Creative Byron Bay: Discover Art, Galleries and Your Own Hidden Talents

This article is sponsored by our partners, Byron Bay Council. To book your creative Byron Bay adventure, visit legendarybyron.com.au.

Byron Bay might be synonymous with sandy, salty escapades and long, summery days, but there are at least three good reasons to visit mid-year — and that’s not even counting Splendour. For a start, tourist numbers are down, so you won’t find yourself queuing for breakfast or dodging pedestrians in overcrowded streets Bluesfest-style. Second up, the weather, with temperatures hovering around the late-teens, offers a sizeable improvement on southeastern offerings. Third, hordes of artists are painting, drawing and sculpting in their Hinterland studios, awaiting your visit.

In fact, in Byron, you’ll find two times as many people working in the creative industries as you’ll find in the average shire. “A place without art is a very dull place indeed,” says Byron Bay Shire Mayor Simon Richardson. “We have a rich tradition of cultural creativity, and so for us, in a way, it ensures that the alternative or progression of culture and community here continues to have a voice, continues to share their skills and ideas with the wider community ... We’ve got a really lovely mix between those who are very regionally and locally focused, and come from that old-school, non-metropolitan artistic aesthetic, and those who are fully fledged professionals.”

WATCH AN ARTIST AT WORK IN A '70s MO

One of the most Lord of the Rings-esque yet least visited areas in the Byron Shire is Goonengerry, and one of its most talked about artists is award-winning sculptor and ceramicist Suvira McDonald. You can watch him in action in his enormous studio (visits by arrangement; call (02) 6684 9194), situated on an MO. For those who’ve never donned a pair of rainbow flares, that’s short for Multiple Occupancy, which is kind of a technical-sounding word for commune. “These days an MO is more about people just wanting to live in a close supportive community,” McDonald explains. “Our MO only has five properties; it’s very manageable. People drop by and borrow an onion. We all like and support each other”.

There’s virgin rainforest, a garden that’s been established for 20 years and more wildlife than you’ll see in an episode of Blinky Bill. “I’m a potter originally, so there’s always tableware on hand as well as the sculptures,” McDonalds says. “I work a lot with recycled materials, so that makes it interesting for the visitor. There are plenty of curiosities hanging around, including my collection of steel.”

Browse and buy affordable art

What better keepsake of your time in Byron than an enviable contemporary art find? Retrospect Galleries (52 Jonson Street, Byron Bay) is probably the town's leading gallery, often travelling abroad for affordable art fairs. They offer up a roster of excellently curated exhibitions from artists who work in Byron Bay, Australia and the world. Graphic and street art are particularly prominent, and if you're lucky you'll stumble in on a day they're hosting an artist talk, workshop or live art demonstrations.

The July 2014 exhibition is a real charmer. Retrospect are exhibiting the work of Oksana Waterfall, whom they caught wind of at Byron Art's Classic, an annual community exhibition. The detailed, Russo-inspired collages play with the relics of childhood. "The works have a curious blend of whimsy, nostalgia, tenderness and a touch of the macabre," write Retrospect on their website.

GET HANDS-ON

If watching McDonald gets you inspired, a trip to the Byron Bay Art Studio (18 Centennial Circuit, Byron Bay) will have you creating like Picasso in no time. There, experienced artist and 'art-inspirationalist' Irena Kirpichnikova has taught tens of thousands of individuals to develop their artistic confidence. In just three hours, she’ll help you produce your very own masterpiece - even if you’ve never so much as glanced at a paintbrush in your life. For the especially enthusiastic, she offers five-day one-on-one ‘art apprenticeships’, during which you’ll learn about how the brain creates colours and how to “paint from your heart — using intuition and self-expression”.

Inspired? Check out legendarybyron.com.au to plan and book your getaway in Byron Bay.