CREATIVE SPIRIT RISING

RENOWNED ARTISTS AND THE DWELLINGUP GALLERIES WHICH DISPLAY THEIR WORK, DRAW ON NATURE TO FEED INSPIRATION. BY TORI WILSON

For a country town so steeped in nature, it’s perhaps no surprise that Dwellingup’s artists and galleries draw deeply from the inspiration of their surrounding environment.

Like a never-ending creative spring,

Dwellingup’s ethereal natural gifts project powerful energy, diffusing the history and culture of the area, and providing a rich source for local artists to derive ideas and visions from, whatever their medium.

If you’re keen to discover more about this unique collection of creators, look for the emu footprints found at the town’s main intersection next to the IGA and follow them leisurely for 1km all the way to the

Forest Discovery Centre to find a rustic gallery space tucked within the bushland.

Not only is the centre a hub for environmental education and a great place for kids to learn and play, this is also a place for local artists to work and offers space for artisans to run creative workshops, ranging from soap making and resin art, to parquetry and wood turning.

Helen Henderson, Jill Fisher, Jenny Dickinson, Willy Nelson and Wendy Binks are some of the artists whose works are currently or commonly featured at the centre, with Binks also the hand behind the interactive emu trail that winds its way through the town.

Wendy’s work is instantly recognisable, and the artist and illustrator is known for her quirky emus as seen in children’s book ‘Where’s Stripey?’

Spot Wendy’s murals throughout town, including at Vergone’s Café, and find her works at the Dwellingup Trails and Visitor Centre, along with the Forest Discovery Centre.

Wendy says her love of native animals comes from her background as a biologist.

“I have participated as a volunteer on several surveys and research programs involving endangered animals, such as the numbat and western ground parrot, and am also a snake catcher.

“I try to add extra information about wildlife in my children’s books, to enhance children’s interest in nature,” she says.

Monique Tippett’s work is another prime example of the influence of nature across the art seen in Dwellingup.

Step into her gallery located in the heart of town, Lost Eden Creative, and gaze up at the gold-painted chestnut tree flipped on its head and converted into a chandelier before taking your time observing the exhibitions on show, often reflective of environmental influences.

Monique has been working as an artist for more than 20 years and settled in Dwellingup when she was drawn to the town by its previously existing School of Fine Wood at the Forest Discovery Centre.

Her background and interest in the natural environment of WA’s South West, specifically the forest landscape, heavily influences her works, which are primarily large-scale pieces crafted from wood.

The pieces included in one of Monique’s featured exhibitions, titled My Darling - Forest 14 Dwellingup, are finely crafted

EXPLORE Follow the emu trail through town to the Forest Discovery Centre (left page) and enjoy the treetop walk while there (below). Visit Lost Eden Creative (left) to view exquisite art.

objects that strive to portray the scale, light, texture, and beauty of the region’s Darling Ranges.

“The forests of this area are an inestimably valuable, thin belt of undiscovered biodiversity, part of one of only 35 worldwide biodiversity hotspots and our very own isolated patch of ‘planet lung’,” says Monique.

“Forest 14 refers to the classification of the vast, unbroken expanse of forest that stretches 24km to the north, 26 km to the east and 37km to the south of Dwellingup. It also encompasses the beautiful Lane Poole Nature Reserve with its unspoilt forest and meandering river valleys.”

Throughout the year, the gallery shows a rolling program of solo and group exhibitions, with a vision to show a diverse range of visual arts that express stories of the environment and more.

Get your timing right and you might just be in town for one of Lost Eden’s ‘Dinner Series’ evenings, supported by its permanent onsite food van, Garden Eats.

Sit in the garden outside the gallery where Garden Eats - a cleverly converted horse float - resides, and tuck into a dish off its plant-based, gluten-free and everchanging menu for a real treat.

dwellinguptransfers@outlook.com

We are an ‘on demand’ shuttle service offering transfers to, from and around Dwellingup in our comfortable 12 Seater van. Whether it’s a trip to the Races, transfers for your guests to your wedding venue or you need a ride to the airport – we’re happy to help As a Track Friendly Business we can also drop you directly out to any of the access points on the Bibbulmun or Munda Biddi Tracks. Contact us for a quote for all of your transport requirements.

Welcome to the Dwellingup Forest Discovery Centre, a self-funded, community-run not-for-profit organisation. The Centre is a vibrant regional hub that nurtures learning, the arts, natural environment and local heritage. Forest Discovery Centre provides an interpretive centre, tree top walk, an art gallery and retail shop for artisans to show and sell their art to our visitors. We stock a variety of beautiful and unique wares. Great gifts for all occasions or just a gorgeous purchase for yourself.

Open Fri - Sun 10 - 4 | Ph 0491 263 460 1 Acacia Street, Dwellingup

admin@forestdiscoverycentre.com.au