Accessible Arts / arts + disability NSW

Taking the Lead

Arts and disability ‘activated’ at Accessible Arts’ national conference

The second Arts Activated National Conference, held at the Powerhouse Museum at the end of March 2010, brought together 350 people over two days, from across Australia and overseas. Forty per cent of delegates who attended came from the arts, 40 per cent from the disability sector and 20 per cent from education, community and health. Initial feedback from delegates suggests that over 85 per cent of delegates experienced the program as above average to excellent. Sancha Donald, CEO Accessible Arts said, “We would like to thank all who attended Arts Activated 2010. Ultimately a conference relies on the speakers, performers and delegates to deliver a successful event. This contribution creates the inspiration, challenges and support that sustains and drives us in our work at Accessible Arts. Ideas and recommendations generated will shape and inform our future work.” Read more...

Duncan Meerding presenting at Arts Activated National
Conference 2010

Conference introduces arts and disability sector to young and emerging artists

A range of young artists with disability from across Australia and New Zealand attended the Arts Activated National Conference as presenters, performers and delegates.  “A seemingly powerful aspect of the conference was the opportunity for young and emerging artists with a disability to be introduced to the arts and disability sector. Anecdotal evidence suggests that these young artists found peers and connected to networks and new opportunities,” said Jane Pollard, Arts Activated Conference Convener. Furniture designer Duncan Meerding from Tasmania presented the paper ‘The Practising Artist perspective: Practicing as a Legally Blind Furniture Designer.’ The 23 year old’s presentation at the conference caught the attention of the Sydney Morning Herald. The story of his study in furniture design at the University of Tasmania and his art practice, received a two-page spread in the weekend’s edition of the Spectrum on 27-28 March 2010. Read more...

Daniel Kojta with Jane Trengove presenting at Arts Activated
National Conference 2010

Artist Profile: Daniel Kojta, new media artist and 2010 Accessible Arts Bundanon Residency recipient

Daniel Kojta, Blue Mountains based new media artist will undertake the second Accessible Arts Bundanon Residency during April. In 2004, Kojta graduated with an Honours degree in Visual Arts from the University of Western Sydney, where he was awarded the university medal. Since that time, as well as developing his own practice, Kojta curated a new media survey exhibition at the Bathurst Regional Gallery in 2008, received sponsorship from Arts Access Victoria and ANAT to attend the Super Human Revolution of the Species Symposium in 2009 and presented on the panel ‘Excellence – What is it anyway?’ at the Arts Activated National Conference in 2010. Kojta’s current new media practice investigates the parameters of human form as well as bringing life and movement to unnatural elements of the everyday. He aims to create a series of video installations and interactive sculptures during his time at Bundanon.

Award winning film with disability themes exhibited at ACMI

The creative and technical processes behind the acclaimed Australian animation Mary and Max form part of an exhibition at Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne, providing behind-the-scene insight into the feature film that took five years to make, including one year of filming. Mary and Max is the award winning claymation based on the story of a friendship between an eight-year-old girl from Melbourne and a severely obese 44-year-old New Yorker with Asperger's Syndrome. Other characters in the feature include Max's cleaner, who has low vision and Mary's neighbour, who is a wheelchair user with agoraphobia. The director, writer and designer, Adam Elliot has personally selected the figures, props and sets to include in this exhibition. “The diversity and complexity of the sets for Mary and Max was extreme; everything from a desert island to a chocolate heaven needed to be made. So it’s nice to be able to ‘lift the veil’ on the whole process for ACMI visitors.” Read more...

Creative Inclusive

Auslan interpreter at MCA guided tour, Lord Mayor Community
Access Day, Biennale of Sydney, 2008.

Lord Mayor Community Access Days throughout 17th Biennale of Sydney

Thanks to the Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP and the City of Sydney, a number of guided tours will be audio described and Auslan interpreted at the 17th Biennale of Sydney, to enable people with sensory disabilities access to Australia’s largest contemporary visual arts event. Based on the curatorial theme THE BEAUTY OF DISTANCE: Songs of Survival in a Precarious Age, the Biennale will be on display at Sydney’s leading cultural institutions, contemporary art spaces and heritage sites between 12 May and 1 August 2010. Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said “The City of Sydney is again delighted to sponsor the 17th Biennale of Sydney, Australia’s pre-eminent showcase for local and international contemporary art. In 2010, I will once again be pleased to host the Lord Mayor Community Access Days, to help open the Biennale to all people." Access tours will take place on 29 May at the Museum of Contemporary Art, on 20 June at Cockatoo Island and on 11 July at the Royal Botanic Gardens. Further information about the tours, including bookings and accessibility will be available on the Biennale’s website. Read more...

