Image: Street art by Gus at the Met, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane Street Art Festival.
Last December, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced a new focus on innovative thinking as part of the plans to grow a ‘modern, dynamic, 21st century’ Australia.
A pioneer of such innovative thinking is Brisbane City Council, where a $25,000 Innovation Award has been presented annually since 2014.
But what exactly is innovation, and how can we encourage innovative thinking in the arts?
Learn more about the Innovation Award
Lincoln Savage, Director of Brisbane Street Art Festival, says innovation is about finding creative solutions and analysing potential.
‘I think that is innovation – analysing the potential of infrastructure or a system or anything – whether it’s an event in the arts or whether it’s a creative technology project,’ he told ArtsHub.
Rewarding innovative thinking is the focus of Brisbane City Council’s Innovation Award, a one-off grant of $25,000 designed to help realise a creative, inspirational and innovative idea in the creative industries.
Applications for the 2017 Award are now open, and are welcomed from anyone, whether artist or arts worker, curator or collective, producer or designer.
Together with colleague David Don, Savage was presented with Brisbane City Council’s 2016 Innovation Award for their Art Atlas project; an interactive mapping of street art in the Queensland capital.
‘The core of it is that street art is ephemeral – and in a lot of ways it’s the most honest art form you can have, because people create the work for free. They generally put it up for free, they leave it there and walk away from it and it’s no longer theirs – they’ve giving it to the city, they’re giving it to the people that may happen upon it, and a lot of the time it doesn’t last very long.
Image: Street art by Ekaer at Kerbside, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane Street Art Festival.​
‘So this is a way of acknowledging and showcasing the talent that is in Brisbane and has been for a long time …This platform gives [street artists] a chance to reach a wider audience; a showcase to respond to what they’re doing.’
Not every Council is as receptive to street art, which is sometimes conflated with graffiti, and Savage commended Brisbane City Council for their open-mindedness – itself a sign of innovative thinking.
Apply now for the Brisbane City Council Innovation Award
In order to encourage innovation in the arts, Savage urges people to think outside existing rules and structures; to be willing to experiment and make mistakes.
‘You’ve got to give people a chance to move freely and to make mistakes. Making mistakes is the biggest thing. I think if you’re looking at government or big business, mistakes are so heavily frowned upon, but they’re kind of the catalyst to change and advancement,’ he said.
He also encouraged peers and colleagues to be open to seeking new funding sources for their work.
‘Funding is the key to so much of the arts, so I guess I try and take advantage of any opportunity that comes up.’
Applying for a funding program like Brisbane City Council’s Innovation Award, or related funding programs including the Creative Sparks Program and the Lord Mayor’s Young and Emerging Artists Fellowships, might seem a daunting challenge. But Savage urges artists and arts workers to seize the opportunity.
Read: Young artists make creative sparks fly
‘If it’s a solid idea, just call them … just chat to them about the idea and they can generally tell you pretty quickly whether it has viability or not,’ he said.
The process of applying for the Innovation Award is smooth and streamlined, Savage added.
‘This particular one is incredibly easy to apply for. Basically you put your concept down and then it gets assessed by the Council panel to see if it might be a good potential project. Once we got shortlisted we worked with a digital agency and Council to create a better pitch.’
An uncomplicated grant application process? Now that’s what we call innovative!
Applications to Brisbane City Council’s Innovation Award are now open, closing Monday 7 November 2016. See www.brisbane.qld.gov.au for details.
