Footscray Community Arts Centre

News

---

2009 At A Glance

---

Things may look a bit different at Footscray Community Arts Centre this year, but the building works have not stopped the development of a range of exciting programs for 2009.

For space reasons the renowned Footscray Arts Artists In Residence, Incubators and Exhibition programs, all so dependent on physical spaces to support artists and emerging companies, are not able to be run this year. Rest assured, these programs will certainly not be forgotten and will be relaunched in the not-too-distant future. In the meantime, there is a full year of projects and events planned and this is your chance to have a glimpse at what’s in store.

A definite highlight of Footscray Arts’ artistic program for 2009 is the many partnerships with major organisations that will continue to be developed. These include the 2008-2012 partnership with the Arts Centre, the ongoing partnership with Federation Square on The Gift of Light project, and partnerships via commissions from the Port of Melbourne Corporation and Department of Transport.

For the third year Footscray Arts will lead the community engagement component of The Gift of Light. This popular winter event see artists and culturally diverse communities creating stunning illuminated installations at Fed Square that explore the cultural significance of light.

Following the success of last year’s Crowd Theory Port of Melbourne event, the Port of Melbourne Corporation are again working with Footscray Arts to facilitate a new artistic project. This time communities associated with the Port will be paired with developing filmmakers to produce short films telling stories of migration. Check this website for updates on this project throughout the year including details of when the finished films will be screened.

Footscray Arts has also been commissioned by the Department of Transport to create an innovative new project as part of the Footscray Renewal Initiative. The project, which for the moment is known as ‘Familiar Strangers’, explores the unique experience commuters have when they enter the communal space of travel and will involve users of one of Melbourne’s busiest train stations, Footscray. 2009 will see extensive consultation with communities to develop a tender for a leading artist to collaborate on this project.

This year will see the development of another DIY event. The Footscray Arts DIY project supports local groups to create and present their own events for their communities with the assistance of a leading artist.

Following a successful pilot program, Footscray Community Arts Centre’s Arts Envoys mentorship will be further developed too, so stay tuned for a call out for CALD community members to be involved in the not too distant future.

The Footscray Arts Workshops Program has long and proud tradition, and this year it’s getting a boost with the inclusion of a series of Industry Partners Workshops. These ongoing workshops will provide individuals and communities in the western region with access to the expertise of leading artists and organisations such as NICA and Chunky Move. Keep checking this website for details of how you can become involved in these workshops and anything else that Footscray Arts is creating.