Queen’s Theatre artwork commission
Expressions of interest are being sought from South Australian visual artists for a public art project on the western wall of the historic Queen’s Theatre in Adelaide’s West End.
Guildhouse is working with the Department of the Premier and Cabinet to commission an artist or group of artists to create the interpretive artwork, which they say should reflect the theatre’s significant cultural and historical value.
“Public art offers an opportunity to create intrigue and attract people to places,” says the callout. “It is envisioned that the interpretive artwork will provide a dynamic, sensory experience which is designed to inspire, engage and educate, by day and by night.”
The total commissioning budget for the artwork is $150,000. It can include 2D and 3D wall-based elements, and must integrate LED lighting.
Expressions of interest close on February 11, 2024, and concept designs are not required at this stage. A full project brief and application tips can be found on the Guildhouse website.
A red arrow indicates the wall where the commissioned artwork will be displayed.
Fleurieu Biennale Art Prize returns
The Fleurieu Biennale Art Prize will return this year for the first time since 2018 after the pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 and 2022 biennales.
Entries opened this week (details here), with artists invited to submit 2D or 3D artworks in any discipline exploring the theme “A Sense of Place”. The top prize – The Fleurieu Art Prize – is valued at $20,000, while the winner of the Emerging Artists Prize will receive $5000, and $2000 will be awarded to the People’s Choice award winner.
The prize was founded in 1998 with the aim of raising the profile of the Fleurieu Peninsula and has undergone several changes in name, form and venue over the years. At one point it was described as the richest landscape prize in Australia, with the 2016 winner, Tony Albert, receiving $65,000 for his wall installation The Hand You’re Dealt, which was exhibited at the Samstag Museum. The 2018 winners were James Tylor and Laura Wills with a collaborative work titled Hidden Landscapes: Kangaroo Island.
The judges for 2024 are Lisa Slade (assistant director, artistic programs, at the Art Gallery of South Australia), Brian Parkes (JamFactory CEO) and Nicholas Folland (head of contemporary studies and sculpture at Adelaide Central School of Art).
The 2024 Fleurieu Biennale Art Prize will be exhibited at the Fleurieu Arthouse in McLaren Vale from June 7 until July 14.
New AD for ACE
Danielle Zuvela is ACE’s new artistic director. Photo: supplied
Adelaide Contemporary Experimental is set to welcome its new artistic director, curator and arts leader Danielle Zuvela, at the end of this month.
Zuvela is relocating from Queensland, where she is co-director of Gold Coast Rainbow Communities. She co-founded Gold Coast Pride Festival in 2020, and was previously artistic co-director of Liquid Architecture, an organisation for artists working with sound. ACE says she has worked extensively in the Australian experimental arts sector, and curated numerous experimental art, performance and music programs.
Announcing the appointment last week, ACE chair Amanda Pepe said Zuvela was a perfect fit for the organisation.
“She will bring a unique perspective and plenty of energy to the role, building on the achievements of ACE in the past few years with a firm eye on what is possible into the future. It is an exciting time for ACE and contemporary and experimental artists.”
Previous artistic director Patrice Sharkey left at the end of November to take up a new role as head of exhibitions and public programs at TarraWarra Museum of Art in Victoria.
Planet Talks
Planet Talks guest panellist Anote Tong.
Topics ranging from the future of activism to the soundscape of the natural world will be discussed at WOMADelaide’s Planet Talks forum this year.
The program for the series of conversations about the environment and sustainability was released this week, with speakers including former Greens leader Bob Brown and former president of the Republic of Kiribati Anote Tong.
Brown will be one of the panellists discussing the “myriad ways” to fight for change in the face of constraints such as tougher protest laws in the Planet Talks opening session on March 9, while Tong will join First Nations rights advocate Tishiko Kings and climate advocate Yessie Moby (a traditional owner of Masig Island in the Torres Strait) for a talk about the growing climate movement emerging from Australia’s nearest islands. Other sessions will discuss topics such as ways to “green” Australian cities and action need to protect the health of our oceans.
WOMADelaide also released the program this week for its KidZone, which will include a First Nations weaving program, a “Paper Garden” installation hosted by the Art Gallery of SA, and the Adelaide City Library’s Book Nook.
Read about the WOMADelaide artist line-up here on InReview, and see the full program on the festival website.
Dog-Eared Readings in the Hills
Literary event series Dog-Eared Readings is heading to the Hills next month for a session featuring Pip Williams, author of bestseller The Dictionary of Lost Words and its more recently published companion novel The Bookbinder of Jericho.
Williams, who is based in the Adelaide Hills, will be in conversation with fellow local author Rebekah Clarkson at the February 7 event in the Stirling Hotel’s Rooftop Bar. The two readers for the night will be Molly Murn and Corrie Hosking.
Get InReview in your inbox – free each Saturday. Local arts and culture – covered.
Thanks for signing up to the InReview newsletter.
Seating is limited so RSVPs are essential (dogearedreadings@gmail.com). Further details are available here.
Green Room is a regular column for InReview, providing quick news for people interested, or involved, in South Australian arts and culture.
Get in touch by emailing us at editorial@solsticemedia.com.au
Support local arts journalism
Your support will help us continue the important work of InReview in publishing free professional journalism that celebrates, interrogates and amplifies arts and culture in South Australia.
Donate Here
