The Convent is Just the First of Her Many Grand Plans

Tina Banitska paused for a moment, feeling a bit emotional when she took me through her 15-year labor of love called The Convent in Daylesford, Victoria. "Excuse me," she said, sensing that I could tell this made her emotional. She grabbed my arm and continued, 'I get this way sometimes, Max, she said. I could totally relate and fell in love with this amazing woman the moment I met her.

To know Tina is to walk through this sprawling converted 1860s convent, a project of immense proportions that began two decades back when she saw the place from a distance. She knew she had to have it, and it wasn't until years later that she made her dream a reality. Tina is a warm person, who says your name and reaches out and touches you to make her point. The scale of what she's built here is impressive--seven beautifully sunny art galleries, a restored chapel, a large retail store, a cafe, a lounge bar and function rooms that accommodate large weddings. Oh, and gorgeous gardens, restored original nun's quarters, and her dynamic personality that radiates confidence, her belief in the power of the arts, and in the goodness of people to help her make it all work.

She has 45 fulltime employees--gardeners, chefs, clerks, baristas, sales help and assistants, and she gives them all the power and confidence to do their jobs without her meddling. As we sipped chardonnay in the Altar Bar, she told me how glad she was that I came, with a flattering amount of conviction. I was too.

"I didn't know anything about finance," she explained, and when she signed up for a multimillion dollar mortgage at 18 percent interest, most people would have balked. But again, it's that belief, her sincere belief that creating a place where artists can show their work, and in putting such love into the restoration, and the attention to detail, it comes back to that old saying, if you build it they will come. And they sure do!

The stairway bannisters are welded to create a piece of art, as are the details of the crenalations and stained glass windows. The massive structure begins first with Victorian style tower, then the middle section with another tower is Romanesque, and finally the side devoted to the function rooms has a modern tower. Yet they blend together and stand out on the tall hill overlooking Mount Franklin. There are acres of polished light wood floors, and a chapel that's perfectly restored, an excellent location for weddings. She brings in more than 120 of them a year, many from overseas couples who hear about her venue and come all the way to this town outside of Melbourne to tie the knot.

"I've got a secret to tell you," she whispered, sipping her wine and smiling. "I've bought another convent, it's five times as big as this one." This new project will also take millions in loans, and despite the daunting challenge, you just know that Tina will make it all work out. "I want to begin an artist mentoring program, where we teach artists about the business of selling their work, so they can not only create art but make a living at it."

When she saw that this second convent was up for sale, about 35 minutes away in Ballarat, she stayed up all night writing a proposal. The nuns even agreed to finance part of the deal for her. Of course they did, she's Tina Banitska, and she believes it will all work out.