New portrait gallery celebrates the people of Rose Bay

By DANIEL LO SURDO

Portraits of local business owners have been installed across multiple locations in Rose Bay to celebrate the faces and stories behind the area.

The exhibition, which will be on display until May 13, hopes to honour the people that bring the local commercial centre “to life” and have endured challenges during the pandemic.

In an online message, Woollahra mayor Susan Wynne said that “small businesses are a big part of why Rose Bay is such a special place to live”.

“The event … was aimed at connecting our community to the iconic people and stories behind Rose Bay businesses, through images on display in the streets, laneways and parks around the commercial centre.”

Michael Koutsoukis, from the family-owned Fish at the Bay seafood shop on Dover Road, said that “we take great joy in our customers becoming part of our life, and us becoming part of their lives”.

Rose Bay business owner ‘so grateful’ for local community

Dr Jo Smaller, who runs the Vet Hospital on Newcastle Street, is also featured in the exhibition.

“I am so grateful for our gorgeous community of pets and their devoted humans,” Dr Smaller said. “Our patients can walk straight out of the clinic and onto the beach and it’s a great way to wind down after a busy day. It’s beautiful.”

The exhibition has been supported by the NSW government’s Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.