MEDIA RELEASE
Thanks to significant funding through the Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund (RAF) Project Grants, eleven new arts projects will take place in regional and remote Queensland over the next twelve months. Flying Arts Alliance Inc. and Regional Arts Australia are pleased to announce the successful recipients of RAF Project Grants in Queensland totalling $236,278.
Projects include a new documentary dance film by Pippa Samaya which will follow the largest regional tour of a contemporary dance work in Australia: Dancenorth’s acclaimed work ‘Wayfinder’. Samaya’s work will blend a documentary style ‘behind the scenes’ insight into life on the road as a dance athlete and touring company, with a series of fine art dance films set in over 23 locations celebrating the diverse richness found in the remote regions of this country. ‘Dancing into Wide Spaces’ will take contemporary dance out of the large theatre houses and big cities and into the wider community.
Successful recipients will deliver strong arts projects in diverse locations across Queensland, including, Gladstone, Gympie, Toogoolawah, Townsville, Cairns, Imbil, Yarraman, Mareeba, Maleny, Wondai, Kenilworth, Tiaro, Childers, Tin Can Bay, Port Douglas, Goombungee, Hughenden, and Poruma Island. Projects cover a wide variety of cross-artforms including Music, Opera and Musical Theatre, Visual Arts, Dance, Film and Community Arts. Projects will deliver a strong focus on community engagement, artistic skills sharing, and creative development, with many opportunities available for local artists and art enthusiasts to engage in quality arts festivals, performances, and workshops.
Australian Government Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, congratulated the recipients and their contributions to Australia’s arts scene.
“Supporting the arts isn’t just about the biggest venues in the capital cities.
“It’s about every part of Australia.
“That’s why we nearly doubled support for the Regional Arts Fund and that decision is now reverberating into every corner of Australia.”
Flying Arts Alliance Chair, the Hon Anthe Philippides, thanked those who had applied and applauded the successful applicants, stating:
“At Flying Arts Alliance, we are proud to administer this invaluable Australian Government funding program to regional and remote communities in Queensland. We want to thank the artists, arts workers and communities who engage with this transformative program and the dedicated members of the independent assessment panel for their commitment to supporting the vibrant arts sector throughout Queensland.”
“We are pleased to see that the approved projects will support a wide range of artistic development, provide employment for emerging and established artists, and see high quality Queensland art shared with the rest of the country.”
The Regional Arts Fund is an Australian Government program that supports sustainable, cultural development in regional and remote communities in Australia. It is managed by Regional Arts Australia and is administered in Queensland by Flying Arts Alliance. The Regional Arts Fund plays a key role in the Australian Government’s National Cultural Policy Revive: a place for every story, a story for every place. Revive provides an increase to the Regional Arts Fund of $8.5 million over four years from 2023-24, recognising the importance of the arts in strengthening local communities.
For more information on the Regional Arts Fund in Queensland, including upcoming round dates and how to apply, please go to flyingarts.org.au/raf or phone 07 3216 1322.
Full descriptions of projects and recipients below.
| Regional Arts Fund Project Grants – Round 2 2023 Recipients | ||||
| Applicant | Project Title | Project Description | Funded Amount | Applicant Location |
| Cosmos Arts for Health Inc | The Art Gallery Gladstone Hospital | This project will activate two gallery spaces at the Gladstone Hospital, through curated and open-call exhibitions by local artists. Activating hospital spaces with artworks will enrich the community by fostering a vibrant artistic environment within hospitals, enhancing patient well-being, supporting caregivers, and uplifting staff experiences. The curated gallery spaces and art projects will provide a source of inspiration, healing, and respite for patients, while creating opportunities for local artists to showcase their talents. The community will benefit from increased cultural engagement, improved hospital atmospheres, and a sense of shared creativity that contributes to the overall health and vitality of the region. | $20,420.00 | Calliope, 4680 |
| Mrs Olivia Everitt | Grant Writing for the Arts: Rural Roadshow | Six free grant writing workshops will be delivered for creative practitioners, artists, and arts groups, through a roadshow across 6 local government areas. The workshops will provide a crucial professional development opportunity and build local creative capacity. The roadshow delivery model ensures maximum reach and accessibility, with an emphasis on smaller communities that are often overlooked for workshop opportunities. Topics covered will include project logistics, risk management, budgets (including artist fees), addressing assessment criteria, partnerships and auspicing. | $10,905.00 | Imbil, 4570 |
| Somerset Regional Council | Environment Biennial at The Condensery – an artist professional development and exhibition opportunity | Development and presentation of the first Environment Biennial at The Condensery in Toogoolawah. The Environment Biennial will showcase locally and nationally significant contemporary artists whose work responds to the themes of environment and an evocation of place. The project will be accompanied by a substantial engagement and education program supporting creative development. | $29,450.00 | Esk, 4312 |
| Pippa Samaya | Dancing into wide spaces | A documentary dance film following the largest regional tour of a contemporary dance work in Australia. Featuring Townsville’s only full-time company, Dancenorth, and their acclaimed work Wayfinder, and shot over 23 locations, this is a film that connects people and place and takes contemporary dance out of the elite theatre houses and big cities and into the wider community. The film blends documentary style insights into life on the road as a dance athlete and touring company, with a series of fine art dance films set in rural locations celebrating the diverse richness found in the remote regions of this country. | $30,000.00 | Mysterton, 4812 |
