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Board members

Janice Hanicar //  Chairperson // has lived in Singleton for twenty five years and worked as a play group worker for Singleton Family Support. Four years ago Janice returned to TAFE to commence a diploma in Fine Arts, where her passion is sculpture. Janice is an active in a number of diverse arts groups in the region. Janice was co-opted onto the board in 2007.

Cr Ian Lloyd QCis the Dungog Shire Council representative. Ian is a QC who specialises in criminal law. He believes that the arts play a crucial role in a healthy community and that this will become more obvious and valued when other things become more insecure.

Cr Karen Portolan  // Treasurer//  is the Muswellbrook Shire Council's representative. Karen has 3 young children and grew up in a rural community. She is very aware of the integral role our cultural activities play in defining our community identity and establishing social frameworks. It is important to her that our younger generations gain the value and positive influence of our cultural heritage. Karen has experienced the joys of writing and music and is working to ensure that our cultural community is supported, recognized and developed.

Cr Lyn McBain is Singleton Council's representative. Lyn is concerned about the environment and cultural impacts on our region. She is an artist with the Singleton Art Group, mainly watercolour medium and loves to promote local artistic abilities. Lyn is involved in many community activities, including Tidy Towns, the Mechanics Institute, the Family History Society of Singleton, the Singleton Hospital Trust and Singleton Heritage Advisory Committee.

Cr Julie Lyford is the Gloucester Shire Council's representative. Julie sees cultural development and the Arts as an integral part of healthy, progressive and inclusive communities. Julie is committed to enhancing and facilitating the promotion and growth of this vital area in the social fabric of our region. To this end she was the coordinator and editor of 'Gloucester the Life of a Community', a book produced to celebrate the International Year of the Volunteer. This is a wonderful resource, documenting every group within the Shire with humour and sensitivity.

Cr Pam Seccombe is the Upper Hunter Shire Council representative. Pam is a business woman with many years marketing experience in powerhouses like Unilever, American Express, Apple and Microsoft and running her own marketing consultancy, Pam now provides a range of consulting and people development services from customised Career Transition Coaching, Executive Coaching and Mentoring programs to the design and facilitation of tailored and in-house workshops. Pam has also been involved in providing life skills coaching to individuals in transition, either from their tertiary education to the workforce or in redefining their direction later in life. Pam has a love of and appreciation of the Arts although claims no artistic skill of her own!  
 
Pippa Robinson.  Pippa gained her BA in Fine Arts at the University of Newcastle (1985) and practices as sculptor and printmaker – exhibiting in group and solo shows. Pippa was the inaugural Director of Watt Space, The University of Newcastle Student Art Gallery for its first seven years before spending a year teaching English in Nepal and travelling the Camino in Spain. From 1998 to 2001 Pippa worked with Marily Cintra (Identity Art and Environment) in developing and implementing the Arts for Health Program for John Hunter Hospital. Pippa then coordinated this program until 2010. She has been the instigator of many community projects including the mosaics of Gloucester and believes passionately in the importance of the arts for the growth, development and health of communities.

Kara Mitchel-Watson // Vice Chairperson // Kara has a background in both the visual and performing arts, having completed studies in Commercial Art at East Sydney Tech. and trained in various forms of dance. Her love of dance and art led to her working in live theatre in set design and choreography. Kara now works in tourism and is a member of various community organisations, including Scone & District Garden Club and Scone Arts and Crafts group. She is very supportive of the Arts and is exceptionally pleased to be part of the Arts Upper Hunter organisation, which is engendering and developing Arts within the Region.

Gail Bragg.  Gail has a background in health as a Community Nurse but always maintained a strong interest in the arts in general and in my local community specifically. She has been involved in the Muswellbrook Regional Art Gallery in many ways over 20+ years, as long as we have lived in Muswellbrook and am still an active volunteer there. She is an active volunteer with the Eisteddford in Muswellbrook for almost as long. Likewise she has been very active in Scone ADFAS ( Australian Decorative and Fine Arts Society) on committee and Chairman and currently involved at an Executive level. Gail maintains a subscription to both theatre and ballet in Sydney and belong to the Art Gallery of N.S.W. She have yet to be asked to participate in a MATS production!!!

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