Kolyang Creative Hub: Recent Episodes
Performing Lines WA
Facilitated by Jay Emmanuel, this small group discussion focuses on sharing how queerness applies to the making of new work (theatre or performance).
Drawing on the experience of guests and audience members, this Long Table discussion interrogates how we consider voice, agency and self-determination in artistic collaborations. We explore how to create safe artistic spaces that foster and encourage equality throughout the creative process, questioning when is it the right time for collaborators to intervene, and when is it time to step out of the way and listen.
Provocateurs: Bruno Booth (Host), Chloe Ogilvie, Mararo Wangai, Crystal Nguyen, Emma Fishwick and Jeremy Smith
A conversation with Helah Milroy and Joshua Pether about their ritual performance history; and explorations into ‘Bookmarking’ and ‘The Reckoning’ as new methodologies
“In the sciences, the concept of failure is a natural part of experimentation. If you want to learn how a process works, or develop a new one yourself, the scientific method demands that you try, fail, and try again. But in the arts, failure is often seen as a dirty word—no one wants to be responsible for a critical or commercial flop. But without taking risks and pushing boundaries, art would remain stagnant, and the creative spirit would be wasted on our own fears.”
The Art of Failure: The Importance of Risk and ExperimentationAmerican Artscape | 2014 N0.4
In this session, guests and audience members are invited to discuss the importance of risk, bravery and failure in the artistic process. How do you cultivate new collaborations that will celebrate creative risks? What do our table guests see as the future of contemporary artistic practice for the industry? How we can imagine new models of making and sharing work?
Provocateurs: Mel Cantwell (Host), Glenn Iseger-Pilkington, James O’Hara, Joe Lui Paradise, Rachael Dease and Zohar Spatz
Making work that is accessible/criticises accessibility issues faced by the disabled community is hard. Is it possible to incorporate access needs into our design process without it feeling like we are simply ticking boxes? How do we make cutting-edge work that also caters to the needs of our community? Does it have to cater to everybody?
Small group discussion facilitated by Bruno Booth
Let's talk about the basics of how to manage money as an artist. Come in with all your "probably a stupid question..." Anything from superannuation, BAS, PAYG, ABNs to where we should be investing our money. No judgment!
Tax accountant Kylie Thompson from Sorrento Strategic will be here to answer your questions. She has worked with artists for many years and understands the unique challenges we face.
Following on from 2020 Hub discussions we will be investigating tangible new models for change. How can Indie producers be better supported in WA to help artists create work outside existing company structures?
Small group discussion facilitated by Anna Kosky
Join us for a discussion about what makes a creative space culturally safe, how to manage expectations of cultural representation, and examining some positive frameworks for productive relationships and creativity!
Small-group Discussion facilitated by Laura Liu
Is there a way to ensure we share and prioritise environmental sustainability in the WA arts sector? Let’s sit and talk about ways we can collectively commit to environmental policies, procedures and sharing practical knowledge throughout the arts ecosystem.
Small-group Discussion facilitated by Jamie David & James Berlyn
Following on from our conversation on Disability Identity and Pride, this is an action-focussed discussion on how financially limited artists & arts organisations can work to make their performances and processes more accessible.
Small-group discussion facilitated by Sam Nerida and Bruno Booth
Investigating new models and pathways that are working towards truly reflecting the diversity of contemporary Australia on our stages. Hear from some national leaders about their long-term vision in supporting the development of exciting new artists and creating authentic experiences that connect to new audiences.
GUESTS Zohar Spatz (La Boite Theatre, Brisbane) Jade Lillie (Australia Council for the Arts) Samira Farah (Artshouse)
How to be an artist/creative AND a parent?
Join us for an informal chat between parents, childcare workers, and people who want to support parents in the performing arts.
This is an opportunity to share what has worked for you, what hasn’t, and perhaps pitch some new ways of approaching the challenges. This is a chance for parents to be heard and for organisations and/or allies to listen.
We’ll touch on some existing models that have been tried locally and overseas. By also involving people with experience in child-care we are hoping to create a resource list of artists who are able to care for children, and thus provide them with work also – similar to chaperone and childcare resources lists that exist in film and television.
This is an inclusive conversation for people of all genders and it would be great to get a variety of perspectives in the room. We would also love to talk about the joys and rewards of being an artist parent!
