By Parker McKenzie
When Paul Miller drew a portrait of his daughter while in lockdown, he didn’t expect to win first place in the Upwey Archies community art exhibition.
While he has been involved in art and graphic design throughout his life, the inspiration for his work was time well spent with his nine-year-old daughter Anna.
“We spent a lot of time together in lockdown and it was bit of a struggle for kids her age where they should be quite social and I was quite busy working from home,” he said.
“I took a day off to paint a portrait of Anna wearing a mask to capture the essence of what she was going through and spend some more time with her.”
The Upwey Archies is an exhibition organised by Upwey Community Group in partnership with Burrinja Cultural Centre, with a selection of the entries being displayed in the shop fronts of Upwey businesses.
Mr Miller said he had never heard of the competition before this year, but appreciated the opportunity to spend quality time with his daughter and share the results with the community.
“I really like the community we’ve got here, I’ve been living here for nearly 14 years,” Mr Miller said.
“It was a good event and something I could do and share with Anna.”
Mr Miller said he never expected to win the competition with his entry My Masked Hero.
“I know Anna loves drawing and painting so we did some painting together,” he said.
“It was a bit of shock, I didn’t even know what to expect with how it was all set up or how many people were entering.”
Artwork is displayed throughout October and November and the competition had over 100 entries.
“It’s a good community we’ve got here, I don’t know how many other suburban towns and villages do this sort of thing,” Mr Miller said.
“Walking the streets and seeing all the paintings in the windows is pretty cool, so thanks to the Upwey Community Group for organising it, it’s really good.”
