Warm welcome

Beechworth Arts Council is a local community arts organisation established in the 1970s by a group of like-minded individuals.

An affiliated member of Regional Arts Victoria, Beechworth Arts Council has a strong commitment to strengthening community through engagement in the arts.

BAC president Daren John Pope (left) with BAC committee members Heather Sparks and Chris Dormer with Federal MP Dr Helen Haines and committee members Judy Hawking Burnett and Ali Rowe – ‘ART in Autumn’ 2024 exhibition opening at the Beechworth Town Hall.


2024 Art Exhibitions

We produce two Members’ exhibition per year – ART in Autumn and Made in Indigo

Made in Indigo will be at Quercus Community hall December 6 – 8, 2024 to coincide with the last Farmers Market before Christmas (a huge weekend).

Made in Indigo CALL TO ARTISTS now open – deadline for submissions is November 27 (click here)

Details for next Art in Autumn show coming soon.


MEMBERSHIP

Membership of Beechworth Arts Council are renewed at the beginning of each year in January. You can renew your current membership for 2025 by transferring the annual fee of $30 single, ($40 family) to the WAW bank account details below. If you are a new member, you’ll need to fill out a membership form (link below).

Beechworth Arts Council relies on our membership fees for administration and exhibition costs. Your support is always greatly appreciated.

Beechworth Arts Council bank account details:

BSB 803 070

Account 17879

Please include your initials and surname as payee reference

Beechworth Arts Council Membership details (here)


History

Children’s workshop, Spring Ditch Festival Stanley, 2023

In the 1980s, Beechworth Arts Council founded the first Arts and Craft Market in Beechworth, a monthly event that at its height, featured hundreds of arts and craft stalls, attracting thousands of visitors to Beechworth’s historic botanical garden.

Throughout the 1990s, Beechworth Arts Council offered exhibition and studio space in the Mayday Hills precinct and hosted an ambitious program of creative workshops to support the many artists in residence.

In the 2000s, the council produced the first local spoken and written word festival (WRAP), an event that featured writing workshops along with author talks with celebrated writers such as Tony Birch (Ghost River, The Promise, Blood), Rosalie Ham (The Dressmaker, The Year of the Farmer, The should be more dancing) and Shane Maloney (The Bush Off, Stiff, Sucked in). A decade later, the arts council produced a series of popular Spring Arts Festivals showcasing local visual artists along with musicians, authors and poets.

The arts council is auspice of a town-wide photography project spanning four decades. Named Beechworth Family Album, this popular community event celebrates local identities such as Ada Cambridge and David Martin along with significant contributors to Beechworth’s contemporary business and community life.

The arts council is the founder of the now iconic Beechworth Tapestry that was painstakingly woven by key members of the then Victoria Tapestry Workshop. Hanging in the historic Beechworth Town Hall, the tapestry is a popular feature of the town’s historic precinct and widely acknowledged as an important chronicle of the Beechworth’s colonial past.

With the aim of fostering a community of local artisans and artists, since its inception Beechworth Arts Council has offered countless workshops in Life Drawing, Printmaking, and Painting. Many participants of these have gone to establish their own arts practice and build a loyal audience of patrons.

Beechworth Arts Council has been and remains an integral part of the greater Indigo arts community. As we celebrate our 50th anniversary in 2025, with a new and enthusiastic board of management, the arts council is committed to continuing the strong art’s advocacy and legacy into the future.


Sponsorships

Beechworth Arts Council is thrilled to welcome Piano Piano Wines as the exclusive sponsor of the 2024 MADE IN INDIGO opening. A selection of superb Piano Piano wines will be served at the official exhibition launch, Friday December 10, 5.30pm at Quercus Community Hall, Beechworth

PIano Piano Wines are located at 852 Beechworth Wangaratta Road, Upper Everton. We warmly thank Marc and Lisa at Piano Piano for their generous support.

www.pianopiano.com.au

Beechworth Arts Council warmly thanks Arts Rutherglen for the generous loan of their display screen and covers. Arts Rutherglen produce a host of creative annual creative events, of which the Taste of Rutherglen Art Prize and exhibition is one of their biggest draw cards.

Arts Rutherglen details (click here)

Beechworth Arts Council warmly thanks Indigo Shire Council for their generous Logistics Grant support. These vital funds assist in the hiring of Beechworth Town Hall along with supplementary exhibition lighting.


Beechworth Arts Council acknowledges the generous sponsorship of Wilson Fabrics and Bruck Textiles. We thank them for providing the fabric covers for our exhibition display screens.



Acknowledgement of Country

Beechworth Arts Council acknowledges the original custodians of the Indigo Hills and surrounds. The people of the rivers and the hills of this extraordinary country have walked these lands for thousands of years and continue to do so today. We pay our respect to their elders of the past, present and emerging.