By Carol Altmann

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T[/dropcap]he success of The Artery art space in Warrnambool since opening just over two years ago has been nothing short of extraordinary, and it is getting bigger.

The F Project – the volunteer art collective behind The Artery – already manages 30 artist studios, a community gallery space and a retail shop and, before the end of the year, it will take over the five-bedroom, top floor of the Timor St building to accommodate a visiting artists and artists-in-residence program.

As F Project president Dr Emma Charlton explains, the expansion is the next step in a five-year plan to build The Artery into a dedicated arts space that serves local artists and visiting artists, while at the same time building a strong arts presence in the community.

“A large part of The Artery is about getting art out into the community and to develop an appreciation of the arts in our community, and I think we are certainly achieving that,” she says.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] P[/dropcap]rior to leasing the former Guyett’s funeral home at 224 Timor St, the F Project – which started in 2008 –  had a less prominent space upstairs in what was the old Fletcher Jones shop on the corner of Liebig and Koroit streets.

But as vice president Helen Bunyon says, creating a new, street-front premises has been a game-changer.

“It really has created a central contact point for the arts in this community and has taken off like topsy. We always have people dropping in, coming to ask questions, or wanting to become involved,” she says.

Emma adds that The Artery has become a way for new artists who arrive in town to find an immediate audience and creative network.

She gives the example of artist Caroline Healey, originally from the UK, who recently moved to Warrnambool and volunteers as the group’s public relations officer. Largely through her connections with the F Project/Artery, Caroline has already established a following for her work and will soon hold an exhibition.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] A[/dropcap]s it happens, the gallery space – which is hired out to artists and hosts various art events such as the South-West International Women’s Day Art Prize – has a fully booked calendar for 2016.

As such, it has virtually replaced the original intention of the Alan Lane Community Gallery at the Warrnambool Art Gallery.

The 30 studios wax and wane in occupancy and some artists have moved on to set up their own professional studios at places like Factory Arts, in the former Fletcher Jones factory.

There is no doubt, however, that the F Project has become integral to just about every community arts event in Warrnambool.

This includes the Warrnambool City Council’s ‘Hidden Histories’ project that saw 10 different events held in the city’s laneways, to Arts on the Grass, to the murals appearing in laneways, the Fletcher Jones Christmas picnics, the refurbishment of Patloch Lane, numerous arts markets, and even the replacement of the city’s tired Christmas decorations.

But is it too much for a volunteer group?

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] U[/dropcap]nlike the Julia St Creative Space in Portland, The Artery/F Project receives no council funding other than that provided to fulfil specific projects such as the laneways.

Julia St is also volunteer based, but has a part-time Community Arts Officer employed by the Glenelg Shire Council and operates in a council-owned building.

The WCC no longer has a community arts officer, but is reaping the many benefits of having the F Project/Artery fill the gap for free.

Neither Emma or Helen wish to get into the politics of council funding, but Emma acknowledges the dependency on volunteers and says the group plans to apply for an Australia Council grant next year to employ a part-time coordinator.

When I asked how many hours they each devote to the Artery/F Project each week, both Helen and Emma answer “between 10 and 20”, although I know they are being modest.

Both are keen to stress that the workload is shared among many.

“We have people involved who bring a whole range of different skills and, for others, it is a way of developing those skills,” Helen says.

“It is a lot of responsibility,” Emma adds. “But the negatives are far out-weighed by the coolness.”

[box]The Artery is at 224 Timor St, Warrnambool and is open from Wed-Sun 10am to 4pm. The retail area sells works by local artists. The current exhibition is Small Gems, the F Project Members Christmas Show, until 3 January. You can find The Artery on Facebook here. P: (03) 55 62 1109 [/box]

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[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] I[/dropcap]n the dexterous hands of Hawkesdale artist Helen Bunyon, a broken clock, a wrecked watch or a discarded fuse can be transformed into wearable works of beauty.

Helen, who is well-known for her long support of the the local arts scene through The F Project and Customs House Gallery, is also an established artist in her own right and her latest work builds on her interest in putting together discarded objects to create something new.

“I like to assemble things. When I trained as an art teacher, I trained in ceramics and that has a 3D aspect to it, a sculptural aspect, and this is an extension of sculpture, except on a smaller scale,” she said.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] H[/dropcap]elen scours the junk shops and op shops for discarded watches, jewellery and other bits and bobs that have usually been dumped out of a drawer, into a shopping bag and dropped into a charity bin.

From this tangled collection, she creates a range of beautiful, one-off jewellery, including brooches, necklaces and ear-rings, using the reassembled parts.

Called the ‘Time Flies’ series, the works are delicate and stylish, yet retain a sense of the industrial.

“It is wearable art with a hint of steampunk,” she explained with a laugh.

[Steampunk pays homage to the Victorian industrial era – I only just learnt this, Carol].

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T[/dropcap]he industrial theme of her work  extends to the use of blown fuses to create funky brooches that resemble miniature robots. This really must be the ultimate in recycling.

“I really like putting things together in different ways to give them a new life and a new beauty,” Helen said.

“The mechanisms of old watches, in particular, are really very beautiful, although they are becoming harder to find these days, with many new watches containing only a battery and not much else.”

For Helen, the “upcycling” of former junk also contains a certain romance.

“I find myself wondering what the story is behind something: who owned that piece? How did it get there? All that sort of thing,” she said.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T[/dropcap]hose with a keen eye will find that Helen uses other discarded items as part of her market stall. The price tags, for example, are pieces of a jigsaw that was once a silver-coloured map of the world.  And her display table is draped in old pianola rolls. Even the tissue paper used in the jewellery boxes is recycled from old dress patterns.

“We live in such a throw-away society, where if something doesn’t work anymore, we get rid of it, but it often has so many more uses if you just look at it differently,” Helen said.

[box] Helen’s work is available through The Artery market, 224 Timor St, Warrnambool. The next market is scheduled for December 15. [/box]

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