Booking details can be found online
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“Geelong is such an amazing place for success stories”, and one of those who has achieved more than most, has a mission to tell them.  
 
Through a new podcast series, AFL great Barry Stoneham is exploring what and who are responsible for making this region the fastest growing in Australia.

From business and tourism, to politics, art and of course sports - ‘City of dreams’ sees the former Cats captain and Point Lonsdale resident chatting with notable locals to learn what it is they do and why they live where they live. 

Russ Watson, owner of the hugely-popular ‘The Whiskery’, Geelong Mayor Stephanie Asher and Lon Retreat owner Claire Gemes are among those to have featured in the podcast’s first episodes. 

“There’s plenty of stories around a huge amount of content,” he says. “I think having lived here, especially being here full time last year, I hear some good stories and have a good knowledge of what’s going on around the region, stories that others may not necessarily know.

“A lot of people have made a success of what they’re doing in a whole range of areas, and I don’t just mean high profile people,” Barry said. 

Born and educated in Geelong, Barry played 241 games with Geelong and captained the side between 1995 and 98. He was named best-and-fairest award in 1990, and made the All-Australian team in 1992 and represented Victoria seven times. He was also named at centre half-forward in Geelong’s Team of the Century.

And while he retains strong links with the club, his interests and connections run far deeper. 

“I don’t pretend to know a lot about the arts, but I’m interested in some of the people and stories and this region boasts some of the best galleries anywhere, whether it be Salt right here, or Boom or through the Geelong Arts Centre, it’s one of those areas where I personally want to know more and want to share those stories,” Barry said.

“There’s also tourism, which is such a big part of the region, and business - there are people who were maybe born and raised here, started a business or have achieved in other ways. There’s so much to talk about.

“Having lived and worked in Melbourne in recent years, when you talk to your work colleagues about Geelong, they aren’t aware of some of the stories. There are people who think it’s still a long way away and once they get down here and see what’s on offer, I changes their mindset.” 

The timing for the podcast could not be better, with the pandemic and low interest rates driving an influx of newcomers to the region. 

For Barry, who moved to Point Lonsdale permanently just over 12 months ago having loved and being a frequent visitor over many years, 2020 served as a reminder of just how special this part of the world is. 
 
“Lonnie has always been special, I have close friends down here and have been coming for many years. Me and [partner] Leanne brought a place four years ago but moving down and living here over the last 12 months, you just appreciate it more.  

“And that’s sort of where the idea for the podcast came from. I just sort of thought, hang on, there’s a lot more to this place than meets the eye.”
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The City of Dreams podcast series is available on Spotify via the City of Dreams Instagram page - cityofdreams.podcast

COVID-19 encouraged many people to look inwards and find new perspectives of home and surroundings. Queenscliff-based artist David Beaumont used the time to forge new relationships with the natural landscapes that he is continuously drawn to.

In his latest exhibition ‘Here And There’, Beaumont reinvents those landscapes that frequently inspire his work. Through a new found perspective, he re-captures the beauty and power of his local Swan Bay and the Rip, and one of his favourite destinations, Lake Mungo. 

His signature style of boundary pushing abstraction invites viewers to embrace their imagination, while his chosen palette encourages recognition of the silence, subtlety and nuance of the environments.

“It really wasn’t until covid came along that I started to stalk the Rip more intently - early mornings and late at night… particularly during autumn, winter and early spring,” Beaumont said. 

“During those darker months something opened up and the paintings that will be in this show, they’ve got a streak, a moodiness to them… this hardship beauty that the Rip has.”   

‘Here and There’ also features new sculptures that beautifully compliment his latest collection of paintings. 
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‘Here And There’ will officially open at Salt Contemporary on Sunday 27th December from 2pm and the exhibition will continue through to the 7th January.

An art exhibition with a difference will be held later this month - restrictions permitting - capturing the creativity of locals in lockdown. 

The ‘Magic Show,’ an initiative of Point Lonsdale’s Lighthouse Arts Collective, is aimed at promoting community connection.

Upwards of 100 entrants have paid $20 to take part in the show. They have each received an A3 piece of paper to create their very own artwork, using any medium. 

“At the heart of the project is a desire to promote community connection and provide a hopeful and creative focus during lockdown and this topsy turvy time,” said the Collective’s Suzie Wylie.

