Illawarra Art Society gears up for major milestone
The group has a busy lead-up to its anniversary doings. President Heather Craig and membership secretary Jeanette Southam tell all
This is our 75th year since conception and we are holding an exhibition and celebration at the Uniting Church at Bulli on October 31. An opening will be at 10am at the hall and everyone is welcome.
We meet on the first Saturday of every month at Tarrawanna Community Hall at 51 Meadow Street. Our Facebook group is Illawarra Art Society Incorporated and exhibitions are at Bulli Beach on the second Saturday of each month.
Over the previous year, the Illawarra Art Society has been busy.Apart from our monthly Paint Days, we have had exhibitions at Bulli Community Centre, Thirroul Art Festival, the Old Court House, three months of display at Chirp Cafe and our monthly display and sales days at Bulli Beach Reserve.
At Bulli Community Centre, we raised money through a gold coin donation entry, enabling us to donate to the Centres Charity fundraising.
Thirroul Festival in March was a great day when we displayed and sold in the courtyard of the Thirroul Library. There was a mixture of items from larger works to miniatures, magnets, cards and bookmarks. Ten per cent of our profits went to the festival’s Domestic Violence charity.
May brought a quieter time at the Old Court House this year, and although we did have people through, the economic downturn may have played a part in fewer sales. Despite that, we were able to generate an interest in our group.
Leila at Chirp Cafe in Tarrawanna gave us the opportunity to display artwork for three months. Some of these works were purchased and a lot of interest was generated in the different styles by the clientele.
Our members have once again stepped up and, in addition to these events, have provided four workshops at some of our monthly get-togethers. It is always enjoyable to share in others' knowledge and skills.
We continue to exhibit near the surf club at Bulli Beach on the second Saturday of each month, weather permitting. Costa Georgiadis from Gardening Australia was there in August and filmed the display and uploaded to his Facebook page, which was great publicity, thank you to Costa.
How the society began
The history of the Illawarra Art Society and the Wollongong City Gallery dates to 1951 when Denise Yates wrote a letter to a local paper asking if there was interest in forming an art group. This society was formed by the group of people interested in promoting art and art education in this region.
They grew from a small compact group of traditional style to one with varied interests in all forms of art. The group was named the Illawarra Society of Artists.
The society needed a place to display and sell their work and in 1951, there were not many places available.
Images from the Illawarra Art Society 50yr Anniversary Booklet.
As a way of finding spaces to exhibit, artists set up at Belmore Basin. Some proceeds were donated to charities – something the society does to this day.
An earlier clash between modernists and traditional styles resulted in the Traditional Art Society in the 1960s forming their own group and they still exhibit at Belmore Basin.
The society had some tough times. In 1978, an extraordinary meeting was called due to member apathy. The future looked bleak and the meeting was to discuss winding up, but gradually new members were found.
This was much the same after the pandemic in 2022, when membership was reduced. However, we have managed to fall back on our feet and welcome all who wish to join, whether they be traditional or modern, beginners or advanced.
In 1980s, the society became incorporated and changed the name to Illawarra Art Society Inc. They exhibited in the Botanic Gardens monthly, then the Mall's grass area in lower Crown Street.
After a few years, they moved to David Jones under the walkway. They participated in a council parade in the early '80s with a float titled “Queen of Arts”.
In 1993, they exhibited in a park and later, the Plaza at Corrimal during that suburb's first Spring Into Corrimal event. The persistence of the society brought about the establishment of the Wollongong Art Gallery that we know today.
There have been many other exhibitions held over the years and money raised for charities.Our history was recorded in the Illawarra Art Society 50yr Anniversary Booklet.
The Illawarra Art Society is still an ongoing friendly place with a strong and supportive social network, so come and enjoy either beginning or developing your art.
Contact the Facebook group at Illawarra Art Society Incorporated
