New president Michelle Wellham said they need more artists to join the group so they can work together to use art to bring the community together and

"You can see from the numbers we draw in the Arts Gunnedah annual exhibition that the creative community that we have locally is very strong and there are a lot of very talented people in our community," she said.

"What we'd like to see is more of those people drawn to our committee so that we can create a platform for broader social engagement.

"When you consider art is probably the most powerful way to bring the community together, to see those monthly meetings as a chance to foster that. We really value and welcome people with new ideas."

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Ms Wellham said Arts Gunnedah was looking at "really defining our group's vision and purpose going forward", being cohesive and "working together".

"Arts Gunnedah works towards building the cultural capacities of our community. Whether that is forming design teams to create public art works like murals, sculptures or art walks or supporting local artists in their professional development. If there is social good to be made through our involvement, we are supportive," she said.

"There is a project in the cooker at the moment with the murals. We're looking at bringing lots of different people from our community together as a team to create murals to enhance Gunnedah precinct.

"We have so many visitors coming into Gunnedah, and when you really want to know something about a region and its people, I think probably the best way to come to understand them is through their art, their culture, their history ... [and] community art projects do enhance the township."

Ms Wellham has been a member of Arts Gunnedah for about a year and said she joined because "I wanted to connect with more like-minded creative people".

She has taken over the role of president from long-time leader Shirley Urquhart.

"I think Shirley did a fabulous job as Arts Gunnedah president. It's sad to see her step down but she's still in the committee and she's still very active," Ms Wellham said.

"She's a highly skilled artist in her own right so it will be nice for her to not just indulge herself in creative practice but we may get to enjoy more of her work if she's freed up from the presidential role. She's certainly left some big shoes to fill."

The group is also in need of "an energetic and dynamic" new secretary to take over from Kim ** .

It is also one of Ms Wellham's goals to attract young artists to the group.

"We'd love to see new faces with fresh ideas. We're looking at changing up the dynamic of our meetings, making it very social ... we really want to grow our vision and our potential for our group," she said.

"You don't even have to be artistic - everyone has skills that they can share with the community and that is what we are, in essence, about; using our combined talents and strengths to 'best' engage and benefit our local community through art.

"And let's not forget, that by becoming a member, it is a great way to professionally network.

"We are looking forward, embracing technology more in our fundraising initiatives to broaden our financial potentials and I also would like to see digital platforms like Zoom or Skype embraced, to bring those living in rural, satellite towns to our meetings, who would otherwise be isolated."

Ms Wellham said it was a big year for the group as the arts and ceramic exhibition would mark its 50^th anniversary.

"This is a significant milestone for a not-for-profit community-led arts initiative and is a testimony to the incredible breadth of creativity this region has to offer and the commitment of our committee, council and people of Gunnedah historically," she said.

"With that, this year's exhibition is real for celebration and something I would encourage everyone and anyone in the region to take part in."