My early years of growing up started in Moree where I was born in 1946 on the 18th April.
My Grandmother brought me up and her name was Nora Hinch. I still remember those days. My Grandmother often told me how we used to travel around by horse and sulky from station to station to look for work.
After some time my Grandmother became ill and passed away. I was only ten years old. Life didn't mean much after that.
I went back to live with my mum. We lived in a tin humpy on the riverbank. After some time living there we moved to Toomelah and that is where I went to school. I didn't have much schooling and only went to sixth grade because we were not allowed in town.
Those were the days when the managers controlled the missions.
When I turned fourteen I was sent to work on the properties but there was no pay.
I have been blest with four beautiful children and nine grandchildren and one great grand daughter who I love very much.
Life hasn't been easy and throughout has been a struggle. But we must keep pushing on because we have to lead the way for our young people of today because they are our future.
In 1987 I started my first TAFE course. This really tested me because I didn't have much education and didn't mix well with other people because we were always told if a white person came to the door to run and hide because we thought we would be taken away and would never see our families again. But we can thank God that we had some wonderful teachers that cared about us and saw something good in us.
And after completing a fine Arts course in 1999 we had the privilege of making handmade paper. It all started by getting bulrush from the river, boiling it in a four gallon drum to make the paper in a baby's bath tub.
Today we work at Euraba Paper Company. It has seventeen workers plus a Manager and a Production Manager. Euraba have many retail outlets that sell our handmade paper and our products. Our Artworks are exhibited and sold in many galleries. We have a Bagaay artwork that has toured every Art Gallery in Australia.
It took a lot of encouragement from our TAFE teacher, Paul West, to get me into art. I was happy making the paper. Now I can't stop making artworks and the staff say I 'get into my zone' and the work just keeps coming and coming. I am very proud that my artworks have been sold around Australia and recently one was selected for New York.
Euraba is a special place. Euraba means 'place of healing'.
My dream and vision is to see our young people come to work at Euraba so we can be mentors for them to help them build up their self esteem and just feel good about themselves.
Auntie Joy and myself are the only two founding members of Euraba that are still working there.
CV
Beverley May Hinch (Aunty May)
May was born in Moree on the 18th of April 1946.She is one of the founding members of The Euraba Paper Company and continues to work as a beater operator in the Mill. She is a driving force behind the organisation and keeper of the vision that genuine employment will strengthen the community and provide opportunities for the younger generation. She has spoken at many artist talks in regional galleries and to schools about her artwork and as a representative of Euraba, sharing the message of hope and self-determination. May enjoys helping the young people learn how to operate the beaters, make paper, pulp painting and Goomeroi tradition.
Exhibitions
2009Ten Years On, Moree Plains Regional Gallery, NSW
2008 Strength of Women, Chrissy Cotter Gallery. Sydney NSW .Art Sydney,Moore Park Sydney NSW
Mungindi Artshow, NADOC, week,Bondi Pavilion Art Gallery
ART Brisbane , Brisbane Convention Exhibition Centre
Big Ones, Little Ones, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
2007 Big Ones, Little Ones, Gallery Amichi, Sydney NSW
Euraba, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney NSW
Aspects Artshow, Goondiwindi QLD.
2006Euraba Drreaming – Our Stories (Aunty May and Aunty Joy), Boomalli, Sydney
Parliament of New South Wales Indigenous Art Prize 2006
My Land My Country, Chrissie Cotter Gallery, Camperdown NSW
Fishers Ghost Art Prize, Cambelltown Regional Gallery, NSW
Blacktown Art Prize, Blacktown, NSW, highly commended
Euraba Paper, Hawksebury Regional Gallery, NSW
Mungindi Artshow, NSW
Gourmet in Gundy, Goondiwindi QLD
200522nd Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Art Award Finalist
for collaborative Euraba work “the River”
Goomeroi Artists from Boggabilla, Moree Plains Regional Gallery, NSW
Parliament of New South Wales Indigenous Art Prize 2005
Euraba Paper Artists, Muswellbrook regional Arts Centre, Tamworth Regional Gallery, Gunnedah Regional Gallery
Paperworks, Cowra Regional Gallery
2004Landmarks – artist Books, Noosa Regional Gallery, QLD
Euraba Paper Artists, Moree Plains Regional Gallery, NSW
2000 – 04Paper as Object, (Bagaay Mural) travelling exhibition toured nationally, Noosa Regional Gallery, Grafton Regional Gallery, Bega Valley Regional Art Gallery, and Tamworth Regional Gallery
Publications
2006 Parliament of New South Wales Indigenous Art Prize 2006 catalogue
pg: 24 (ISBN: 1-875199-51-9)
2004 Parliament of New South Wales Indigenous Art Prize 2005 catalogue
Pg: 23 (ISBN: 1-875199-47-0)
2004Paper as Object catalogue
Pg 51 – 58 (ISBN: 0-958542-1-7)
2000Cover Image Hand Papermaking (USA). Vol 15 Number 2, winter 2000
Article pg 18 – 28, Vol 15 Number 2, winter 2000
Collections:
St Vincent’s Public Hospital Collection, Sydney Australia.
Moree Plains Gallery Collection, NSW, Australia.
City of Sydney, Town Hall.
Workshops / Talks:
2009IAPMA Congress, Creative Paper Co. Burnie Tasmania - Artist presentation.
2006 Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, lino carving and embossing
2004 He Bulli yu, Paper casting workshop, Noosa Regional Gallery, QLD
Lino carving and embossing, Cowra Regional Gallery
EducationalExperience:
2005 – 2006Certificate IV Pulp and Paper manufacturing, Euraba Paper
2004 Certificate II Pulp and Paper manufacturing, Euraba Paper
1997 – 1999Certificate IV Aboriginal Visual Culture, Boggabilla TAFE
Toomelah Public School, attended until grade 6
Work History
1999 – 2009 Euraba Paper Company
Other
2008 –1999Euraba Community Board Member
Chair of Board 2003 - 2004
2005Represented Euraba Paper Company at Art Sydney 05
Represented Euraba at artist talk, Cowra Regional Gallery in conjunction with “Paperworks” exhibition
2000 Represented Euraba Paper Company to receive Prime Ministers Award for Excellence in Community Business partnerships, Canberra and Sydney.
