The Derinya Art + Craft Exhibition – DACE – began in 1975 as a small fundraising idea at a small school. Founded by Laurel Glanville, those early exhibitions featured local art and crafts displayed on hessian-covered boards, with a sausage sizzle out front and the whole community invited in. It quickly became the social event of the year.

As the exhibition grew, so did its ambition. In 1995, art show specialist Jenny Phian joined forces with Deputy Principal Pauline Bazley and an inspired parent committee to professionalise the event – introducing professional display screens, sponsorships, new mediums like ceramics, and the Young Artists category sponsored by Dame Elizabeth Murdoch. Many of those foundations are still in place today.

The move to the school’s new stadium in 2010 marked a new chapter, giving DACE the spectacular venue it deserved. The exhibition expanded, a dedicated garden and storage shed were developed, and what had once been a community fundraiser became a finely run annual institution. In 2015, the 40th exhibition was held as a tribute to everyone who had contributed since the very beginning.

Following the disruption of COVID-19 and three postponed exhibitions, DACE entered 2023 with renewed energy and a fresh new look – a contemporary rebrand rooted in the original identity, including a new logo nodding to the DACE sculpture in the schoolyard. With new families joining the community and new Principal Nadine Pye at the helm, DACE continues to do what it has always done: bring people together through art.