Selby Ginn was born in Devonport, Tasmania and grew up in her formative years in Malaysia. She has lived in Yackandandah for two years.

What do you do workwise?

I have worked in fashion, the teaching profession and design as well as working as a crafts person and artist. I completed an honours in Fine Art at RMIT. I was selected to exhibit at the Venice Biennale in 2013 with an artwork ‘Personal Structures’. I have also participated in a residency in Shanghai, China in 2015 and more recently in 2023. I was also highly commended for the Wollongong Art in the Garden prize for an outdoor monolithic sculpture.

What brought you to your role/career?

Interest in the creative process and seeing tangible outcomes, whether product-based or human growth.

What do you love about your work?

Hands-on empirical learning processes and constantly being challenged by material constraints.

What do you do in the community?

I have three children and help out in my community when I can, whether at the school for excursions, serving hot lunches, Scouts parent helping and fundraising. I am also a yoga teacher and look forward to teaching yoga in my community in the future as well as being able to contribute more as my children grow.

Is there an important community issue that you think needs addressing?

There’s one worth raising in Yackandandah. I am at the school every day collecting my children. While waiting, I witness multiple drivers exceeding speeds above 40 kilometres per hour and not stopping to look to see if children are waiting to cross the road. I have seen people (including myself) nearly being run over. These pedestrians have been vocal, but drivers do not notice or possibly care. It is a high traffic area at school drop off and pick up times. I’m concerned someone is going to get badly injured. It’s happening directly outside the shire council office and Yackandandah Library.

What would you do to solve change, improve that situation?

I think it’s a really easy fix. School crossing supervisors could manage the crossing at this spot as many small towns still have them including Beechworth. Why not Yackandandah?

What do you see as one of the most important current world issues?

This is a complex question. A good question, and I think there is accountability for everyone. If we were accountable to ourselves and our people as a larger community, then maybe different choices would be made by people in power. We are in this all together as we are all affected by each other.

If the person you would most like to meet came to Indigo Shire (past or present), or was already here, who would that be, what would you show them, and why?

I would bring my great grandmother Evelyn Crabtree to Yackandandah as I would have liked to have spent more time with her. I would take her on a walk down to the Yackandandah Creek and talk about all the wildlife and bird species while whilst we meandered beside the river. It is a highly used track and loved by the community. My great grandmother would enjoy meeting random locals while exploring the local bushland and waterway.

What book are you reading?

Yoga Nidra by Swami Satyananda Saraswatti.