Bundanon broadens access initiatives

During 2010 Bundanon Trust is including a number of initiatives in their program that are inclusive of people with disability. Following on from the first residency opportunity for a NSW artist with a disability in 2008, Bundanon Trust continues a partnership with Accessible Arts to present this opportunity for the second time which was awarded to Blue Mountains based new media artist, Daniel Kojta. The Outreach program at Bundanon Trust will place a focus on people with disability during 2010. Day visit workshops have been designed to meet the needs of local people and groups from the Disability Trust in Nowra and the Illawarra, the Nowra Junction Mental Health Group and Cross Roads Youth Health Services will participate in the program. On Sunday 16 May 2010, a free Open Day to coincide with International Museums Day is being presented at Bundanon, including access to the Bundanon Homestead and Arthur Boyd's Studio. Guided tours are available upon request. The usual entry fee is being wavered for the day and everyone is welcome. Read more...

Sydney Writers’ Festival 2009. Image courtesy Prudence Upton

Accessing the Sydney Writers’ Festival

The annual Sydney Writers’ Festival will take place from 17 May to 23 May 2010 at Pier 4, Sydney Theatre, Walsh Bay as well as at other accessible venues such as City Recital Hall and Sydney Opera House. Accessible Arts continues to work with the Festival in a partnership that began in 2008, to support the development of improved access information about Festival events, wheelchair accessible shuttle buses from Circular Quay to Walsh Bay and information sessions for staff and volunteers on disability awareness. In 2009, for the first time, the Festival’s closing event, International Voices, was Auslan interpreted. This year’s program will be available online from Friday 9 April and released in The Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday 10 April. An Auslan interpreted event will be included in the program and tickets are on sale from 10 April 2010. Visit the Festival website for more information and ticket sales.

Launch of Digital Odyssey Art Project and Telstra/MCA
partnership in Murray Bridge, SA

Online access to MCA overcomes geographic and physical restrictions

Regional perspective: The Museum of Contemporary Art and Telstra have announced a technology partnership which will help take contemporary art to rural and remote parts of the country, as well as help to build a wider global audience for Australian artists. “Accessibility is the key to the future success of all museums, as they take advantage of high-speed broadband technology to broaden their audience reach and take their work outside the gallery walls.  We’re excited about the possibilities of taking Australian artists to the world and ensuring people living in rural and remote parts of Australia can experience contemporary art,” said Telstra Business Group Managing Director Deena Shiff. In what is the first step towards expanding the MCA’s online presence, the Museum has also launched a new Online Video and Audio Gallery. For the first time, virtual visitors can overcome geographic or physical restrictions to access MCA resources such as artists interviews, behind the scenes footage and public programs long after an exhibition has closed. Read more...

Other Events and Opportunities

• Re-Presenting Disability – new volume published in the UK addresses issues surrounding disability representation in museums and galleries.

• Fairfield Urban Art Project - Fairfield City Council is calling out to artists to be involved in an urban art project involving painting of roller doors of Cabramatta Town Centre.

• artSMART: building sustainable creative industries – free workshops for visual artists in sustaining a small business.

• Wellspring : dance, movement & performance - workshops for people with disability in the Blue Mountains.

Feedback

We invite feedback and suggestions from our readers. Share your experiences of attending any of the listed events or offer suggestions for future newsletter items. Email feedback to info@aarts.net.au.

Send us your news

Contributions to the newsletter are welcome and encouraged. Please send us your item by the 15th of the month, for the following month’s edition. Listings should include the title, date, location, a short description (100 words), plus all available contact details, access details and an image (JPEG or GIF format). Arts events, opportunities or news that will be of interest to people with disability, their families, friends and carers and are accessible will be published. Email contributions to info@aarts.net.au.