BRIGHT local Romana Zorzut Favier has lived a vibrant life, having travelled across Europe and Australia capturing landscapes with a paintbrush and spatula in vivId hues.

She was born in the small Slovenian town of Vedrijan in 1930, now close to the Italian border, but at the time was part of Italy.

Prior to 1920 the region was a part of Austria-Hungary, and Ms Favier said her grandfather died fighting for Austria in World War I.

Following the renegotiation of borders after World War II, Ms Favier became a displaced person and migrated to Australia in 1951.

“I said I want to become a migrant, and not because I was hungry,” she said.

“I got away from all these wars.”

So she travelled to the Bonegilla Migrant Camp, and soon she was a nursing student helping to fill a much-needed gap in nursing staff at the time.

“It was like an adventure to me to come to Australia,” she said.

Becoming a nurse led her to care for her future mother-in-law, who was recovering from an operation.

The mother invited Ms Favier home and she met Frank Favier, her husband she married in 1953.

They settled in Lower Plenty, on a block with no water and electricity, where they built a bungalow.

Later they built a new home where their two daughters were born.

In her 30s she began painting to express her feelings, so she studied art at the George Bell School.

According to Ms Favier, over the course of her career she had 17 solo exhibitions across Europe, including in Paris, Germany, Austria and Slovenia, receiving acclaim for her expressionism and powerful use of colour.

She has also had two exhibitions at the Bright Art Gallery.

“I’ve painted 2500 paintings in 60 years - I'm a quick one,” she said.

“When I paint I go nuts, I just paint.”

She and Frank moved to Porepunkah in 1999, and later closer to Bright.

At 93 year old, she said she is still making art and teaching painting.

“This brain has to work,” she said.