The art heart of the Goulburn Valley beats strong, as evidenced by the debut of the first edition of lovethegv’s Heart the Art magazine, which culminated in a hugely successful exhibition of featured artists at its launch last Friday.
The launch, at Shepparton Brewery, saw 21 of the magazine’s 23 profiled artists come together to showcase their work to the public at the free event.
Benalla-based mural artist Tim Bowtell, known for painting many silos in the area, including the epic Colbinabbin set, said he didn’t join the exhibition in the hope of selling any of his smaller canvas work he had on display.
“It’s more about support; supporting arts in the region,” he said.
“It has been really good to me.”
Having painted murals since 2014 and really amplified that journey over the past five years, Bowtell said he no longer found time to paint small-scale. Surprisingly, he said canvases took even longer to complete than his large-scale murals.
Ceramicist Angie Russi said she thought the whole initiative of the magazine and bringing all the artists together for a show was fantastic.
“Artists don’t get to get together too often; we’re all too busy,” she said.
“I hope the magazine ends up on people’s coffee tables for months to come.”
Russi, who normally opens her Rushworth studio on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, had been so passionate about Heart the Art she closed her studio to attend the noon launch event.
Kyabram watercolour artist, Dey Alexander, who started painting during pandemic lockdowns, agreed with Russi.
“So many artists beaver away in their own spaces and people don’t know they’re there unless there’s something like this,” Alexander said.
“It’s good to have it in the paper so people get access rather than just having to go to an art gallery.
“And it’s great that the brewery supports the arts, too.”
Alexander is also organising a new and unique event in Campaspe Shire for early next year, featuring the Goulburn Valley’s neighbouring artists.
The magazine and exhibition’s youngest artist, 19-year-old photographer Jacob Dedman from Tatura, said it was great the community had come out to support the launch.
“It was pretty special to see my photos in the magazine,” he said.
“I wasn’t told I was getting the back page, so I’m a bit chuffed with that.”
His age does not reflect the depth of his work; if you didn’t see the man behind the lens at the exhibition, you could be mistaken for thinking the artist behind the stunning images had decades of shooting experience.
The magazine and exhibition were the brainchild of lovethegv’s Kelly Carmody, also a featured artist who delivered the opening speech at Friday’s launch, who said the success of the first edition and show suggested the initiative would only grow.
“It’s going to get bigger and better,” she said.
“From the second we opened the doors, there were already people waiting outside to come in.
“It’s just been great to see the community engaging and wanting to see more of this stuff happening.”
Carmody said the magazine and exhibition had been planned for a couple of months before they were brought to life last week; however, seeing how well they were received by artists and art lovers alike, she was already excited about next year’s instalments.