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To be held in Kooralbyn Valley from Wednesday 2 October to Sunday 6 October 2019, Arts Ablaze will be the first regional arts conference to take place in Queensland in more than six years.
‘The sector has been advocating for a gathering for a long time and no one has been able to put up their hand. This was a conversation that needed to be had and so we applied to the Australian Government’s Building Better Regions fund to assist us in staging the event and we were successful,’ said Scenic Rim Regional Council Coordinator Cultural Services, Bronwyn Davies.
‘It is really significant that Queensland gets together now because it has been six years since the state has had that opportunity to shape things.
‘The conversation needs to be around “How do you fairly distribute access to the arts in regional areas?” But we also want to be responding not just to what’s happening in regional Queensland, but elsewhere in Australia and globally…It will be quite a powerful experience.’
Expressions of Interest now open
In the lead-up to the event, Arts Ablaze is calling for speakers, presenters, and artists to inject creativity and exchange ideas during this five-day conference and celebration of regional arts in Queensland.
Read about EOIs here. EOIs are due Monday 15 April 2019.
A range of opportunities are available across the event, including presentations, panels, performances and site-specific art. Expressions of Interest are sought from Queensland artists in any art form and arts workers based in Queensland.
‘We have a number of different EOIs out,’ said Davies.
‘There will be a range of performance and creative opportunities throughout the conference, plus during the community arts celebration, which is free and open to the public which runs from the Friday through the Sunday night.
‘We’re looking for site activations, which might be a flash mob or a dance project or a choral event, or it could be an installation or a projection work. We want work that will activate and engage people with the actual physical site.’
Arts Ablaze is seeking presenters to deliver half-hour sessions as well, and there is a call out for mentors willing to share their advice with aspiring creatives and arts workers.
EOI Categories:
Flying Arts Alliance, through the Regional Arts Fund (RAF), is offering a travel subsidy for Queensland-based artists and presenters confirmed for the Arts Ablaze conference.
‘If people are successful in their EOI and need assistance attending beyond the amount of money that we’re able to provide, other support may be available. The Flying Arts Alliance is supporting artists and presenters and will offer bursaries later in the year for people to attend as conference delegates. Regional service networks are also assisting their regions to help representatives to attend the conference or help them attend as presenters,’ said Davies.
To find out more visit artsablaze.com.au.
Arts Ablaze is funded by the Australian Government’s Building Better Regions Fund and Scenic Rim Regional Council, and proudly supported by the Regional Arts Services Network, an initiative of the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF), a partnership between the Queensland Government and Scenic Rim Regional Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland, CQ University Australia and the Ramada Resort Kooralbyn Valley.
