We love Dieudonne. A home that is full of pleasant memories to last a lifetime. On a visit to Tasmania, we came across the incredibly talented Esther Shohet, and fell in love with her work she does with oil on silk. Hence, we couldn’t resist commissioning Esther to create a piece that illustrated Dieudonne, capturing the beauty of the place.
Below are just some of the things we love about the place:
- The surrounding mountains, the Harrietville valley, the small ovens river at the back and Mount Feathertop are just beautiful and gives us a sense of peace and rest whenever we come down.
- We love gardening so we are slowly trying to build one with plants and trees that suit the climate – lots of small fir / pine trees, birch and then lots of bulbs and flowering shrubs – camellias, azaleas etc. We have verandas at the front and back and a large deck on the side so we can sit and enjoy the area.
- The grandkids love playing in the trees at the back – particularly a large fir tree that lends itself to this, running around on the grass, playing in the river in summer – building a small dam, floating down, trying fishing etc.
- There are a number of walks on both sides but they love walking on a track up the mountain behind us. The area is known for bike riding as there are a lot of races in spring and summer but there is also a bike track that runs along the front to the centre of town and the other way along the river that the kids love.
- The climate is so good that the area is known as the food trail. Harrietville itself has a few coffee shops (Morries, Bellas, Verona’s Lavender farm, Grannies Pantry) and two pubs but around the region there are heaps of restaurants, wineries, bakeries, cheese producing shops, orchards and nut plantations. At the back of the house along the river there are wild blackberries, plum trees and apple trees the kids love picking.
- Of course in winter the area is very popular for all the snow fun. Harrietville is the last small alpine village before you drive the last 30k to Mt Hotham and Dinner Plain where the resorts are.
- The Ovens river goes through the town. Harrietville was at its peak in the late 1800’s when they dredged for Gold in the river. There is a park showing the history with artefacts from the period. The old dredge hole is now a lake which has been stocked with trout and is fed by a spring – Joop’s Jetty is where people swim from or fish etc.
- The animals in the area are also an attraction for the kids. Behind us and across the river are horses and goats. Sometimes cows. A neighbour has alpacas down the road used for spinning wool etc. Crackles the pig is a favourite to feed with the wild apples and lives in a yard down from us along the river. We all love walking along the river and seeing the bird life (huge variety). We have seen wild deer and of course foxes.
Esther Shohet was born in Brisbane, Australia in 1962. She grew up with a passion for drawing and painting from a very young age. Originally gaining qualifications in Fashion Design, in the early 80’s she travelled to London to pursue her career. After 2 years in the industry in London, she decided to follow her heart and study art. With a love for travelling also sparked, Esther moved on to Paris, France to complete a 3 year course in Graphic Arts.
She then returned to Australia and worked as a Graphic Designer for 2 years. Her travel interests were once again aroused and she moved onto Japan. It was there that Esther really commenced her career in art. Inspired by the silks used in Kimono making, she started to paint on silk using a method very similar to Batik. The vibrant colours and the movement in her pictures evoke a sense of fun and happiness. Her work has been exhibited in Japan, Singapore, the United States and Australia. She has won several awards in Japan and has had extensive coverage by the Japanese media, including radio and television. After 10 years in Japan, Esther decided to return to Australia and settle in Tasmania where she finds endless inspiration from its heritage, lifestyle and natural beauty.
She is now represented by Gallery Salamanca in Hobart where her work is permanently on show. She also has a range of prints, puzzles and scarves that can be found at Gallery Salamanca and Aspect Design.
If you are interested in purchasing a print, please contact us (Alan and Sandra Skinner) directly.