General News
9 May, 2025
Gift ideas for Mum and more
THIS month’s exhibition at the Camperdown Courthouse will see works from artist and Courthouse volunteer Isha Paasse displayed as bright and colourful gift ideas for Mother’s Day and beyond.
Ms Paasse’s exhibition, which will be up for the month of May, showcases bright and colourful works alongside a number of upcycled vases.
“All the vases I’ve made cheap because I upcycle them and decorate them with alcohol ink,” she said.
“I’m dedicating it to Mother’s Day because even the larger ones out there are only $50 – I’m hardly making any money on them because I wanted to do something special for mums.
“My paintings, I’ve made them start at $25 up to $50 because I want them to be something really lovely for mums.”
Many of the works, including the upcycled vases, use alcohol ink – a versatile type of ink which is fast-drying and acid-free – while the larger paintings use water-based oils.
Ms Paasse said she has enjoyed using the alcohol inks as they produce a strong colour and are “beautiful”.
“I’ve just learned how to use these inks because they’re not that easy to use – they have their own mind,” she said.
“I’ve used them for the past eight years, and they tend to be successful with their sales because of their colour.
“For my bigger paintings, I mainly used water-based oils – they’re nice and thick and full of texture.”
Ms Paasse said she has always been passionate about being creative.
“Art is a way to help me relax from the stresses of life and it’s what I enjoy doing,” she said.
“Art keeps me going – being creative is all I dream of and all I think about every day for the past 20 years.
“It’s only been in the last 10 years I have exhibited – I wasn’t very brave, and I had to get someone to help me.
“It takes a lot of courage to exhibit and put yourself out there because you’re prone to criticism, or are you going to sell.”
As a volunteer of the Courthouse and art enthusiast, Ms Paasse has been thrilled with the response to the monthly exhibitions.
“We’ve been doing exhibitions since the start of 2023,” she said.
“It’s really great because most of the artists are local, so we’re showing how much creativity is in the area.”
Read More: Camperdown