Priscilla‘s Gallery owners to create nightlife at Sunshine Coast hinterland town Montville

An artsy couple has laid out their creative plan to breathe life into a Sunshine Coast hinterland town after dark with live music and art experiences.

Priscilla's Gallery owners and couple Priscilla Jean and Chad Barry. Picture: supplied.

A Brisbane couple has opened a new business in the heart of a Sunshine Coast hinterland tourist town with a dream of creating a nightlife scene in a town typically quiet after lunch.

Former Brisbane residents Priscilla Jean, 47, and Chad Barry, 39, opened art studio Priscilla‘s Gallery along Main St, Montville last week where Ms Jean displayed her original dolls, bowls, and about 300 paintings.

The couple aren’t the only hospitality owners mixing it up in the hinterland with one businessman transforming his bar into a high end cafe while another couple is turning their popular cafe into a city-esque wine bar.

Ms Jean said she was excited to transform her fresh business to create a nightlife scene in a town that was mostly quiet after cafes closed at 2pm.

Priscilla's Gallery owners Chad Barry, left, and Priscilla Jean, right. Photo: supplied.

“A lot of people come here to stay and there’s nothing open,” she said.

Ms Jean, a bubbly creative, said she wanted to host live music, art classes and paint-and-sip experiences while selling coffee, tea, and alternative, dairy-free desserts until 9pm and later.

Ms Jean said they moved to the town in August after signing a three-year lease at their business’s property and spent three months preparing their shop, which included sprucing up their front garden and outdoor seating.

The front garden of Priscilla's Gallery. Photo: supplied.

Ms Jean said she and her partner, a former mechanic of 17 years, cleared and cleaned their front garden to create a “nature wonderland”.

She said she wanted it to be used for art markets, and spaces for like-minded artists to paint and sell their creations.

“It will be an ever-growing space,” she said.

Before becoming the new kid on the block in Montville, Ms Jean, who studied a bachelor in art psychotherapy, said she taught private art classes for 10 years, exhibited at art galleries, and sold her artwork at art markets.

Inside Priscilla's Gallery. Photo: supplied.

Ms Jean said she now wanted to use her artistic talent to add more value to her town known as an artisan, tourist hotspot.

“There is definitely space for more creativity,” she said.

Originally published as Priscilla‘s Gallery owners to create nightlife at Sunshine Coast hinterland town Montville