A local retirement village welcomed visitors and admirers to their two-day arts exhibition last week.
Pakuranga Park Village’s Art & Craft Expo was on display at their Community Centre on Friday and Saturday showcasing the villages’ creative talents: from art collections to embroidery and knitting to scrapbooking and fly fishing.
One of the talented individuals there is resident Doreen Priestley. Art, she declared in her blurb, was her best subject at school and she attended the Elam School of Fine Arts.
“I realised I would never become a full-time artist and instead became a model milliner.”
However, her love of art stuck with her and – after no longer having a lovely big garden – she decided to paint again in water colours, combining her artistic creativity and inspiration of flowers.
“I love flowers,” Priestley says. “It took me a few days to complete each painting.”
Another resident’s remarkable work was by artist Noelene Steele. In her blurb, Noelene describes designing and making a dress for her 13th birthday.
“I have continued over the years with dress making, curtain and blind making, along with pottery, mosaics, needlework and carpentry.”
Noelene, however, didn’t pick up an artist’s brush until her 50s. She occasionally exhibits and paints at various local shows.
“I paint in acrylic,” Noelene says. “I like portraits and landscapes and casual sort of style. I like painting all sorts of things, really.”
Noelene’s husband John is a writer and former journalist.
His books, covering history, were on display and included When Toawaka Met Cook, which explores the 12 extraordinary days that Cook and his crew spent with the Ngati Hei people.
“My interest in history began with writing up our family’s history and genealogy,” John says. “They (the books) take four to five years to do and research.”
On Friday, the money raised from gold coin donations was about $400, Pakuranga Park Village’s activity co-coordinator Christine Bull says.
All gold coins donations went to Dementia Auckland.
“It’s been incredible,” Bull says. “It’s pretty inspirational seeing this amazing collection.”
