23 April 2012

British Council - Realise Your Dream


This year, the British Council’s Realise Your Dream celebrates 10 years of nurturing Australian creative talent by offering three lucky winners the chance to win a $10,000 cash prize and a return trip to the UK, where they can meet their creative heroes and will experience all the cultural richness the UK has to offer.

Realise Your Dream is a unique opportunity for people working within the first ten years of their career, in any creative industry – from theatre to publishing, visual art to music, digital media to industrial design, etc. There is no age-limit, and applicants from all over Australia are welcome.
Go to
www.realiseyourdream.org.au for more information about the programme, its past winners and to apply.

Applications open 23 April and close 3 June 2012.

20 April 2012

Social news: Chinese delegation visits Gallery artisan

On Wednesday afternoon, artisan hosted a fantastic gallery event for a delegation of 26 representatives from the China Arts & Crafts Association, the official body for arts & crafts in China.

The event was designed for the Chinese delegation to view artisan's current exhibitions and other local works for potential exhibition in China. Attendees also relished the opportunity to increase their understanding of arts programs in China and strengthen the relationship between Chinese and Australian arts & crafts.

Artists Joanna Bone (glass works), Cathy Keys (ceramicist), and Matt Dwyer (jeweller) gave talks and the delegation members were presented with artist sample bags, catalogues from our exhibition Desert Psychedelic: Jimmy Pike, and other takeaway arts & crafts goodies. A great time was had by all and thanks go out to everybody who attended and helped to make the afternoon such a success. The photographs below were taken during the event by artisan's Melinda Gagen.

Artisan CEO Liana Heath addresses guests along with Mr Wang Chen and translator Ms Jing Chen.
Jeweller Matt Dwyer during the artist talks.


Mr Wang Chen, Liana Heath, & Ms Jing Chen
Chinese ceramicist 'Mr Joe', Mr Wang Chen, & ceramicist Cathy Keys
Liana Heath, Cathy Keys, & Mr Joe admire The Long Tide artworks
Liana Heath & Mr Joe

Sector News: Cathy Keys exhibition

We would like to congratulate artisan ceramicist Cathy Keys on her current exhibition, Bunya. Check out Cathy's brand new website www.cathykeys.com (created with the assistance of a Queensland Government Arts Queensland Presentation and Development grant) for a peek at her work.  

Bunya will be on exhibition until 30th April 2012 at the Bunya Forest Gallery, 14 Bunya Ave, Bunya Mountains (07 4668 3020).

17 April 2012

Profile: GhostNets Australia

When a commercial fishing net is lost or abandoned in the ocean, it doesn’t stop fishing. Instead, it travels through the water as a ‘ghost net’, snagging anything in its path. Kilometres long, tangled, and drifting unmanned on the ocean tides, ghost nets are one of the ocean’s silent killers. The majority of ghost nets originating from South East Asia end up along the pristine Northern Australian coastline and threaten many species, including marine turtles and sawfish.  

GhostNets Australia, an alliance of over 22 Indigenous Australian communities, is working to protect the Northern Australian coast from the devastating effects of ghost nets. Since GhostNets Australia was founded in 2004, Indigenous rangers working with the project have removed over 8,000 nets from the coastline. Much of the recovered debris has been redirected into artistic projects. 

Using both traditional and contemporary weaving techniques, GhostNets artists create baskets and sculptures from ghost nets that would otherwise end up as landfill. The artists bring a wide range of skills and visions to the project, and the collaborative nature of the weavings constantly sparks innovation. 

The transformation of the ghost nets from a dangerous and uncontrolled ocean threat into beautiful and functional artworks allows the Indigenous owners of the Northern Australian coasts to protect their shores and reclaim stewardship of the land. GhostNets Australia strives to empower the Indigenous coastal inhabitants to play a large role in the management of resources and preservation of the natural environment.  

Above: ghost nets can weigh several tonnes and be kilometres long. Photo courtesy Pormpuraaw Rangers.
Above and below: many marine species are under threat from the unmanned ghost nets. Photo by Jane Dermer, Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation.
Photo courtesy of Mapoon Rangers.


The Long Tide: Contemporary Ghost Net Art will be on exhibition at Gallery artisan until 9 June, 2012.

