When the 22nd Salford Waters Kingfisher Art Show was held last year, no one realised it would be its swan song.
The show has been an iconic event for Salford Waters since it was first mooted in 1995, raising in this time more than $150,000, supporting more than 900 artists and bringing hundreds of people to the Victoria Point village.
Resident Shirley Hamilton has been there from the beginning, working as both chairman and art coordinator although last year, she worked on an advisory capacity.
“We haven’t got the manpower. To run the show successfully, we need 98 people and this is a retirement village. We are all getting long in the tooth” she said.
Ms Hamilton said many retirees wanted to travel and she “took her hat off to them”.
“You should do these things. Don’t wait. You need to do these things while you can, but it makes it difficult to run something like the show,” she said.
Ms Hamilton said the flats had been made by the residents and she had urged the village to keep them in storage as well as storing the processes in case the show was revived in future years.
“All the information is there and down the track, someone might run with it or do something differently. It’s a starting point,” she said.
Ms Hamilton said that the show had proudly supported many charities including DV Connect, Flying Doctors, Heart Foundation, Outback Aussie Helpers, Queensland Ambulance Service, Cancer Council, RDCOTA, Victoria Point Marine Rescue, Blue Care, St Lukes, Angel Flight, Victoria Point State High chaplaincy, Redlnad Hospital, Brisbane Legacy, Star Community Transport, Soldier On, Cleveland Lions and Oz Care. Funds were raised through commissions from sales, raffles and donations.
“The show always gave our residents a lot of pleasure. For a week, there was a lot of art to see and a lot of people and visitors to talk to,” Ms Hamilton said.
“I think it gave us a sense of self worth. Just because you live in a retirement village, doesn’t mean you are had it and on the scrap heap. This is a way we could help others,” she said.
Ms Hamilton now has 13 pieces of art purchased at the various shows and made a host of lifelong friends.
The art show also featured a great variety of crafts, plants and baking by residents.
This will continue with the residents contributing towards two annual market days. The Kingfisher Market days will be staged on Saturday, April 22 and on another date in September. There will be stalls selling plants and home made cakes and second hand goods. Salford Waters’ new coffee shop which will be open.
Secretary, Salford Waters Resident's Committee, Jan Davis said the village had always “received wonderful support from the Redlands community, with hundreds of art works, china paintings and woodwork”.
“As the Exhibition ran for six consecutive days it is estimated that more than100 residents gave their time to this venture, making plants, cakes, jams, sweets and craft items. We would also like to thank all the sponsors who supported us,” she said
“Many other residents, too many to mention, have contributed many hours to ensure the success of the exhibition each year.”