The Birchip P-12 School Art Show is returning to the social calendar in 2024, with the opening night on Friday, November 1, featuring guest judge Hop Dac.
Hop Dac was born in Vietnam and came to Australia as a refugee in 1980 and through a series of life events he now has a connection to Birchip through his partner, a daughter of Maree Harris (Rickard).
When approached to be involved in the Birchip Art Show in 2024, following some impressive publicity in “The Age” Culture, Art and Design section, Hop said, “I have heard of Birchip thanks to Maree, but also because of the vanilla slices and the Russell Street bombers.”
Bit of a mixed bag of references there! However, Hop was quick to add: “I would love to be a part of it, so you can lock me in.”
Hop’s family settled in Geraldton on the Western Australian coast when they arrived in Australia. In 1995 Hop Dac left his home in Geraldton to attend art school at Curtin University and described it as a revelation.
“That was really, really great for me as someone who grew up in a country town with a refugee background, and not having parents who took me to galleries or anything it was a really important way for me to soak up everything that came before,” he said.
Painting and study
In the years following, Dac continued painting and did further study, and in 2002 he moved to Melbourne.
In all that time he “had studios and enjoyed painting but never really did much beyond selling to friends or having exhibitions in weird places like pubs and stuff,” he reflects.
His work shifted more towards writing and editing – he worked at literary journal Kill Your Darlings, with later roles at Carers Victoria and the Australian Institute of Family Studies.
There were a few occasions when art did manage to fit into some of the small gaps in his life. After his first daughter was born, Dac would read to her. Noticing that many of the books were illustrated with watercolour or gouache, he was inspired to get his brushes out and try improve his watercolour skills. There was similar inspiration following the birth of his second daughter in 2018.
“I’d try and do a little watercolour every night after everyone had gone to bed,” he said. “But that was it – there wasn’t much other painting.”
During COVID 19, Dac turned to Art to help him through some tough times. He found a studio space and started getting back into creating new works in early 2021 and as the year progressed and with his government job drawing to a close, he decided that instead of looking for a similar role elsewhere, he would turn to art full time.
Bold move
Hop said: “In a time when working as an artist was particularly unpredictable and volatile, it was a bold move, but a good one.”
In late 2022 he featured in a group show at Geelong’s Boom Gallery, and his work was shortlisted for both the National Emerging Art Prize and the Biblio Art Prize. In June 2023, he staged his first solo show and now he works and lives on Wadawurrung country (Geelong/Djilang, Australia) where he is represented by Boom Gallery.
The Birchip P-12 School Art Show committee is looking forward to hearing more about Hop’s story at the 2024 Art Show, which is always an exciting time for the Birchip community, with artists from all over Australia entering and selling quality art works.
If you would like to be involved or know of any artists or sponsors who are interested in being part of the Birchip P-12 School Art Show in 2024, you can contact Simone Christie at the Birchip Neighbourhood House, Cathy Lowry at the Birchip P-12 School or John Richmond for a copy of the 2024 prospectus.
This article appeared in The Buloke Times, 18 June 2024.