“It was important to us that the invitation to participate was simple and engaging - by providing the essential material (the paper) and by ensuring participants had complete creative freedom, we hoped the nature of the project would capture the imaginations of our community, from those that consider themselves creative to those that don’t.”

Ms Wylie said the project was the brainchild of a collective community member. 

“It developed quickly and joyously and was announced to the community the following week. Good ideas are sometimes like that - Magic!”

“We have been overwhelmed by the response. The enthusiasm around the project has been so energising, and so heartwarming especially at a time when so much of what the collective had in place for 2020 has had to be postponed or cancelled,” Ms Wylie said. 

Participants have been given four weeks to create their works at home. They will be submitted by September 21 - which coincides the end to current stage three restrictions - and will subsequently be displayed in the Collective’s New Hall when it it safe to do so. 

“If this is not doable in the foreseeable future we will come up with a creative online way for the project and it's participants to be celebrated,” said Ms Wylie. 
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The Collective is among many groups within the arts community to have been hard hit by the pandemic. Proceeds from the entry fee and the sale of works will help with the staging of future events.

The draft design of Queenscliff’s long-awaited $5.75 million Cultural Hub redevelopment has been released for public feedback. 

Created by award-winning architects Kerstin Thompson, the design incorporates the Queenscliff Library, Museum and Visitor Information Centre under one roof. 

The library’s heritage façade is retained, however the two level rear section of the proposed development will include a modern new layout, with public spaces for meetings and lectures. 

“This is a design that reflects feedback from our community, the tenants and incorporates input from our award-winning architects,” said Mayor Ross Ebbels. “We hope residents will let us know what they think of the design for this exciting new community hub.” 

One of the more controversial elements of the design is a new verandah extending beyond the building’s façade and over the Hesse Street footpath.

The Hub, which has been on the Queenscliffe’ Council’s wish list for close to a decade, became a reality when the State Government transferred funding to the project from the now shelved Destination Queenscliffe. 

The Federal Government and BoQ have also contributed funding. Construction is expected to begin in October.
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The design can be found on the BoQ webpage. Community submissions close on Sunday June 7.

Local art galleries are gearing up to play an important role in welcoming visitors back to our towns, with three significant exhibitions launching in coming days.
 
After 10 weeks in lock down, Salt Contemporary is preparing to throw open its doors to a show of new paintings by Craig Parnaby, depicting the simple pleasures of life by the beach. 

“Craig’s paintings capture moments in time that are oh so familiar - a carefree bike ride, catching a wave with a friend, an afternoon spent lazing on a beach,” said Salt Director Fiona Kelly. 

“These are the moments that up until recently we have perhaps taken for granted and yet it is precisely these moments that many of us have found ourselves looking forward to and yearning for. 

“Through their work artists can challenge us to pause and reflect, to see the world a little differently.  Through his art Craig Parnaby creates a world that is calm, gentle and uncomplicated and there’s never been a better time to strive for such a world,” Kelly said.

Similarly, important themes for this time will be celebrated at Queenscliff Gallery and Workshop, in an exhibition of works - sculptures, drawings, prints and lithography - by good friends of many decades, Robert Hague, Peter Lancaster, Jim Pavlidis and Geoffrey Riccardo celebrating mateship. 

“The four men’s friendship and artistic expression are forged in continuity,” said the QG&W’s Soula Mantalvanos. “Their homes, studio environments and materials are testimony to timelessness and resilience - a bulwark against the advances of technology… and proof that living and working without succumbing to unnecessary change is still possible. 

Meantime, a new-look Seaview will turn to some of its favourite artists to brighten the spirits of locals and visitors alike. 
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“We have refurbished with new carpet and some paintwork and are looking forward to being open again,” said owner Colleen Kenwood.

Queenscliff-based Kelly Koumalatsos  has been named major prize winner in the seventh annual Koorie Art Show.

The Wergaia, Wemba Wemba artists collected the Creative Victoria Award for Excellence in Any Media, incorporating a cash prize of $10,000, for her work Portrait Of Sister In Laws; Wemba Wemba Great Aunty Frieda Stewart And Wergaia Great Grandmother Eleanor Stewart, 2019. 

Featuring a possum-fur printed blouse, and accompanying photograph, the work serves as a portrait of Kelly’s ancestors. 

