A Gallery Crafting Happiness

Regional Arts WA Artist of the Month – Francois Payet

All image credits to Matthew Moyle | Umi Creative

The gravel crunches under my tyres as I swing into 611 Boodjidup Road. A limestone wall with signage indicates I’ve arrived at ‘Payet Gallery,’ marking the place where something special awaits. Another car pulls in beside mine, a man with a friend in tow. We nod to each other in that particular country way, strangers briefly united by destination.

Inside, the jeweller, Francois Payet, greets the visitors with the easy familiarity of old acquaintance. I learn the visitor’s name is Ross, who is a ‘local’ as they term it in these parts. A regular who treats the gallery as a kind of communal birthright, bringing visitors here as others might show off a waterfall or a beach.

Straight away, I can see how Payet Gallery is a bit of a meeting place, a crossroads of connection. Francois has built something that belongs, in some essential way, to the people who value it.

Early Life

In his workshop, Francois’ hands move with practiced precision over precious metals and gemstones. His hands tell a story that began decades ago on a small island in the Indian Ocean, where a coconut-leaf roof sheltered a family of nine.

“It was a happy childhood,” Francois tells me of his early years in the Seychelles, where he lived in a small family community of 15-20 homes in Beau Vallon Bay. “We were very poor though. Dad was a fisherman. Mum was more creative. She was a singer in the church and sometimes hotels.”

The simplicity of that life, where five children slept sideways in one bed “like a can of sardines,” as Francois puts it, the other two of the seven siblings tucked up in a hammock somewhere, now seems worlds away from the South West gallery he runs with his brother Nicholas.

Moving from the Seychelles

In 1971, the family made a decision that would alter the course of their lives forever, packing up and moving to Melbourne. “My mum and dad gave up their blue lagoon in the Seychelles for factory floors at the Rosella soup factory,” says Francois, “It was a massive sacrifice, just for us kids to have a better life.”

Life in the Melbourne suburb of Windsor proved challenging for the family who spoke Creole. “I was in a fight every week, protecting myself or my sisters.” recalls Francois. “We looked different, wore different clothes, didn’t speak English.” They later moved to Richmond, “which was full of immigrants,” and life improved.

With the MCG a stones-throw away, each Payet child chose an AFL team to support; Hawthorn, Richmond, North Melbourne; their allegiances an informal citizenship of sorts in the football-fanatic State of Victoria.

It was in St Kilda, in his early 20’s, that Francois began his career as a jeweller. “I’d set up near the clock tower with a card table, some beads and a piece of black velvet. If I had a good day, I’d have a beer at the Esplanade,” he says.

From those humble beginnings, Francois and his brother Nicholas grew to run jewellery stores in Chadstone, Frankston and Greensborough, and began designing their own pieces in the late 1980s, with Francois often working from his mother’s garage in Springvale.

Finding Home in Regional WA

In 2006, Francois moved to Wooditchup Margaret River with his wife and two young boys. “We’d come here for holidays, I didn’t mind the wine, and we fell in love with it. It felt right.”

He bought a gallery with his brother Nicholas on the main street and, in time, found himself the property on Boodjidup Road. The land itself came with a weatherboard house for Francois’ family, and, as luck or fate would have it, there was no need to clear a single tree. Amid one section of open land, the gallery was built.

Today, the brothers’ workshop hums with the rhythm of their decades-long partnership. “Nicholas and I have been working together for over 35 years,” Francois tells me. “He has the maker’s hand, beautifully skilled in almost every aspect of jewellery making.”

There’s something touching in the way he describes their creative tussles. The almost impossible design requests, the arguments that resolve into cooperation. Francois admits; “We are both quite lost without each other.”

Francois and his brother work at opposite ends of an L-shaped bench. Nicholas’ side more meticulously neat and organised, while Francois operates in a creative chaos of silver. 

Outside the window, the South West landscape inspires the designs. Francois says; “The coast influences my work, the turquoise water and connection to the Indian Ocean, it’s almost spiritual. The giant rocks down at Red Gate beach are similar to the Seychelles. There’s big energy in those boulders.”

Creating to Heal

Perhaps the most poignant chapter in Francois’ story came with the loss of his wife five years ago. In her memory, he worked on a memorial garden at the house, the centre marked by a sculpture a friend built, all of it quietly growing out of grief and the hands of those who loved her. Francois tells me how friends of his wife, and anyone with kindness to spare, arrived with food and time, and how he busied himself with earth and saplings, making a place that could hold some of the ache, and give back in beauty.

During the grief, he also turned to his bench and made a pendant for each of his three boys, and one for himself. Something they could touch when words failed. He shows me the pendant, the curve of silver in his palm, “I give this design now to people that I know that have lost a loved one before their time,” he says.

Open Studios and Looking Ahead

Francois is one of the few original artists who has participated in the Margaret River Region Open Studios since its inception in 2014. “It’s been remarkable to watch it grow from those early days,” he tells me.“It puts a spotlight solely on art in the region, and creates opportunities for everyone, especially those just starting out. Being part of it from the beginning has been special, we’ve seen it transform the artistic landscape here.”

This year, his work still strongly reflects the ocean. Rings shaped as if grown from seaweed, another with a seahorse emerging from silver, and some more serious weighty pieces with stones from Meelup Bay.

When asked what he’s most proud of, Francois’ answer is revealing; “The fact that I’m in a business that makes people happy. We’ve had engagements in the gallery. We’ve had loved ones who are passing away buying their final gifts for their wives.”

As our conversation winds down, Francois shares a story that captures the essence of this happiness.“Earlier this year, a man hired the entire gallery for a candlelit dinner to celebrate his 20th wedding anniversary. They sat right there,” he points to a spot inside the gallery “They spoke Dutch, so we couldn’t eavesdrop,” he adds with a laugh, “but watching their faces you could see the joy. Those moments make everything worthwhile.”

After nearly two decades in Margaret River, Francois can’t imagine leaving. “The beauty here isn’t alway in the obvious. But there’s an enormous amount of beauty in our community. You really have to experience it.”

Saying Goodbye

As I leave, Francois gives me a hug. Ross and his friend have since left and the gallery is quiet. Francois thanks me with a genuine warmth that makes me feel like I’ve made a friend rather than just visited a business.

There’s a certain magic to 611 Boodjidup Road. It’s in the welcome, the stories shared, and in the stunning jewellery crafted by patient hands. Francois will likely never leave this spot, where his gallery stands as a testament to his craft, where the remembrance garden blooms in tribute to his wife, and where the community that embraced him continues to gather.

I leave with an understanding of why locals like Ross bring their friends here. It isn’t really just about admiring the beautiful jewellery and artwork, but to experience a happiness that lingers long after you’ve returned up the gravel driveway and driven away.

The twelfth Open Studios event will be held from the 13^th – 28^th September 2025, offering art lovers the chance to visit private art studios, meet artists like Francois and his brother Nicholas, and view their works in progress.