| Nerise Howes | From Now On – Commission and Creative Development of a new musical theatre work | The commission and creative development of a contemporary regional musical theatre work of scale, ‘From Now On’, written by award-winning regional playwright Kathryn Ash; emerging regional playwright, musician, and composer Nerise Howes (Nereace); and internationally recognised regional composer, Nigel Pegrum. The work draws inspiration from traditional cultural wisdom and modern philosophies concerning human nature, empathy, and harmony, seeking to address contemporary issues such as mental health and climate change, and celebrate the very best of ourselves. Ash, Howes and Pegrum will consult with three prominent regional cultural leaders to help inform the work before completing the first draft and initial score, then partner with JUTE Theatre Company to undergo a creative development week of the work at Bulmba-ja Arts Centre in Cairns working with regional professional creatives and a visiting director. | $12,163.00 | Kewarra Beach, 4879 |
| Centre for Australasian Theatre Inc. | The Great Travelling Médecin Show | The Great Traveling Médecin Show will undergo the final stage of development ready for touring by intercultural and interdisciplinary FNQ Company, The Centre for Australasian Theatre (CfAT). The final stage of development will include residency at the Centre for Performing Arts Cairns (CPAC), rehearsals, and the Cairns Premiere. | $30,000.00 | Julatten, 4871 |
| Kodie Redfern | Suitable Studio – Small Stage Under 21 Open Mic | Small Stage will be a monthly event in Townsville that will provide performance opportunities exclusively for emerging musicians under the age of 21. Presented by Suitable Studio and utilising the open mic format, Small Stage will provide school-age students and recent graduates with the opportunity to build confidence performing to a live audience, and network with local industry professionals, laying the groundwork for a professional music career. Partnerships with Grill’d and Neighbourhood Productions will ensure a family-friendly setting, promotion to students at local schools and the attendance of industry professionals. | $27,620.00 | Gulliver, 4812 |
| Musical Theatre Australia | “A Girl’s Guide to World War” – Licensing Project | Written by Maleny couple Katy Forde and Aleathea Monsour and produced by their company Musical Theatre Australia (MTA), the heartfelt and award-winning musical “A Girl’s Guide to World War” has attracted motivated licensors in Queensland and beyond. To increase the licensing potential of the show, MTA will adapt the script for a larger cast and produce backing tracks radically expanding the show’s future potential and providing a sustainable income for the regional theatre company. | $25,032.00 | Maleny, 4552 |
| Jill Chism | Remnants | Remnants, a retrospective solo exhibition held at NorthSite Contemporary Arts, Cairns in late August 2024, frames 30 years of art practice. The exhibition will ask questions about consumption and waste, the demise of the natural environment, and what we are left with, while asking existential questions about what we are doing and where we are headed. Materials for the exhibition consist almost entirely of waste materials from building projects and businesses. What visual and olfactory remnants from these? Where have they come from and what do they denote and what about waste? | $7,500.00 | Oak Beach, 4877 |
| Goombungee Public Hall Inc | Goombungee Creative Arts Community Workshop Program | This program will promote community wellness and identity building, through professionally supervised creative arts workshops in three distinct disciplines of practice. A video-making through mobile technologies workshop will guide participants to produce a locally situated mini-film and a series of mini-documentaries exploring intergenerational local experience. A slab-clay model making workshop series will introduce all-age participants to researching, planning, and constructing scale models of significant local buildings and landmarks. Visual arts workshops will provide meaningful engagement for all ages and capabilities to acrylic painting and printmaking techniques with a local and personal focus. | $23,260.00 | Goombungee, 4354 |
| Flinders Shire Council | Palette of Skies: Artistic Fusion | Presented as part of the Festival of Outback Skies, this project will support students and local artists to work collaboratively to produce artworks that capture the essence of the Hughenden region’s unique landscapes. The project offers students a distinctive chance to participate in a real-world artistic endeavour, cultivating skills, creativity, and teamwork. Working with both established artists and peers from diverse backgrounds, participants gain insights into varied creative techniques, cultural viewpoints, and problem-solving strategies, enriching their learning journey. | $19,928.00 | Hughenden, 4821 |
For media enquiries, please contact:
Elloise Campbell
Communications Manager
Flying Arts Alliance comms@flyingarts.org.au
The Regional Arts Fund (RAF) is an Australian Government program designed to benefit regional and remote arts practitioners, arts workers, audiences and communities. The fund is provided through Regional Arts Australia and is administered in Queensland by Flying Arts Alliance.
Flying Arts Alliance acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands and seas on which we work, live and create. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
Flying Arts Alliance is honoured to acknowledge the Governor of Queensland, Her Excellency, the Honourable Dr Jeannette Young PSM as our Patron. We also acknowledge Mr Tim Fairfax AC and Mrs Gina Fairfax as our Cultural Patrons.
Flying Arts is a not-for-profit organisation inspiring the appreciation, practice and professional development of the visual and media arts as a lifetime interest or career throughout regional and remote Queensland, supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, and corporate partners and benefactors.
Flying Arts is the administrator in Queensland of the Regional Arts Fund (RAF), an Australian Government program provided through Regional Arts Australia.