13 April 2012

Work in Progress: the Queensland Museum Award 2012

Every year, the Queensland Museum (QM) awards the Queensland Museum Medal to an individual who has made outstanding achievements in a field relevant to the museum. 

However, 2012 is no ordinary year, with the museum is celebrating its 150th anniversary. To commemorate this incredible milestone, QM has selected Queensland artist Lincoln Austin to design two unique artworks to replace the traditional medal for this year's award. 

Created with Blue Crystal Marble, Lincoln’s art works 6˚ of Separation - Origin and 6˚ of Separation - Adaption are inspired by the concepts of interconnectedness that characterise the work of the Queensland Museum. 

The works will be revealed at a cocktail event in May as part of the anniversary celebrations. Adaption will be retained for the QM collection, and Origin will be awarded to the 2012 recipient of the Queensland Museum Award. Below are some snapshots of the works in progress.








All photographs courtesy of Lincoln Austin.

Opening night photos!

Last night at artisan, we hosted a fantastic opening night for our latest exhibitions. Attendees browsed works from The Long Tide: Contemporary Ghost Net Art; Finitude (v2) by Keith Armstrong; Ellaspede custom motorcycles and apparel; the Calcium Series by Luxxbox; furniture by Darcy Clarke; and the new artisan storefront created by Queensland University of Technology design students. Check out our facebook page for more photos.
The Long Tide artist Aly de Groot

Furniture designer Darcy Clarke

The Calcium Series by Luxxbox - storefront by QUT design students

Artisan - The Queensland Thread storefront by QUT design students
The Long Tide curator Tasha Finn & artist Aly de Groot

Furniture by Darcy Clarke in the Ivory Street display

Darren Park, Kai Armstrong & Finitude (v2) creator Keith Armstrong

Ellaspede's Steve Barry & Leo Yip

Gavan Ranger, Chairman of the Board of artisan

Shane Rowlands, Arts Queensland Deputy Director General

Surya Graf & Luxxbox's Jason Bird


The Long Tide artist Zoe de Jersey

05 April 2012

Installation of new exhibitions


Motorcycles? In an art gallery? That’s right; we’re excited to see the Ellaspede bikes being rolled into the artisan window today as a part of our new exhibition schedule! Also being set up for the big reveal next week in Gallery artisan are the beautiful ghost net sculptures for The Long Tide: Contemporary Ghost Net Art. Made from massive commercial fishing nets abandoned in the ocean, these creations are bringing new life and purpose to an ecological hazard. In Gallery 2, the Finitude (V2) exhibition by Keith Armstrong combines physical and virtual media to create an interactive experience for visitors. As you can see below, our gallery team has had a great time putting these wonderful displays together and we look forward to sharing them with you from next week.
Ghost Net artworks being arranged as part of The Long Tide.

The Finitude (V2) display being prepared in Gallery 2.

The media are as excited as we are about Ellaspede! This is co-founder Leo Yip being photographed with one of the custom motorcycles on display in the artisan window.

Marc Newson supports a national policy for design

Australians are unfettered by any deeply rooted design heritage, while at the same time possessing vast natural and historical riches - this could foreseeably nurture the next generation of world class designers and help shape the future. It is for this reason that I am supporting a National Policy for Design in Australia.’ Marc Newson, CBE

The Australian Design Alliance (AdA) has launched a campaign on Pozible – the Australian crowdfunding platform – to help fund its advocacy for a national design policy.

The AdA is a not for profit industry alliance of peak professional organisations that represent designers across all aspects of Australia’s design industry.

The AdA’s goal is to promote the use of design to boost Australia’s productivity, sustainability and innovation. Convincing our political leaders in Canberra to create and fund a national design policy is their number one priority.

The AdA wants to see a national policy for design adopted by the federal government that will be embedded in all government policies but specifically linked to Australia’s Innovation Agenda and cultural and urban design policies. The AdA want to put design at the forefront of innovation for the good of Australia and the good of the design community.

Crowd funding is a new way to raise necessary funds to support the AdA’s efforts to advocate on behalf of the sector. This is a way for passionate individuals to pledge support from as little as $1. With this support they will be able to undertake the research they need to do to strengthen their case, spend more time influencing political leaders and step up their communications strategy to showcase the work of Australian designers in all their guises.

For more information on how you can support the AdA’s campaign please go to:
http://www.pozible.com.au/index.php/archive/index/5291/description/0/0