INSIGHTH
azel started painting in
oils when she was eleven
years old and did her first
paid commission at age 16. It was,
of course, an animal painting!
Completely self-taught, Hazel is a
multi-award winning wildlife artist,
and her atmospheric paintings have
gained international recognition. She is
also a dedicated animal rights advocate
and wildlife rescuer.
Living in Tasmania, Hazel is one
of the original members of Bonorong
Wildlife Sanctuary’s Friends of Carers
(FOCs). FOC volunteers are part
of a state-wide network of wildlife
rescuers who receive text message
callouts alerting them to injured and/or
orphaned wildlife needing assistance.
In the past it was left to the dedicated
but overworked wildlife carers to
collect injured wildlife from roadsides
and properties and transport them to
and from vet clinics. Now the FOCs
do this job, allowing the carers to
concentrate on their charges.
“Whilst it can sometimes be a sad
job, it is also an extremely rewarding
one,” Hazel says. “It’s nice to know
that suffering wildlife receive the
help they need quickly – rather than
them laying by the side of the road,
sometimes for days, suffering terribly.”
Being an FOC allows Hazel to
get up close and personal with some
unique species that one might not
otherwise get to handle. Some of the
more unusual animals that Hazel has
rescued include a water rat, Tasmanian
devils, Eastern quolls, an Australasian
gannet and a micro-bat, all invaluable
experience for a wildlife artist!
Seeing and dealing with wildlife in
this way inspires Hazel to paint and, in
turn, she uses her art to raise funds and
awareness for animals.
Over the last ten years Hazel