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Sisters Olive and Keela Adams are part of the next generation of young artists to have their artworks lit up for all to enjoy.
The 2023 Up in Lights Gallery will be officially launched at an event on Thursday January 19 from 7pm in Timor Walk, with everyone welcome to attend.
The Up in Lights Gallery was unveiled in 2021 and includes artworks by eight young local artists.
The works are housed in custom-built light boxes in Timor Walk off of Ozone carpark, making them especially striking at night.
Olive, 17, had an artwork featured in the inaugural gallery and returns this year with a new piece, while her sister Keela, 14, is making her debut.
Olive said that she has loved art her whole life and intends to pursue it as a career.
“It’s an awesome feeling seeing your artwork put up in public and I definitely did get comments from people. It was cool having that opportunity to showcase my skills,” she said.
“I think that showcasing youth art is super important especially in a small town where it feels like opportunities are limited so it’s really cool seeing everyone participate and just seeing other people my age doing similar things.
“Not just competitions but workshops and all the community art things, it’s encouraging for young people.
“I’ve done a few of these art shows, but this is Keela’s first time.”
Keela said that while she was excited to be part of an exhibition with her older sister, the pair approached their art from different angles.
“It was cool that she was also doing it… we don’t have similar art styles,” she said.
The eight artists for this year’s exhibition were chosen from 168 youth entries in the Warrnambool Coaster Art Show hosted by the F Project. The artworks had to fit on a standard-sized round coffee coaster.
The coasters were photographed and reproduced onto acrylic sheets that sit in the light boxes. Several of the original artworks have been sold by the artists.
Other artists selected this year include Alexandra Twaddle, Aurora Duane, Gabby Lougheed, Bailie, Aarahi Schuler-Singh, and Isabella Pickford.
The Up in Lights Gallery is an initiative of the Warrnambool City Council with support from FReeZA.