With countless cars making the drive out to see the infamous Christmas lights at Paul Cavallaro’s house, this lively and extravagant display has become a Hinchinbrook family tradition during the merry season, dating back 21 years. Paul and his mother Mary began creating a lights display for Paul’s nephew and discovered that they enjoyed it so much they continued expanding their collection and, as the years went by, their reputation grew. Continued on page 3 Paul Cavallaro and his mother Mar
Read the full storyWith unpredictable weather attempting to dampen the festive spirit of the region, the Hinchinbrook Chamber of Commerce and Markets at the Mosaic organisers assured the second 2024 Late Night Shopping event would go ahead, rain, hail or shine! On Thursday 19th December, a wonderful turnout filled Mercer Lane and surrounding precincts, with stalls retailing handmade delights, delicious treats, beautiful plants, fantastic florals, and more for all to enjoy. Shoppers flooded the streets, supporting
Read the full storyIngham will soon be treated to another wonderful celebration of Italian culture with the return of the Australian Italian Festival scheduled for Saturday 7 June, and Sunday 8 June 2025! An annual celebration of all things food and culture, the Australian Italian Festival continues to make headlines across the state, with the atmosphere beautifully complimented by Ingham’s gorgeous TYTO wetlands and parklands. Since its establishment in 1995, the festival has grown exponentially with the suppor
Read the full storyOn Monday 9 December the Hinchinbrook Emergency Service Cadets had their graduation, acknowledging the hard work they have dedicated to the service. 18 Cadets received their end of year graduation certificates marking the completion of the 2024 Program, while one Senior Cadet who is now over 18, graduated the whole program, having been a cadet for the past four years. On the night all Cadets graduated the year and some received special awards. Keldon Fletcher was awarded the Don Prichard mem
Read the full storyElliot Altmann was awarded first place in the 46th Hinchinbrook Art Awards Digital Art category in November for his historical piece titled "Another Christmas in the Trenches”.
A self-taught, and now award-winning artist, Elliot found his passion for the digitalised artform more recently than most and creates his pieces on a drawing tablet to then connect the finished product to his computer for finalisation.
“It’s essentially the same as drawing on paper, just a lot easier to fix mistakes, and change colours,” explained Elliot.
“I find it relaxing having to focus on the details of what I’m drawing, and I mostly draw mashups of old cartoons that while fun, aren’t as challenging as creating a realistic image.”
“The beauty of digital drawing is its easier to conceptualise and make changes as you go.”
In drawing upon his interest in military history, Elliot’s piece, "Another Christmas in the Trenches” depicts a German soldier in World War II on the Eastern Front.
With great attention to detail, it took Elliot approximately eight hours to precisely depict the emotion and existence of a frontline infantry soldier suffering the wartime conditions as experienced across both sides of the conflict.
“I served 12 years in the ADF as an infantry soldier, so I had plenty of first-hand experience with being dirty and uncomfortable, and that’s something often missing in military artwork that usually focuses on the glory of a particular event rather than the human experience,” added Elliot.
Elliot celebrated his successful submission by treating himself to a couple of vinyl records, with his achievement sparking another world of creativity, leading him to begin developing more pieces ahead of 2025’s exhibition with plenty already featured on his Instagram account, @artbyalts.
“I’d recommend people interested to have a go and enter as when you see the variety of ideas, skill level and mediums you can enter in, it really opens up the possibilities for anyone,” shared Elliot.
“It’s definitely humbling having your art chosen by judges who are also talented artists themselves.”