By Alesha Capone
Point Cook painter Leesa Gray-Pitt has been awarded an artist residency at a French chateau next year.
Ms Gray-Pitt said the residency, at Chateau d’Orquevaux in Champagne-Ardenne, would run from May 2-30.
“I got an email saying that I had been accepted in the middle of the night, I was so excited that I couldn’t sleep,” she said.
“This would be a beautiful place to meet, work, talk and engage with other artists.”
Ms Gray-Pitt said she started painting in 2015, when her daughter Star was diagnosed with cancer. She said art helped her to “deal with the pain and loss” when Star died at the age of 20 in 2016.
“It has been my therapy, my savior, my catharsis, my everything,” she said. Ms Gray-Pitt, who has three other children, said she mainly painted portraits.
Chateau d’Orquevaux has provided Ms Gray-Pitt with a grant to help cover the costs of her residency in France, but she still needs to raise funds for flights and accommodation.
She is hoping to sell some of her paintings, find sponsors and do commissions to help fund the trip. She has also applied for a $1000 grant from Wyndham council and set up an online fundraising page at www.gofundme.com/r59q7
