In 2015 an exhibition was held in the village Westbury, Tasmania to celebrate and explore the life of Ellen Nora Payne, known to her family as Nellie.

Ellen Nora Payne (nee Field) was born at Westfield, Westbury, Tasmania in 1865.

She first learnt to wood carve in Melbourne and continued her studies at Goldsmiths College, University of London, England. She then lived and worked in Hobart, Tasmania.

She carved numerous pieces throughout her life notably the magnificent altar and screens in the Anglican Church, Westbury, and exhibited at the 1907 Australian Exhibition of Women’s Work for which she was awarded numerous prizes. In 1939 she carved the coat of arms for the Tasmanian Parliament. Her last major work was for the All Hallows church in London in 1953. She passed away in 1962.

2015 was 150 years since the birth of Ellen Nora, and as Nellie carved many of this State’s WW1 honour boards, it was especially fitting that 2015 was the year to celebrate her work.

The exhibition was held in three venues for the month of October 2015. More than 200 pieces of Nellie’s work were researched and shown either photographically or physically. Over 7000 visitations were recorded.

The information on Nellie’s work has now been made available on this website.