By Mikayla van Loon
At a Victorian history awards evening, Yarra Ranges Heritage Network was commended for its travelling collaborative exhibition ‘Power and the People: 150 Years of Local Government’.
The Network, a consortium of 18 groups from across the shire, received the Archival Survival Award at the 2022 Victorian Museums and Galleries Awards night on Tuesday 4 October.
Accepting the award on behalf of the Network was chair Sue Thompson who said the recognition from the Victorian division of the Australian Museums and Galleries Association (AMaGA) was quite the honour.
“There was a real recognition that it’s a project that they can see being worthwhile and different,” she said.
“It was an innovative and different thing to what museum people are used to, most of them had an exhibition or a project that they put forward, that they developed.”
This project was designed to celebrate 150 years of local government in the Yarra Ranges area, telling stories of how the council and the people worked together to deliver outcomes for the region.
The judges said they enjoyed the positive perspective of how the community and government have been able to contribute to bettering the lives of residents in the Yarra Ranges.
“A great humble project that demonstrated innovation and creativity, showcased access and equity including diverse voices,” the judges said.
Ms Thompson said she accepted the award on behalf of all the contributing groups which included Friends and Relations of Gulf Station; Healesville and District Historical Society; History Group, Yarra Glen and District Living and Learning Centre History Group; Lilydale & District Historical Society; Monbulk Historical Society; Mont De Lancey Historic Homestead; Mooroolbark History Group; Mount Dandenong and District Historical Society; Mount Evelyn History Group; National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Dandenong Ranges Branch; Oonah Learning Centre; Healesville, Running Rabbits Military Museum; Save the Dandenongs League; Sherbrooke Foothills Historical Society; Southern Sherbrooke Historical Society; Upper Yarra Valley Historical Society; Yarra Ranges Regional Museum; and Yarra Valley Italian Cultural Group.
“The Yarra Ranges is one of the few municipalities that has that many groups and that doesn’t include RSL’s,” Ms Thompson said.
“Most municipalities have one or two history groups, they don’t have what we’ve got. Our history is richer because we’ve got this spread of roots and involvement of these different people in all these individual groups that collect for their area.”
This was the first exhibition the Yarra Ranges Heritage Network had produced together, something Ms Thompson said would not have been possible without funding from the council.
“It wouldn’t have happened without your Yarra Ranges Council and it certainly wouldn’t have happened without the Regional Museum. And when I say Yarra Ranges Council, I mean the council staff and councillors who supported the funding for the project in the first place.”
Yarra Ranges Mayor Jim Child said it was a fitting reward for all the hard work that local volunteer organisations do in capturing and preserving the history of its community.
“This is wonderful recognition for not only the exhibition but the dedication and passion that each of these local community groups have for the history of their communities,” Cr Child said.
“This is a testament to the power of collaboration between community and the council to produce great outcomes, which fittingly is the theme of the exhibition itself.”
The Archival Survival award came with a $1000 prize which Ms Thompson said will be divided between each group.
“So the group now has a $1,000 donation of archival material, which is expensive to buy. So we have to work out how we are going to split it up amongst all the groups, because everybody always needs archival materials,” she said.
Creative Industries minister Steve Dimopoulos said each of the projects recognised with an award or nomination were examples of “creativity and dedication” of the sector.
“Congratulations to all and thank you for the work you do to preserve and share our history for future generations,” he said.
“Our museums, galleries and the people behind them, help showcase what makes Victoria such a vibrant, diverse and creative state.”
AMaGA Victoria represents over 1000 museums, galleries and community collecting organisations, with Executive Director Dr Ashley Robertson congratulating volunteers and staff.
“Together, we celebrate their individual and collective achievements and offer encouragement for future initiatives. On behalf of AMaGA Victoria, congratulations to this year’s winners and nominees.”
Power and the People: 150 Years of Local Government will remain on display at the Yarra Ranges Council Civic Centre building until 23 February, before moving to Burrinja Cultural Centre on 27 February.
