Umina Beach Book Nook Featured Artist: Julie Green in August

What do a beach, a bookshop and an artist have in common?

I’ll keep it short and sweet, as life calls – you know, running a business, managing a loud and vivacious little spirit, cleaning, and all the rest.

I’m excited to announce I will be the FEATURED ARTIST at Umina Beach Book Nook on the Central Coast for the month of August.

In case it’s not obvious, this is a dream come true.

It feels almost spiritual, if I’m honest… like the world’s come full circle.

As a little girl, I’d play at Umina Beach with my brother, making sandcastles, and running back to the caravan park covered in sea lice.

It was a place of my childhood.

It’s a place I find solace and peace.

I even wrote and directed an award-winning short film at Pearl Beach around the corner as an early teen (I’d cringe watching it now, mind you!).

Now my son adores it here.

Yesterday, as I was packing up my artworks to deliver to the bookshop, he squeaked, “I’m DELIGHTED to go to Umina Beach today!”

Bringing my own son here, after falling in love with Umina Beach myself once more through my son’s eyes, and then finding Kate Toon – someone I’d admired and followed for many years as a writer and business extraordinaire – had bought the little bookshop here, it’s almost hard to put into words what that truly means!

So, of course, I had no hesitations when I saw the artist feature call out, to put my name in the ring, and having no expectation, felt really chuffed when Kate said she’d like to feature my work in August, so hence I got busy creating some pieces inspired by the beach and mother nature. My son even said, “Mummy, you paint beautifully.”

A bit better than the backgrounds and nonsense I’d been painting up until then!