There’s always a story

I am very excited to have bought another artwork by my former colleague Michèle Heibel over the weekend to add to my growing collection.

My friends Fee and Emily accompanied me on a road trip to attend the opening of Michèle’s latest exhibition.

And, because the world is always too small when I’m involved, Fee went to high school with Michele.

The exhibition was held at the Performance Arts Culture Cessnock Centre and we took a nostalgia detour on our way through town to drive past my grandparents’ old house on Greta Street. It’s just down the road from where my parents met at Cessnock High (my dad was a prefect and my mum was dazzled by him).

Michèle is an incredibly talented woman who creates delicate artworks on black clayboard using only a pin

We’ve know each other for a gazillion years, we worked together at Woman’s Day when I was editing the weekly magazine and she was a graphic designer. She escaped the rat race around 16 years ago and moved to the Hunter Valley in search of a better life.

She invited me to her very first exhibition way back in October 2011, just after I’d made my own exit from the magazine world. I was entranced by an artwork at the exhibition, an etching of a goat. But, being unemployed at the time, with no sign of a paycheck on the horizon, I resigned myself to admiring it from afar.

Almost three years later, as my soon-to-be-ex husband and I were painting the deck for the sale of the family home, a long, narrow package arrived on my front doorstep.

It was the goat. It came with a little card that said: “Because a goat never gives up!!”

And I cried and cried and cried.

It was such a touching gesture, a sign that someone understood and cared.

When my fortunes improved I was eager to repay Michèle’s kindness. I got the chance a few years ago when I purchased ‘Young bucks” at an exhibition featuring her work at Gosford Regional Art Gallery.

The light is so luminous and beautiful in it. I don’t know how someone manages that with just a pin and black clayboard, it is remarkable.

This time around, Michèle’s work is part of an exhibition called Shapes of the Hunter, which brings together a diverse group of artists with a deep connection to the Hunter: Michèle, Will Maguire, Kristen Lethem, and Amanda Charge.

Showcasing works across sculpture, painting, jewellery, and mixed media, the exhibition aims to highlight the distinctive forms ,materials, and stories that define each artist’s practice. It’s on until May 7, but it was exciting to be there for the opening.

Michèle gave a wonderful speech and the event featured a special performance by Bangarra dance artist Kassidy Waters.

Oh, and I bought an artwork called “Visiting Dotty (on Clements Road”). It’s the tree next to Michèle’s cheek in the pic above. It spoke to me, though I was also tempted by an artwork featuring a herd of cows.

Michèle tells me the tree has since gone, so I feel fortunate to have a beautiful memory of it.

Afterwards, Fee and Emily and I had lunch in Lovedale and then popped into Tamburlaine (which happens to feature Michèle’s artworks on many of its wine labels) for an organic wine tasting.

Such a lovely day. Now I just need to work out how I’ll collect my new piece … and where I’ll put it!

Hope you had a good weekend.

Song of the day: Rod Stewart “Every picture tells a story”