“It represents the strength of the woman in my family and their ability to do more than simply survive the oppression of the times,” she said in a statement about the work. “The possum fur print symbolises the cultural identity of Granny and Aunty regardless of the colonising life that was around them.

“Granny, who was born on Ebenezer Mission in 1887, was a strong and determined woman who had kept her own dictionary of Wergaia language.”

The photograph was taken early 1900's.
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The Show is the only exhibition in Victoria dedicated to showcasing the work of Koorie and Victorian based Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. Ninety artists from across Victoria submitted works.

Fenn Wilson has been on a journey of emotions over recent months - one fully reflected in his new album Ghost Heroin. 

It came together at the same time his father, revered Australian musician Chris Wilson, was battling pancreatic cancer – the disease that eventually claimed his life earlier this year. 

“The album came about because Dad asked me to make it and so it was a project that was going on with, you know, all of these parallel processes at the same time, looking after dad and making this album,” the 23 year old said. 

One song in particular, ‘Lost My Way,’ perfectly captures the turmoil of grief and of moving forward after such an enormous loss.    

It also reflects Fenn’s own coming-of-age from a talented local teen and product of musical parents – his mother is the highly-regarded Sarah Carroll - to a fully-fledged musician already carving out his own name in the industry.

“Lost my way was written in the midst of all that was going on at the time and, well, the title is largely self-explanatory. It’s about reaching out to different sorts of figures, whether they be paternal, maternal or otherwise just familiar people, and trying to seek direction  - just turning to whoever you can and trying to find answers to questions you may have,” he said. 

The former Bellarine Secondary College student is a child of festivals, and given his parents' long-standing involvement in the local music scene, the Queenscliff Music Festival is particularly close to his heart. 

Last year he was awarded the QMF Emerging Artist award, which he credits for making Ghost Heroin a reality. 

“I think I started playing drums when I was about three, and I picked up guitar a bit later.  

“I was doing gigs under my name, but not taking it all that seriously, when I was a 16 or 17. I played with a couple of different bands in [QMF] Foot in the Door events… but last year was the first year that I really played under my own name,” Fenn said.

“The Emerging Artist Award was a huge help, it funded the album. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without that. 

“I feel like everybody that has been involved has been really kind and I can’t wait to show it,” he said. 
Early reviews of the album have been positive with his deep vocals likened to George Ezra and Nick Cave.

“He is mesmerising… quite magical,” said Caroline Moore, Director of the Port Fairy Folk Festival, where Fenn was also recognised  with an emerging artist grant.

“Im not really sure who I sound like, I really like but in terms of musicians that I like to listen to, I’m a huge Jeff Buckley fan, Grant Lee Buffalo, Matt Corby is a bit of an influence on me. I’ve been exposed to an incredible amount of different music and musicians and my tastes are kind of eclectic.”

Fenn will perform at the festival with his new band. The show will also feature a vocal solo by another local performer and Emerging Artist winner, Holly Joyce. 
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“I can’t wait. I’m just really excited,” he said.
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Ten years ago this month, Justin D’Ath and his partner quickly packed up a few belongings and their two dogs and fled their bush home in Flowerdale, in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. 

here was not a great deal of panic, he recalls. He had a fire plan in place and at the time thought he had left with more than an hour to spare. In hindsight, it was really just in the nick of time. The sky had filled with thick smoke and an eerie glow and the bank of tall pines near his house posed a risk. 

Justin is one of the lucky survivors of Black Saturday - one of the worst bushfire episodes in Australian history. 

Through his newly-released book,47 Degrees, the prolific children’s author revisits events of February 7, 2009 for the first time. 

He does so through the eyes of a young heroine, Zeelie. 

“I thought it would be interesting to look at the bushfires from a young girls’ point of view. She’s just about 13 and I transposed her and her family into my Flowerdale house. There was just her and her dad there on the day of the fire.”

The book, which has received rave reviews for its sensitive approach to the tragedy, is poignant, fast-paced and with ultimately positive outcomes. However D’Ath - who has penned close to 50 mostly young adventure books - was adamant the story not be “sugar-coated.”

While much of what happens to Zeelie is fiction, the events under-pinning 47 Degrees are very real. 

​“Physically it was my house so it was very real to me,” D’Ath says. “I gave her and her family some of my own feelings. It made it a much more real story.

