Contemporary paper artist Mandy Hillson loves the River of Art Festival for giving artists opportunities for exposure they would not normally get.
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The Broulee-based artist has been involved in the festival every year since 2013, except during COVID.
Her involvement spans the River of Arts prize, Art on Parade, open studios and workshops.
Ms Hillson moved to the area from Canberra about 13 years ago after falling in love with the natural beauty, the quiet, and the smaller, friendly communities.
Over the last ten years her art practice has moved from being secondary in her life to becoming her vocation.
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Overseas workshops, artist residency
Ms Hillson's interest in paper art was born many years ago while living in Melbourne.
"I fell in love with Japanese paper when I was doing a Japanese ink drawing course," she said.
When Ms Hillson moved to Canberra she did workshops on the paper-making process at ANU and Studio One.
She has continued to attend workshops, including ones overseas.
They have taken her to America and, more recently, to Japan where she worked with a contemporary paper artist as part of an artist residency for two months last year.
Continues to experiment
Ms Hillson has taken from Japanese traditional paper art and applied it to Australian native plants.
She has also used some of the traditional techniques to create sculptures and lamps.
"I really push the medium as far as it will go and I continue to experiment," Ms Hillson said.
She will be very busy during the September 15-24 festival, with an open studio and paper-making demonstration.
Ms Hillson is also part of the Eurobodalla Fibre and Textile Art Group's exhibition, Landmarks, at Moruya Showground Pavillion, and A Homage to Home and Place at Basil Sellers Exhibition Centre.
She is also involved in the Arts Council of Eurobodalla at Art Central where some of the members are profiling their work.
Festival developing a reputation
Ms Hillson said the River of Art festival is developing a reputation and attracting increasingly larger audiences from further beyond.
That means exhibiting artists get profile and promotion to a larger and broader audience than they would normally get.
"I am really looking forward to the whole sense of community and the energy behind that, visiting other studios and engaging with people.
"It is wonderful to be part of something much bigger than I am and that is so positive," Ms Hillson said.
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