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AR T GROUPS CELEBRATES 50 YEARS
As clouds parted and rain stopped last Sunday afternoon, art enthusiasts congregated at the Stanley Street Studio, Oakey, to celebrate Oakey Art Group’s 50th anniversary.
Overlooking Oakey Creek in Arthur Shooter Park, the backdrop could not have been more perfect for the opening of the group’s annual exhibition in its Stanley Street Studio.
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President Howard Wetzig welcomed the guests to the celebrations and shared some of the Oakey Art Group’s journey through the past five decades.
The story began with a handful of passionate local people who met at art classes at the Technical College in Toowoomba.
They envisioned the benefits of exploring and mastering artistic techniques in their home town and pursued their shared dream of forming an art group in Oakey. Toowoomba Adult Education assisted them by organising a tutor to come to Oakey on a fortnightly basis to provide tuition in classrooms at Oakey State School, and on July 25 1972 the group held its first meeting. The group had attracted 26 members by the end of that year. In 1981 the group began to meet in a cottage on McDonald Street and this continued until plans for a new Council complex and Cultural Centre were adopted by Jondaryan Shire Council and the site cleared was to make way for construction. The art group had to find a new home. In 1994 it moved into a new purpose built studio in Stanley Street, and despite droughts and floods, it has become a very comfortable and well equipped facility. “In 1989 our group conducted our first ‘live in’ seminar at Perseverance Dam,” Mr Wetzig said. “These annual seminars continued until Covid struck. “We have now moved to holding more workshops on weekends at our Studio, and bringing tutors to Oakey. “We run bus trips to art exhibitions and galleries throughout south east Queensland, and have taken tours to places such as Magnetic Island and Central Australia to provide inspiration to our artists.” “We owe much to the many volunteers over the years who kept this group going well, encouraging people to share their tuition experiences with others, and taking care of our studio.” Oakey Art Group has been holding exhibitions of its members’ work since the inaugural display in Oakey State High School’s Assembly Hall in 1975. Venues have varied over the years and included Oakey Cultural Centre, Toowoomba Regional Gallery, Darling Downs Potters Group, and the Rosalie and Hampton Galleries. “Our art group has supported Oakey’s Show Society for many years, and Oakey Historical Museum Society at various times,”Mr Wetzig said. “We have also supported various community events and celebrations including the Bicentenary in 1988, Carnival of Flowers, and marked the 25th and 40th anniversaries of our group.” As Oakey Art Group Patron, Andrew Langton, officially opened the 2022 exhibition, he congratulated group members on their impressive history of achievement and the way in which they have fostered and encouraged artistic pursuits throughout the district for fifty years. The celebratory cake was cut by long serving Art Group stalwarts Mesdames Glenda Fuller, Ros Mason and Carole Wieck as the crowd enjoyed light refreshments in the gallery. This free exhibition is open daily from 10am to 4pm until Sunday October 30 and members of Oakey Art Group invite everyone to step out of the everyday, immerse themselves in the artistic endeavours of local people, explore the possibilities in the diverse world of visual arts, and potentially discover their own artistic side.
Margaret Loiterton enjoyed exploring the gallery at the exhibition opening.
- Joanne Evans
Above: Betty Carter and President Howard Wetzig (right) with Patron Andrew Langton. Below left: Julie Sweeney and Rebecca Brownsdon.
Above: Ros Mason and Kathy Brownsdon.
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