A historic post office that has been in the same family for generations will soon find new life.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Cousins Danielle Briglia and Elizabeth Flack are turning Ballan's old post office into an art studio and gallery space.
"We've come from an arty background and that's where the idea came from, we just love this space," Ms Briglia said.
"Just before COVID-19 hit we were just starting to use the space," she said.
The building has been passed down through the Flack family for the past six generations.
It all started when one of Ms Briglia's ancestors, George Flack, came to Ballan in 1864 and built the post office.
The building continued to be the home of the local post office until 1911.
Ms Briglia said around 30 years ago her father, Phillip Flack, bought the property from his brothers.
READ MORE: A chance to be a part of the art gallery
She said she had used the space before for her photography before and there had always been an interest from the broader community.
"I've grown up with this building and everyone's looking through [the windows] and I guess wondering what it is," Ms Briglia said.
"We thought it would be really nice to open it to the community and have people through."
The property was up for sale during 2020, but Ms Briglia said herself and her cousin were able to convince Mr Flack they could put the building to use.
Over the past year the women have been cleaning up the property and repainting sections to freshen up the inside.
"We didn't want to take away from the building either, we wanted to clean it up but keep it in its original state," Ms Briglia said.
There is an opportunity for the upstairs to be hired either as a studio space or a place to hold workshops.
Then downstairs there are two rooms where the cousins hope to host work from other artists.
They also have plans in the future to operate a small cafe-style food offering, but plans are in the early stages.
Ms Briglia said they were open to hearing from both local artists and up and coming artists.
There is a high demand for art spaces in the region, current options include the Art Space, Unicorn Lane and Backspace in the Art Gallery which is currently open for applications.
During the Ballan Autumn Festival the space was open for visitors as part of a soft launch and Ms Briglia said she anticipated to have more regular exhibitors from September, once the weather was a bit warmer.
More information is available at www.flackpto.com
Have you tried The Courier's app? It can be downloaded here.