Victor Holder outside his ‘Ripples Toilet’ in Balaclava, Melbourne; a public commission by Port Phillip Council. Image courtesy RMIT.
Victor Holder completed a Masters of Arts (Arts in Public Space) at Melbourne’s RMIT in 2014. His experience studying has enabled him to expand his art practice, ‘to make sense of his message’ and build a successful business.
Holder’s multi-disciplinary art practice encompasses film, multimedia and sculpture. Before studying at RMIT, he had always worked in the realm of the visual arts, living in a warehouse with a community of artists and putting on events.
Studying at RMIT formalised his previous experiences and cemented his passion for projects with a community focus that promote sustainability and social awareness. Through his degree, he learnt the business of building and sustaining a successful art practice and, crucially, the way his practice can be supported through grants and funding. He also gained the skills and confidence to establish his own business, 4Dverse, an art project space based in St Kilda.
Holder’s practice led thesis investigated the way cultural and social activities can be facilitated in public and community spaces. 4Dverse builds on this idea in that it combines all aspects of life – mind, body, spirit, culture and art. By day it is a studio and office space. At night and weekends the space hosts exhibitions, film screening and workshops.
Holder studied part time at RMIT working across different faculties of the university, which allowed him to expand his knowledge and networks, and the constant pressure of deadlines throughout the degree meant he ‘got used to calendars’. Familiarity with conducting presentations in the classroom meant when he had to win over support in the business community he was able to do so.
Holder recommends a Masters of Arts degree for any artist wanting to develop their practice. Moving forward, Holder is working on building up 4Dverse so he can spend less time on administration and more time to focus on his art practice.
In the last year he has completed two public art commissions – one at Melbourne Zoo raising awareness about endangered wildlife and a public toilet art project with the City of Port Phillip and hopes to share his message through future community projects.
