OFF THE SLATE GALLERY

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (15:42): I rise this afternoon on a matter of interest to congratulate a significant and talented group of people from my own region on the Fleurieu Peninsula, namely, those people associated with what is called Off the Slate Gallery, a gallery in the main street of Willunga that was set up back in 2005 to provide not only an outlet for talented artists on the Fleurieu Peninsula but also an opportunity for those people seeking diverse, sophisticated and quality art to access that art from this shop in the main street.

It commenced as a cooperative gallery in July 2005 in an old building that was renovated by the owner with input from those members of the gallery. In fact, there are 18 members who run the business, and they are continually changing that work because they are part of what is known as the Purple Flag Flying Fleurieu Art Trail. That art trail is really generating some opportunity for the talented artists in our region, but it also adds, importantly, to the fine wine, fine food and fine tourism opportunities the Fleurieu Peninsula offers all South Australians and interstate and international visitors.

I like the concept of the cooperative gallery because individual artists often find it difficult to be able to display and therefore exhibit, market, promote and sell their talents. By setting up a cooperative gallery, you do not have all the overheads of a business that you would if you were by yourself. A commission is paid from each of the pieces of art sold and that helps to run and improve the gallery with respect to its general features that are commendable, to say the least, when you go in there, and they really do help to exhibit and show the finest parts of the art.

The Fleurieu Peninsula has always been an attractive place to entice artists to come and live. What I find particularly fascinating about members of the Slate Gallery are that some of them paint pictures, some are photographers, some are texture artists, some do abstract acrylic artwork, some specifically focus on wildlife, some on landscape and one in particular I found to be very talented with wood, making clocks, pens and bowls of amazing shapes and textures. Another one develops art from objects found on the beaches around the Fleurieu Peninsula. The importance of this is that it also captures a point in time of the history of the Fleurieu Peninsula. I believe that the great environment in which we live and in which these artists also live and work enhances their capacity and their talent.

We hear that we need to be branding and better positioning South Australia, and the Premier raised this on his recent trip to England. We already have icons like the Fleurieu Peninsula, Kangaroo Island, the gateway to the outback, our magnificent aquaculture on Eyre Peninsula, the beauty of Yorke Peninsula, and the richness and diversity of the Lower South-East. The problem we have is that in trying to brand these artists and these people with talent, the smaller tourism operators are not getting the funding and support that they should be getting from the government.

Sadly, after 10 years, we have seen cuts in the budget year after year. These small amounts of money can strongly help to brand and support this state, and small amounts of grant funding and opportunities given to the talented artists and others that I have just highlighted in this matter of interest would go a long way to increase economic and social development opportunities for our state.

Having praised and congratulated everybody involved with the Off the Slate Gallery and particularly the Just A Moment launch that I was able to do as one of the three or four launches that they do each year, I call on the government and the opposition (as a potential government) to look at the importance of supporting and developing art and artists and tourism throughout South Australia and particularly on the Fleurieu Peninsula.