Oh, the plain air!

Art in the Strathbogie Shire is abundant, and this masthead is always finding artists either coming out the mountains, the grazing planes, or from the towns with a colourful range of subject matter. The ARTBOX travels around the shire, Sheila's Gallery often has something to view, La Galerie de Nagambie needs no introduction, Drew Gregory dabs away at his canvases in Longwood, and Violet Town seems to have its own precinct with the Honeysuckle Arts Collective. High praise for the area came from 'Intrepid Artists' on a Euroa visit, and three members of the troupe with easels and kit were found working 'au plein air' (in the open air) on Kirkland Avenue on Wednesday 18 March. The Melbourne-base group broke with tradition this year. "We don't normally go to the same place twice, so you guys are honoured," said Nicola Kelly as she finished up her pastel of the historic Eliza Furlong Cottage. "Every week for a year we go to different places but after last year, we decided to come back to Euroa, for the subject matter." They had even booked the same cabins from 2025 at the caravan park. Joining Nicola on the pavement was Anna Wright finishing up a watercolour of the same building, while around the corner Thel Cardwell took on a rear view with her oils. The subject matter was not the only reason for their visit. "It's the old buildings, you know, and the people," Nicola said. "There's so much to see here, and you've got good coffee shops - that's very important." Anna chimed in. "It's peaceful and we love the creek also," she said. "And you don't have to travel too far to find great subjects." The artists usually take their works back home to 'finish up' and then have success at selling them. Nicola recently sold one she did of the Tahbilk winery. "I exhibited it, and then somebody came to me later and said, have you still got it?" she said. "And so she bought it." Drew Gregory is a highly acclaimed hyperrealism painter who moved to Longwood in early 2021, and who sells his outback landscapes at major exhibitions down south, which he paints from his local studio. He was able to give more background as to why the region has so many artists, starting with his choice of painting the less familiar territory of Strathbogie Shire when he first moved here. "I was stunned by the variety of, let's say, the absolute contrast of the flat planes and the magnificence of the hilly forested areas," Drew said. "I did a handful of small canvases along Pranjip Road which turned out to be hugely popular when I sold them at Queenscliffe." The series of four pictures were all the same size with the Longwood-Pranjip landscape and all of them featured selections of ponds of water in small streams. "It's not what I normally do." He also produced a very large canvas of the Gooram Falls area, struck by the beauty of the forest, water, and rocks combination. "On the one hand we have the flat country with streams and rivers made up of grazing land for sheep with streams and native trees, and it's always got the Strathbogie Ranges in the background. "But then when you get into the ranges, it is simply full of excellent subject matter. "The area has got just so much to offer." So inviting was Gooram Falls, Drew and his brother decided to jump in for a dip one day, only to find the current a little too strong from them, causing a scramble to shore a bit further downstream from where they had hoped to get out. "That was unexpected," Drew said. Back at Kirkland Avenue on Wednesday, the two Intrepid Artists were starting to pack up. "I did a little wee one of the cottage," Anna said, showing off her piece. Nicola's pastel spoke for itself, but around the back, Thel was still at the easel. She wasn't quite ready to go. Will they return in 2027 and make it a hat-trick? The trio pondered on that one.