Australian artist-run initiatives
Australian artist-run initiatives are a series of artist-run initiatives and galleries found throughout Australia. A few key spaces include FELTspace (Adelaide); LEVEL and Boxcopy (Brisbane); The Walls Art Space (Gold Coast) BUS Projects, KINGS ARI, TCB, Clubs Project inc, West Space, Seventh Gallery, Blindside and Trocadero Art Space, Exit Strategy Studios (Melbourne); Free Range, Moana and Paper Mountain (Perth); Firstdraft, MOP and Serial Space (Sydney); and Project Contemporary Artspace (Wollongong).
Brisbane artist-run initiatives
Brisbane is home to many currently active and innovative artist-run initiatives, including Boxcopy, The Wandering Room, Diagram, and ArtWorld Studio Gallery (Norman Park).
BNE ART is an independent digital visual arts guide, live-archive resource and access point for the online public wishing to learn more about Brisbane’s visual arts sector.
Tasmanian artist-run initiatives
Constance, formerly known as Inflight[1] is currently the only artist-run initiative based in Hobart. Inflight began in 2003 and celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, re-launching early February 2013 as Constance ARI.
6a was a significant artist-run initiative based in North Hobart from 2007-2011.
Sawtooth ARI is a gallery based in Launceston, showcasing contemporary and experimental art by local, interstate and international artists at various stages of their professional career.[2]
Perth-based artist-run initiatives
PRAXIS was an early artist-run initiative which had a fifteen-year history of producing an important program of visual arts exhibitions, publications and special projects Artists included Brian McKay, Paul Thomas. The Verge/KURB is another, which also produced a publication that documented it and many others from the 1970s through to the 1990s. Terminus= group was another active in the later 1990s.
The oldest, currently operating artists studios is Gotham Studios has been a dedicate art making studio since 1987. The second oldest is Robertson Park Artists Studio which was originally the Wellman Street Studio (1994-2000). In 2014 Paper Mountain produced a limited survey exhibition of emerging artist-run initiative.
Sydney-based artist-run initiatives
Other important non-gallery artist initiatives include NUCA (Network of UnCollectable Artists), Sydney art galleries and art community (SAGAC), The Invisible Inc., the Artist Funded project, and the Sydney Ladies Artists Club.
Victorian artist-run initiatives
Early examples of artist run initiatives include The Queensbery Street Gallery operated by Melbourne artist Peter Graham in association with Victorian Printmakers' Group between 1973 and 1978. Also, West Space which is also part of Contemporary Arts Organisations Australia (CAOS).
Current examples of Victorian artist-run initiatives include BLINDSIDE, TCB art inc., Kings ARI, Rubicon ARI, Platform, Knight Street Art Space and Punk Cafe.
Artist-run initiatives in Melbourne, Victoria, are promoted by VIA-n, the Victorian Initiatives of Artists Network, a volunteer network that includes more than 20 ARI organisations spread across metropolitan and regional Victoria. In April 2007, VIA-n released a publication on the history of ARIs in Victoria called Making Space in conjunction with simultaneous artist-run events across the state.
The Australia Council for the Arts has also produced a comprehensive list of Australian artist-run initiatives in operation in 2006.
References
- "West Space Editorial" West Space, 2007.
- "Last chance to see" By Sunanda Creagh, Sydney Morning Herald, 13 January 2006.
- "Taking the Initiative" By Angus Hohenboken, The Program, 10 February 2004.
- "Melbourne artist-run spaces: fighting fit" by Daniel Palmer, Real Time 45, October–November 2001.
- Germaine, Max 'Artists and Galleries of Australia and New Zealand' (1979) ISBN 0868320196
External links
- At the end of 2014, the Crawl project rolled over its database into Aripedia.org.au, online encyclopaedia for Artist Run Initiatives (ARIs) around Australia.
- Crawl: Events Listings and news for Artist Run Initiatives in Australia
- Contemporary Arts Organisations Australia