The Doyles Opening Night Speech 2024
Here’s my speech from this year’s 2024 Doyles event at the Firth Park Community Centre in Mudgeeraba;
First of all, whenever we gather here in Division 9, I start by acknowledging the Kombumerri people, the traditional custodians of this area, and pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging.
Respecting our elders though, is not just constrained to the acknowledgement of First Nations peoples even though that’s wonderfully important, but in our community, respect for elders stretches well beyond. My own mother and father taught me to have respect for my grandmother and grandfather and I teach my kids the same and where appropriate encourage my community to join me in that respect.
I want to pay my respects to elders of the arts sector and community sectors here tonight.
People like Jennefer Doyle, the wife of the late Darcy Doyle and a catalyst for this event to be held.
People like Earle Hinschen the founder and instigator of these wonderful Doyles Award shenanigans.
And now, the event director Sam Sinner who has taken over from the inimitable Gillian Buttress-Grove to continue to drive this event forward to this our 20th year!
Welcome to the Doyles.
After over a decade in the beautiful Mudgeeraba Memorial Hall we welcome you here to the Firth Park Community Centre. I won’t go into all the boring details about how we got here but suffice to say the escalating value of art exhibited (you’re all getting very good!) and our overnight CCTV and security here meant risks could be managed here more appropriately. Frankly though, the sunset views from our western balcony are art in themselves. The artist doesn’t charge for the pleasure of experiencing the masterpiece and you’re welcome at closing time … around 4.45pm - 5pm … to finish your visit to our gallery exhibition with a stroll along the balcony, a place where nature might inspire your next piece of art.
Last night was about thanking sponsors and dignitaries… but tonight is about thanking artists and their VIPS for their involvement in making this event the wonderful success that it is for our community.
Last night I made a few remarks to sponsors about what it means to be “a patron of the arts” but I think each of you, artists and those celebrating artists, are also patrons. I think the words from last night might resonate with you again this evening, so bear with me if you’ve heard it before.
Being a patron of the arts I think has three elements;
First, there is a love of being a partner in bringing beauty to a community. You love beautiful things and you want others to share that love. Much of what you see here in the show is beautiful, whether landscape or still life or figurative and portraits. Some are captivatingly beautiful and I can see that idea of beauty motivates you. The first element of being a patron of the arts is a love of beauty.
The 2nd motivator can be the economic impact of supporting great art experiences, like this event, and you want to grow your community and support an economic impact that hopefully impacts your business activity and others around you. As the local Councillor, I appreciate that motivation and if you were here last night you would have heard me encouraging our sponsors and art buyers to open their wallets for art they love – your art. I tried to lead by example in that realm. Some people, quite rightly, are motivated by the value and economic impact of art (maybe because it pays their bills) and that’s important too!
Finally, some of us love this idea that great art; music, painting, theatre, sculpture; can be a safe place for dangerous conversations we need to have as a community. Maybe it’s topics like diversity or inclusion, maybe it’s the environment or societal issues or maybe even tougher topics, like gender roles or sexuality. There’s no doubt some of the art here conjures those dangerous conversations for me, and has for others, and you as artists bring that to this safe space to start critical dialogue.
Whatever motivates you, I want to express my deep appreciation for being part of this special event. From our early days emerging from the great Mudgeeraba Pumpkin festival (ask Earle about that!) to last year welcoming thousands of folk to the village and selling tens of thousands of dollars worth of art, you are part of something important and beautiful and transformative for our community and the artists and visitors who participate. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Please enjoy our hospitality at this, the 20th Annual Doyles Art Awards.