“The father has a fire plan, the girl was a bit ambivalent about staying but she trusted her father and then they left at about the same time we did on that day and escaped to the relief centre at Yea, and spent the next few nights there. 

“There’s strong a strong educational element, but I’ve made it exciting and interesting and ultimately uplifting at the end. It’s got as happy an ending as you can have,” D’Ath says. “I’ve acknowledged that people did die in the fire, a lot of people died, and so I included that element in the story, but I distanced it from the main character.

“I handled it quite sensitively I think. One-hundred-and-73 people died and we need to acknowledge them in the book and so that’s the way I did it and I’m pleased with the way I’ve done it.” 

D’Ath, who lost his home and belongings on that day, did not return to rebuild in Flowerdale. Property insurance allowed him to rent elsewhere for 12 months. 

He chose Point Lonsdale and has lived here ever since.

​In reflecting on Black Saturday and his own personal story, he says he takes away many positives.

“Now when I read the finished book there’s a couple of places that just about bring me to tears. When I was writing it I didn’t experience that at all. It was more moving to read than it was to write.

​“I just felt lucky. I didn’t know anyone who died or lost any loved ones so that was a total bonus and then in the aftermath people were so kind and generous, it was just extraordinary. It really put a positive spin on my view of fellow Australians. I’ve got more positive memories, than negative.”

​47 Degrees is published by Penguin books and can be purchased from The Bookshop at Queenscliff.

The talents of revered cartoonist and former Queenscliff resident Ron Tanberg will be showcased with the addition of a new artist board to the municipality’s Arts Trail.

The Board, to be launched on Sunday 21 October, will be placed on the boardwalk stretching between the Queenscliff ferry terminal and pier.
“Ron Tandberg was a much-loved and admired member of our community,” said Mayor Susan Salter. 

“His work made a huge contribution to our nation’s culture.” 
The Arts Trail runs between Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale and celebrates the works of artists and photographers who have visited and captured the local landscape. 
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 An  exhibition of Mr Tanberg’s  work, including a series of short videos of him discussing the creation of his famous caricatures, will be on display in the Queenscliff Library from Friday 5th until  Saturday 27th October.

Upwards of 20 artists from Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale will showcase their talents over the Melbourne Cup long weekend as part of the annual Bellarine Arts Trail. 

The popular two day event will include a total of 33 galleries and venues and more than 75 artists from across the Bellarine.

Hosted by the Barwon Heads Arts Council, the Trail gives visitors an opportunity to met and talk to the people who make our local art scene vibrant, in some cases, in the very space they work from. 

A highlight this year is the inclusion of world renowned sculptor Rod Dudley, who will open his Queenscliff studio to visitors, displaying sculptures in wood and bronze created in his Italian studio - where he spends six months of the year.  Rod will also exhibit at the Queenscliff Council Hall his Empire Day group sculpture of 1981, first shown at the Adelaide Festival. 
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Tussock Upstairs Gallery will host November Spaces 18 – paintings, prints, jewellery and ceramics by local and regional artists, Salt Gallery will be holding an exhibition titled Creatures Great and Small and Soula Mantalvanos will open her personal Queenscliff Gallery and Workshop studio, welcoming conversations about latest works.
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A community initiative to tackle plastic pollution has arrived in Queenscliff. 

Boomerang Bags encourages locals to donate unwanted material and to transform it, via sewing bees at the Neighbourhood House, into reusable shopping bags. 

The program, already running in other communities, is among three local projects to share in $6,800 under the Queenscliffe Community Environment Association (CEA) grants program. 

“Boomerang Bags is a grassroots, community driven movement aimed at shifting societies throw-away mentality to a more sustainable revolution of re-purposing and re-use,” said project spokesperson Jane Rodwell. 

 “We are looking for volunteers from all walks of life to get together to help make re-usable bags. We need to enlist people who can help mark out and cut materials, pin, iron, stamp and sew.

“The bags will be given away to friends, family, colleagues, local retailers, bagless strangers and so on, as a plastic bag alternative that can be used and reused, or passed on to others,” Mrs Rodwell said.

The program coincides with Queenscliff IGA’s decision to scrap single use plastic bags from this month and ‘Plastic Free July’ – an initiative of the newly-created Transition Towns group.  

“The circulation of reusable bags within the BOQ creates an opportunity to spread an important social and environmental message about sustainable solutions, and fostering conscious habits that extend well beyond the plastic bag,” said Mrs Rodwell. 

