| Red Cross Christmas Trees. |
 08-18 December 2009Muswellbrook Red Cross is again holding a Christmas display at the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre with the competition for Christmas Wreaths and Christmas Trees. A real joy on the exhibition calendar.
This ever popular biannual exhibition runs from Tuesday December 8th until Friday December 18th 2009 in the School of Arts and Centre Court Galleries.
The Red Cross request an entry fee of $2 an adult and $1 concession for their fund raising efforts - that also entitles you to vote in deciding the winning display.
Voting is open to the public from Tuesday 08 December until 12 noon, Friday 18 December. All Prizes are decided by peoples choice, except the Sponsors Prize, which is selected by a Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited representative.
There will be an Official Closing and Announcement and Presentation of Prizes at 6.00 pm Friday, 18 December 2009.
Prize money kindly donated by Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited.
| Christmas Tree: |
1st Prize: |
$300 |
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2nd Prize: |
$200 |
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3rd Prize: |
$100 |
| Christmas Wreath: |
1st Prize: |
$150 |
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2nd Prize: |
$100 |
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3rd Prize: |
$50 |
| Sponsors Prize: |
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$200 | |
| Give the gift of ART this Christmas |
 08-18 December 2009
in the Wollemi Gallery Just in time for the Christmas giving season comes the Christmas 2009 Local Artists Selling Show. All works are for sale and are collectable and affordable.
Purchasers will be able to take their art work with them upon payment. This promises to be an exciting, ever changing show, as new works replace those that are sold. A great chance to start your own art collection or someone else's with works by our regional artists of note.
An opportunity not to be missed. |
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Opening night at the Muswellbrook Local Art Awards |
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| Turning the Pages |
Congratulations to Turning the Pages Inc. in Murrurundi with the art, education and conservation project now entering its third year. The event was marked with an exhibition of local artists works at Haydon Hall Art Gallery inspired by the river and a special celebration held at the Murrurundi RSL Hall on 19 November 2009 with an art display of outstanding works created by the children of Blandford and Murrurundi Public Schools. Among the various speakers on the day was a representative of the Hunter Region of Councils (HROC) there to announce funding from HROC for the project of $20,000, ensuring that this most successful of community projects will continue on into the future. Again congratulations to Turning the Pages Inc. and the community of Murrurundi. |
| Bibliobox |
 17-29 November 2009
at the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre School of Arts Gallery
The Bibliobox is a travelling archive
containing information about art projects in the rural context. On invitation by a local host, the box travels to a rural or regional location and is then folded out to reveal a small presentation of films to be watched, books to leaf through and CDs to listen to.
The Bibliobox brings together project information from many different countries. The selected projects have in common that all participants, artists and public, are actively involved with the rural environment.
To date the box has travelled to 20 countries (Austria, Britain, Canada, The Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United States and Uzbekistan), has been shown in 80 locations and contains the work of 82 artists and groups.
In October 2009 the box comes to the southern hemisphere for the first time, with its premier showing at the Mangrove Mountain & Districts Country Fair. It will be on exhibition at the University of Newcastle and the Muswellbrook Regional Art Centre in November.
The box presents a broad range of views of people living in similar situations in rural areas. It creates an opportunity for people to share experiences from art periphery to art periphery.
Inhabitants of rural and regional areas around the world are facing increasing pressures for change from economic and environmental factors. As they try to develop new functions and strategies that are adaptive, while preserving their local values, contemporary artists offer some alternative ways of understanding the options.
