Farmer turned fashion designer Vince Nowlan at Wentworth Station woolshed at the height of his fame. Photo: The Nowlan Family.
It seemed improbable to think a farmer from the back blocks of the Hilltops region could grace the catwalks of the nation.
But Vince Nowlan did.
The sixth-generation farmer grew up on a station that for these parts is slightly remote, brushing the western ridges of the Weddin Mountains on the western reaches of the South West Slopes; so far west it could almost be Bland country.
Except Wentworth Station was anything but bland – one of the oldest properties in the region it ripples with legends and stories of bushrangers and farming that still live on the lips of locals.
Somehow from that remote place, the rough and always ready man of few words Vince Nowlan saw art in the landscape and changing seasons, but it was what happened in the woolshed that changed his life.
“I dunno, I think I’m a bit screwed in the head,” he said, “because I don’t see things the way normal people do; I wasn’t much good at school but I was OK at art which my mum said I should pursue but I didn’t pay much attention to that.”
What did capture his attention, eventually, were the dynamic strokes of shearers at work in the Wentworth Station woolshed as they systematically peeled off buttery wool from sheep with their shears.
Vince said it triggered in him a desire to transform those patterns of shearing into stunning fashion pieces, blending the rugged beauty of rural Australia with high-end textile art.
“Fashion is about creating lines and if you watch shearers as, blow by blow, the blades cut through the wool, that’s also about lines and after watching thousands of sheep shorn on the farm, in my mind I could see designs in fashion from those lines or blows,” he said.
His organic designs reached meteoric heights – exhibited at Sydney Opera House, Mercedes Australian Fashion Week, the Australian Wool Awards, Golden Gown Awards, Royal Easter Show and across magazines celebrating the fusion of agriculture and fashion in a truly unique way.
It really was art imitating life.
And now these pieces and artworks, some of them new, will form a captivating solo exhibition called Shearing Strokes in Fashion, which features in the 16-day Hilltops Off the Beaten Track Art and Cultural Trail.
The trail, a growing annual event, is now crammed with the wealth of artists and creatives who call Hilltops home.
It kicks off this weekend in Young, but the total 68 events – weekday and weekend – can be found in just about every locale in the district – from Jugiong to Boorowa, Barwang and, Harden and Murrumburrah, Young to Murringo to Milvale and up north to Monteagle and beyond to Bulla Creek and Bendick Murrell.
It’s a feast for the senses – looking and learning, listening, doing, hearing and tasting the fruits of the region be that art, craft, photography, floristry and fashion among the finest of fare and some incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, or one-chance events.
For instance, you can join Carl Valerius – master sculptor and creator of Harden Murrumburrah’s life-sized Bill the Bastard statue – to learn essential sculpting techniques.
Beverly Moxon will be at the Old Courthouse in Murrumburrah to demonstrate weaving techniques using locally sourced natural fibres combined with fabrics.
Get your flower on at a floral workshop, paint pots, create jewellery, learn to draw, join a pub choir singalong or sit and listen to a raft of concerts, book readings or bush ballads.
There’s sculpture and gardens, sculpture in gardens, kerbside sculpture and out-of-the box sculpture at a spot settled by Young’s most popular Irish doctor whose sons now produce some of the district’s finest wines, which also feature on the trail schedule, along with a St Patrick’s Day celebration.
The district’s rich and diverse history will also be on view with a range of museums and historic houses open for business, including The Taubman and Webb Trading Post at Murringo – the place that pays tribute to renowned bushman, leather plaiter and whip maker Syd Bayliss.
There’s also the very special events like the Boorowa Rotary Art Exhibition & Auction of works by local artist, the late Ros Evans, which opens with a live auction at Boorowa Recreation Club on Friday 14 March until Sunday 23 March and the celebration of 20 years of cinema at Southern Cross Cinema and Arts Complex in Young.
Hilltops Mayor Brian Ingram said it was great to see such a full and comprehensive program for this year’s Hilltops Off The Beaten Track Arts and Culture Trail.
“Every year, this event injects a vibrant, creative atmosphere into our region across the two weeks and three weekends the program runs,” he said.
“The trail showcases our local artists, galleries, and cultural spaces across the Hilltops, offering visitors the chance to immerse themselves in exhibitions, workshops, live music, and artisan markets,” Cr Ingram said. “It not only celebrates our region’s rich artistic talent and cultural heritage but also provides a significant boost to local businesses.
“We love sharing our region with the many visitors that the trail attracts, and a huge thank you must go to the organisers and volunteers who make this event happen.”
The 2025 Hilltops Off The Beaten Track Arts and Cultural Trail runs from 8 March to 23 March. A full calendar of events is available here.
