Artists involved in the inaugural Showcasing Women Artisans of central Victoria exhibition are hopeful Saturday’s event will raise substantial funds for women in need. 

Sculptor Yvonne George is “mad passionate” about preventing family violence, having formerly worked at a refuge. 

“So I am happy to come on board,” she said. 

Ms George is among 10 professional women artisans exhibiting their work at the event, which runs from 10am until 4pm on Saturday at Dudley House on View Street, Bendigo. 

Proceeds from the joint Rotary Club of Bendigo and Zonta Club of Bendigo initiative will be donated to central Victorian causes assisting women in need. 

Attendees will have opportunities to buy or commission work. 

The $10 cost of entry includes a raffle ticket – prizes have been donated by the artisans.

Ms George will be exhibiting works from her series From the Fires, inspired by the Black Saturday bush fires of 2009.

She was walking through the bush after the fires and noticed first the devastation, then the beauty of the aftermath.

“A lot of my work is based on nature’s forms,” Ms George said.

Mother nature is also a muse for textile artist Pam Hovel, who fell in love with felt about 12 years ago and has been “obsessed” with it ever since.

“All of my pieces are felt in one form or another,” she said.

Ms Hovel uses only natural dyes in all of her work, which are sourced from plants grown in the garden of her property at Mandurang South.

“There are a lot of scarves and garments in what I call botanical print,” she said. Leaves provide both the colour and pattern for the fabric. 

A variety of her works, ranging from garments and vessels to wall art, will be on show at the event on Saturday.

Ms Hovel said there was a “great need” to support causes assisting women in central Victoria. She used to work for a psychiatrist in Bendigo.

“There is such a great need there that I am very happy to help out,” she said.

She said Showcasing Women Artisans in central Victoria would also be “a great opportunity” for people to get to know central Victorian artists and for artists to get to know each other.

Most of the artists involved in the exhibition spend the bulk of their time at their respective studios, making the opportunity to see them all in the one place rare. 

“I would like to encourage people to come along and see what their local artists have to offer,” Ms Hovel said.