Shirley Collard was an active member of an enthusiastic group of artists, which run the Singleton Pottery Prize (c.1974-1977) in the early 1970's. She opened a gallery in an old church building in Pokolbin around 1977 and later Hungerford Hill (Hunter Valley Gardens). Her strong entrepreneurial interests led her to open the Back a Bouke Gallery at the Bourkes Arcade in Singleton.