AUSTRALIAN artist David Hart captures magic on a canvas, with each brushstroke continuing the legacy left by his father, Pro Hart. Such a career inspires many stories, and for guests at this week’s CPA Sunshine Coast End of Year Gala, a first-hand retelling was a highlight.
David recalled in a one-on-one on-stage chat with the evening’s Chartered Practicing Accounts (CPA) host, Michele Gusman, how his father made art with a wild flair and an unbridled love of the unusual. A creek bed ladened with tin sheets and explosives, and a very long fuse, was one such artistic adventure. The audience laughed when David recalled what went up had to come down, and the relief no one was injured when the metal sheets eventually succumbed to the will of gravity. All in the name of art, Pro surely approved.
While father and son share many similarities with their art, David spoke about his father’s art studio being very unlike his own. While David’s paints are lined up meticulously with painstaking care, Pro took a more freewheeling attitude. Tidying and organising was more time spent away from the canvas, Pro clearly had decided.
David’s art on display at the back of the room was spotlighted and provided a backdrop to the lively discussion taking place on stage. A dragonfly painting set against a lime green backdrop – Pro’s signature insect subject – was David's homage to his father. Heads turned to admire the painting while David spoke about the significance of the dragonfly and why he paints them to this day to pay tribute to his father.
The gala dinner was the year-ending culmination for the Sunshine Coast Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA). Hosted by UniSC on the evening of Thursday, December 5, David Hart filled the role of guest speaker and the charity beneficiary from the night was the Motor Neurone Disease Association of Queensland. Maleny Dairies participated in the dinner as a sponsor.
An apt tie-in with dinner’s charity was Pro’s passing due to Motor Neurone Disease (MND). David spoke about his father’s battle with the terminal disease and threw his support behind the Motor Neurone Disease Association of Queensland, recalling how brutal of a disease it is, and the huge cost associated with providing care to a loved one.
Susie Longman, Relationship Manager of Motor Neurone Disease Association of Queensland, also took to the stage with a no punches pulled approach about the severity of the disease. MND carries an average life expectancy of 2-3 years after diagnoses with a lifetime risk of 1 in 300 by the age of 85. The cost of care for loved ones is steep and the organisation makes crucial contributions to help families care for impacted loved ones. This uphill battle to provide support, Susie explained, has been made more complicated by the organisation’s difficulty securing funding from the Queensland State Government.
The dinner featured a silent auction and a raffle to propel fundraising efforts. By the night’s end, $3,000 was raised for a very worthy cause. Cheers erupted when an original David Hart painting given away in the raffle was won by Miranda Bravo Hollands.
Maleny Dairies proudly supported the gala dinner and Sunshine Coast CPA both with Gold sponsorship and a product donation, including pure cream for delicious desserts and fresh milk for the best tasting coffee.
HOW TO BE INVOLVED: To support Motor Neurone Disease Association of Queensland, please CLICK HERE.
For more on David Hart, CLICK HERE.
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