Five Regional Western Australian Art Projects Receive Federal Funding
Regional Arts WA
The Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund will provide more than $109,000 for regional Western Australian arts projects; this funding is managed in Western Australia by Country Arts WA.
The Mooditj boys dance group, part of the Southern Edge Arts RISK program. Photo: Anne Sorenson
Five arts projects will be delivered in regional and remote Western Australian locations in the Kimberley, South-West, Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions.
These include an individual artist, supporting their creative development of a puppetry work in collaboration with local creatives; and four community-based projects that will provide opportunities for people to come together to develop skills, build creative career pathways, and to reflect on and share cultural knowledge, contributing to their regions’ sustainable cultural development.
Paul MacPhail, Country Arts WA’s Executive Director, says that the funding support will provide valuable opportunities for regional and remote communities to develop their skills-base and broaden engagement with the arts.
“The projects funded demonstrate the value of community involvement in the creative direction of arts projects – from providing an artistic pathway for at-risk youth in Southern Edge Arts’ RISK Youth Circus to Goolarri Media’s up-skilling and mentoring of artists and technicians to support the Kimberley region’s performing arts industry.”
A panel of arts and culture community leaders assessed the applications. Trish Barron, Chair of the Regional Arts Fund WA Panel says, “Regional WA has a thriving arts and culture sector which plays an important role in building strong and liveable communities, creating jobs and contributing to local economies. So, it was not surprising that there were a high number of quality applications to this round, making it very competitive and a difficult task for the Panel. The Panel commends all of the applicants for their ongoing commitment to the arts in regional WA and extends its congratulations to those successful applications, which met the criteria to a very high degree.”
The Regional Arts Fund is one way the Australian Government supports regional artists and arts organisations to develop their artistic practice and produce works and experiences to benefit their local communities. The Regional Arts Fund is administered on behalf of the Australian Government by Regional Arts Australia and its member organisations which includes Country Arts WA.