Bibliobox was initiated in the Netherlands by Wapke Feenstra and
myvillages.org (www.bibliobox.org)
> Find out more about artist Neil Berecry Brown
The Williams River Valley Artists' Project
Documentation of The Williams River Valley Artists Project will be added to the Bibliobox after it returns to Europe, as it is another example of artists engaging with issues of imposed change in a rural locality and of artists and local residents working together to create a dialogue about the future. |
| Touch this earth lightly |
 These 'shoes' are made by wrapping people's feet in clay, when the clay has firmed slightly thefoot is removed leaving a skin/print. I have chosen to do this as a means of expressing a desireby people for their impact on the environment to be more carefully considered. This has comeabout particularly in relation to the proposed damning of the Williams River. As part of theWilliams River Valley Artists' Project I have spent a number of weekends staying on the Smith property and spending time in the valley and around the river. It was the boots/shoes that pileup at the back door that made me think more about where we tread and how our feet can beseen to symbolise the mark we leave on a place. They are also the means by which we connect physically to the ground and symbolically again make us as people, along with all other animals and vegetation, part of one connected continuum.
Artist's Statement: Bridget Nicholson
My main area of interest is in looking at ways of presenting humans in
relation to our environment. I see humans as animals who have forgotten that they are animals and somehow see themselves as something other. I always end up caught up in this in an emotive way and hope that the works convey some aspect of this ambiguity. I like to work on ideas that engage the community somehow as participants in the
making of the work, such as with 'Hold' the heads of the women of Gunnedah, and now 'Touch this earth lightly', the feet of.....
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Scone's Scott Cooper has his feet wrapped by Bridget Nicholson at the Arts Centre. |
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An art event with Feet of clay. |
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| Muswellbrook Australia Day Acquisitive Photographic Award |
 Total Prize Money $400 (Acquisitive)...
Theme - Rural Life
Entry forms to be handed in at the Muswellbrook Shire Council Offices, Maitland Road, Muswellbrook by 5pm, Friday 8th January 2010. Photos to be delivered to the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre by the close of business Friday 15th January 2010.
Adjudicator: Roger Skinner, Secretary, Muswellbrook & Districts Camera Club
Exhibition of Australia Day Acquisitive Photographic Award entries to be held at the
Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre - School of Arts Gallery, 27 January - 28 February 2010.
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| The 22nd Acquisitive Muswellbrook Open Photographic Award 2010 |
 The 2010 prize marks the 22nd prize since the prize's inauspicious start back in 1987, since then it has grown in stature and strength. The Major sponsor of the award since those early days has for the 2010 prize contributed $6,000 to the Award. Coal & Allied MT Pleasant Operation have taken a stand in terms of community support by way of their generous donation.  Julie Sundberg Executive Manager for Education & Outreach at the Australian Centre for Photography at Paddington will be the adjudicator. |
| Art Classes with Max Watters |
MONDAY
12.30 - 2.00pm Challenge, Muswellbrook
2.30 - 5.00pm Hunter Park Family Centre, Muswellbrook
6.00 - 8.00pm Wybong Community Hall, Wybong
TUESDAY
4.00 - 6.00pm Muswellbrook, PCYC phone 02 4541 1434
THURSDAY
2.00 - 5.00pm McCully's Gap Art Group, The Pot House Muswellbrook
6.00 - 8.15pm Muswellbrook Art Group The Pot House, Muswellbrook
FRIDAY
2.30 - 6.00pm Scone Youth Art Group, Susan Street, Scone
SATURDAY
1.30 - 4.00pm Aberdeen Art Group, Community Centre, Aberdeen
Any enquires please contact Max Watters 02 6543 2875 |
| Artiste Espresso Bar - opening 1st December |
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| muswellbrook regional arts centre |
 Corner of Bridge & William Streets
PO Box 122 Muswellbrook NSW 2333
Tel: 02-6549 3880 Fax: 02-6549 3886
e-mail: Arts.Centre@muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au
Web: www.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au/artscentre
Opening hours: 10am - 5pm Tuesday to Friday, 10am - 1pm Saturday, 2pm - 5pm Sunday (closed Mondays and public holidays)
muswellbrook regional arts centre is a non-profit facility and resource servicing the Upper Hunter Region, owned and operated by Muswellbrook Shire Council.
All images used courtesy of the artists | |
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The opening of the Muswellbrook Local Art Awards took place on Saturday 24 October 2009. 
