Louan Walker, also known by her artistic name Pencil Head, is well known in the area for several murals she has completed, including the Cobram mural on the Grand Central Hotel and others in Katamatite, Strathmerton and Barooga.
Louan was born in Numurkah and lived in Cobram and Barooga until she was 11, before moving to Queensland.
Art has been her passion since the age of seven, but after she began working, Louan stopped drawing for nearly 12 years — until she picked it up again eight years ago.
“When my son was born, I needed a hobby and started drawing again,” she said.
“Friends would say you need to start a Facebook page, which, I thought, was ludicrous at the time, but I went, ‘oh, okay, maybe I’ll do that’ and it just grew from there.
“People would ask, ‘hey, can you draw someone for me?’ and I became known as ‘Pencil Head’ because I do pencil portraits.
“It’s a really silly name, and it doesn’t make sense if you look at my stuff now because I tend to paint, but it just stuck.”
After Louan began drawing again, she went back to work at her government job for a year before quitting to do art full-time.
“Now I can’t imagine my life without it,” she said.
Naturally, after drawing for a while, Louan decided to experiment with painting and eventually murals. She has now been painting for six years.
Louan’s first mural she painted was at Barooga Public School, a full-circle moment for her, and she attended the school in her primary years.
“I never painted as a kid ... I always thought it would be too hard, so it was always pencils, but now it’s 95 per cent painting,” she said.
“I definitely enjoy doing all sorts of stuff, but portraits is my absolute passion.”
Louan lives in Brisbane but visits Cobram every Easter, a tradition that started three years ago when her father got sick.
During her visits, Louan was commissioned for several murals around town, and after her father passed continued to visit Cobram regularly.
This Easter marks her first visit to Cobram not to paint a mural, but to exhibit a series of works inspired by her time in the town.
Louan has been developing the series for two years, drawing on photos collected during her many visits over that time.
“I feel like it’s done, and I’m ready to let it out into the wild and show everybody,” she said.
“I love the energy in Cobram at Easter ... I feel like it’s got a real buzz about it.
“I don't think Cobram is like every other country town.
“There's something special about it.”
The art exhibition and sale will be held at the Cobram Grand Central Hotel on Saturday, April 4 from 10am to 3pm.
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