All posts tagged: sunshine coast

Art on Cairncross

Published by Lois Nicholls

Story fea­tured in Coun­try Style Mag­a­zine, 2009 Jane Caraffi grew up surrounded by books on art history and recalls being “dragged” around London galleries while her school friends were off on exciting holidays. It was only much later, on the other side of the world, that she came to fully share her father’s passion for art and to open her own gallery, Art on Cairncross, in the south Queensland town of Maleny. Jane describes her initial move to the area as “pure happenstance”. Having trained as a nurse, she began travelling and reached Queensland in 1993. When she settled in Maleny, art supplanted nursing as a preferred occupation and she found herself running a gallery. A shared interest in photography introduced her to Tony Gill, a former hospitality worker who had also turned to gallery management in nearby Montville. The shared interests blossomed into romance and marriage — and when the opportunity arose to buy their new premises and combine forces, the decision was simple. Maleny’s physical attractions would have played a part. Set in …

Long Journey Home

Published by Lois Nicholls

FROM A BOYHOOD in WA to a new life and family in London, Julian Leigh has finally brought it all together in the Sunshine Coast hinterland of Queensland, Australia. The view from Julian and Gillian Leigh’s Maleny home is striking. In the distance lie the Glasshouse Mountains, a smudged charcoal outline that contrasts starkly with the rolling green farmland in the foreground. A stately Morton Bay fig draws the eye to the front garden and a lily pond completes the serene picture. The tranquillity is momentarily disturbed as Gillian arrives with a horse trailer, spilling children and dogs while apologising for a pony club meeting that lasted a tad too long. Julian emerges with a firm handshake and cheery “G’day!”, looking every bit the farmer. Shortly afterwards, a friend delivers a chocolate cake for our afternoon tea and the realisation grows that the setting is not the only attraction — it’s the genuine friendships, lack of pretence and sense of community that draws people to Maleny. The town on the Sunshine Coast hinterland is just over an hour …