Patricia Elkin was an instigator and founding member of the Packsaddle Fundraising Committee at the New England Regional Art Museum (NERAM) 36 years ago.

During that time, the committee has assisted with the acquisition of significant works for the NERAM Collection - predominantly through its annual Packsaddle Exhibition.

Each year the fundraising exhibition exhibits more than 100 artworks and prints for two weeks and is one of the biggest selling art exhibitions in regional NSW.

Mrs Elkin said promoting local Australian artists was what originally inspired her to start the fundraising exhibition.

"Back then, most people (including me) when they had built a house, or when they were renovating, would want a painting on their wall and would look for a prominent European or English painter and most likely buy a copy," Mrs Elkin said.

"I found that Australian artists were being neglected. And I wanted to put them into the forefront and get them some money.

"We formed the Packsaddle Committee because we knew a lot of artists, and we wanted to get their work sold. So it started with several artists, helping other artists and our wonderful New England Regional Art Museum."

An artist all of her life, Mrs Elkin has also run a commercial gallery and held numerous exhibitions of paintings at NERAM.

"Art is very important," she said.

"It's all around you, so you have to acknowledge it. It's in the landscape. It's in the garden. It's in just one flower. It's all art if you look at it that way."

Born in Chatswood, Mrs Elkin attended the Sydney Technical College Art School, where she studied drawing, converting to a correspondence course after moving to Windsor. She also studied evening classes with Desiderius Orban, John Olsen and John Ogburn, as well as numerous Summer Schools at the University of New England.

Her family is not particularly artistic, Mrs Elkin said, but she does credit her mother with inspiring and supporting her natural passion for painting.

"My mother used to take me to the art gallery in Sydney many times, and we would sit in front of a lovely painting and just wonder how they could make paint look like a damask tablecloth or a bowl of flowers," she said.

"I think that she encouraged me very much to paint - and I did - ever since I can remember."

In both primary and senior school, Mrs Elkin had her artwork sent to the USA as part of an exhibition of Australian student art.

"So I started off being acknowledged even though I was only so young," she said.

"Art is relaxation as well as education for me because I always want to do something better."

Moving to Armidale in the 1970s, the mother of three watched the New England Regional Art Museum being built.

"I always supported NERAM from then on," she said.

Now aged 97-years-old Mrs Elkin only retired from volunteering at NERAM three years ago and has been a patron of the Packsaddle Committee for the last five years. She still paints, but not daily like she used to.

In 2010 she received an IMAGinE Award from Museums and Galleries of New South Wales for her lifelong contribution to the gallery scene.

Her daughter Cathy Harry visits every fortnight, and although Mrs Elkin found out weeks ago she was receiving an OAM, she only divulged her Australia Day Honours secret to her three children on Tuesday.

Ms Harry said she was not really surprised but was delighted for her mum.

"Mum does a lot around the place and has been involved in art for a long time," Ms Harry said.

"But having an OAM at the end of your name is a big honour."

Mrs Elkin said she was shocked, and although she knew she had been nominated for an Order of Australia Medal, she hadn't expected to be selected.

"There are so many other people who would be able to get it," Mrs Elkin said.

"I didn't think very much more about it until I had the call. So I was really surprised, and I am very, very honoured to have it."

Mr Donald Hewitt from Armidale is also on the 2022 Australian Day Honours List.

If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Armidale Express, as we made this story available only to subscribers. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great area.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:

Follow us on Google News Showcase