The St Aloysius Primary secured funding under the CEA program to host a ‘Kid’s Teaching Kids’ conference in September. The one-day event will bring students from across Geelong to Queenscliff to teach each other about sustainability initiatives and environmental issues.

The Swan Bay Environment Association also gained funding to extend its Gardens for Wildlife program, providing residents with advice on improving the ecological value of their garden. 
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To donate fabric or participate in Boomerang Bag-making workshops email: qnhouse@fastmail.com or phone 5258 3367.  All ages are welcome and no experience required.

Original toys, fashion, books, letters and an original menu from a local guesthouse feature in a newly released book showcasing the Queenscliffe Historical Museum’s 50 most significant items.
 
Former Premier and recently-named Museum patron Ted Baillieu officially launched Celebrating History…Items from the Queenscliffe Historical Museum Collection on Sunday October 15. 

Compiled by volunteers Rosemary Brown, Jocelyn Grant, Sandra Lee and Diana Sawyer, the book celebrates the Museum’s 50th anniversary. 

Mr Baillieu spoke of his own family’s long ties with our municipality, including his great grandfather, James George Baillieu, who jumped ship at Portsea in 1853 and swam ashore here, and carved out one of the region’s strongest pioneer dynasties. 

He also presented a new addition to the Museum’s collection - his own father’s christening cup, dating back to 1903.  
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Ms Grant said the book was a tribute to the volunteers “who have accepted the roles of archivist and keeper of the many thousands of items now in safe-keeping in the Museum’s purpose-built facility and to the continuing support of the community.

Melbourne Cup long weekend will serve up a feast for art lovers, with more than 40 galleries, private studios and cafes signing on as venues for this year’s Bellarine Arts Trail. 

In only its second year the event will showcase the works of more than 100 painters, sculptors, photographers, illustrators and jewellers.

“The Barwon Heads Arts Council is thrilled with the development of the Bellarine Arts Trail.  We have more than doubled since the first event last year,” said event coordinator Karen Shirley.  

“This year we have more than 100 artists participating at 40 venues across Barwon Heads, Ocean Grove, Point Lonsdale and Queenscliff.  We’ve also included the very popular Ocean Grove Rotary Art Show this year, which attracts a huge following.  

“The depth of talent on the Bellarine is incredible.  One of the main aims is to provide opportunities for artists to raise their profile and take their art to the market.  This event provides opportunities for artists of all levels from hobbyists through to professionals.  We also want to showcase the Bellarine Peninsula as an arts destination.”

Ms Shirley said she would not be surprised if last year’s patronage of the trail double from 3,000. More than 5,000 maps have been printed to cope with the anticipated interest. 

“We are hoping to be able to continue with the Arts Trail next year, but of course that is subject to funding.  At this stage we will aim to limit the number of artists and venues in future years to a manageable number, given the event is completely organised and run by volunteers.  

Salt Contemporary Gallery will host world renowned artist Robert Ingpen’s exhibition, Marginal World. It features paintings inspired by a “curious” object he found in Queenscliff in 2015.  

Queenscliff Gallery and Workshop will showcase the works of local artists Joel Wolter, Amanda Firenze and Andrew Gunnell. Artists will be demonstrating printmaking during this event.

Renowned glass artist David Hobday will be in his studio and represented at Seaview Gallery.

In Point Lonsdale, Tussock Upstairs Gallery will show an exhibition of ‘small works’ – paintings, prints, jewellery and ceramics by 13 well known artists – and Lighthouse Arts Collective will showcase a range of artistic endeavours including painting, music, performance and poetry.

Other local artists participating in the Bellarine Arts Trail include:
Carolyn McKinnon with sculpture, silver jewellery and photographic works at the venue she shares with Meryl Hodgson in Point Lonsdale
Photographer Tom Rayner at Belsize Cafe
Helen Martin, Vicki Clissold and Kelly Koumalatsos at St Georges Old School Hall
Eight diverse and talented artists at the Queenscliff Uniting Church
Darin Frankpitt and Jane Flowers at the Marina in venues 39 and 40
Botanical artist Lavinia Cuming at her studio in Pt Lonsdale
Textile artist Cheryl Toth and many artists and art students at the vibrant and exciting Queenscliffe and District Neighbourhood House