DATE: Fri 11 June
Change in the arts: real or perceived? What are the structural issue in art-making and the cultural issues surrounding arts presenting that are disabling our mental health?
The structures we are bound to are real, and big, and will need our attention to change. Given the world is changing at an ever-increasing pace, how do we change our arts practices in the modern world? What is preventing us from imagining and implementing change?
In all of this what is real and what is perceived? What is structural and what is cultural?
GUESTS: Shona Erskine (Psychologist, Facilitator & Dancer) Shelagh Magadza (Executive Director, The Chamber of Arts & Culture WA) Lilly Blue (Learning Creativity & Research, Art Gallery WA) Ian Wilkes (Theatre-maker)
DATE: Thur 3 June
Creating a career path in the arts often looks more like a maze than a ladder.
A gathering of mid-career artists from any art form (we’d love to hear from you all, please come along). A discussion of gaps in career pathways with the objective of finding concise and common solutions/offers/asks to then present to WA arts orgs/funding bodies.
Conversation facilitated by Arielle Gray
Let’s unpack some examples we have within WA where artists are working within organisations. What can we learn from each other? Join members of The Last Great Hunt & Rachael Whitworth (Kolyang Creative Hub) and anyone present to talk about their experiences.
Facilitated by Mel Cantwell
DATE: Thur 17 June
Following the 2020 Creative Hub, Performing Lines WA with support from DLGSCI launched a pilot Artist Hub at King Street Arts Centre for artists to access free rehearsal space and a co-working space. Moving forward, do artists need or even want a space or hub to work from? What are the key elements needed to make it work?
FACILITATED BY: Daisy Sanders (KSAC Artist Hub coordinator)
DATE: Tue 8 June
How do they do it? A discussion with long-practicing independent artists on how they’ve sustained and continue to sustain their career in the Arts – the challenges, the joys, the warts and their antidotes.
Host: Grace Chow Artists: Sally Richardson, Chrissie Parrot & Bobbi Henry
DATE: Wed 16 June
Let’s talk about co-designing artistic experiences with communities – the incredible impact this can have but also the challenges. We will hear about individual experiences from Chloe Flockart (from Merredin), Georgia King (Co-AD Whiskey & Boots) and Margot Edwards (Wilding Stories, Margaret River) as part of this discussion.
GUESTS: Georgia King Chloe Flockhart Margot Edwards
After the chaos and unraveling of last year, here we are, in a changed world and context, still making performing arts. The Covid fallout has triggered devastating cancellations and unemployment at its worst and game-changing local presentation opportunities at its best.
What has worked, and what hasn’t? What have we learned about how best to practice and produce relevant, resonant and resourceful works as we step into the next phase of an ongoing pandemic?
Hear from 4 speakers, whose various perspectives represent the layers within the sector, as we begin to imagine a path forward.
GUESTS: Iain Grandage (Artistic Director; Perth Festival) Marty Cunningham (Director, Investment, Research and Policy; DLGSCI) Dalisa Pigram (Artistic Co-director, Choreographer & Dancer; Marrugeku) Madeleine Flynn (Sound Artist)
A community-led conversation unpacking disability pride and identity, accessibility for artists and audience, and how this manifests in artistic practice.
GUESTS: Daley Rangi (Antidisciplinary Artist) Rachael Woodward (Theatre-maker) Julia Hales (Theatre-maker and performer) Bruno Booth (Contemporary artist) Crystal Nguyen (Performer and writer)
DATE: Wed 9 June
Creating a career path in the arts often looks more like a maze than a ladder.
A gathering of mid-career artists from any art form (we’d love to hear from you all, please come along). A discussion of gaps in career pathways with the objective of finding concise and common solutions/offers/asks to then present to WA arts orgs/funding bodies.
Conversation facilitated by Arielle Gray
DATE: Fri 11 June
Following on from 2020 Hub discussions we will be investigating tangible new models for change. How can Indie producers be better supported in WA to help artists create work outside existing company structures?
FACILITATED BY: Anna Kosky (Producer; Perth Festival)
DATE: Tue 8 June
Join Circuitwest and DLGSC to unpack the nuts and bolts of how to make a residency happen: forming local partnerships, authentic relationships with the community and funding the process.
GUESTS: Alli Doherty (DLGSC) Ryan Taafe (Circuitwest)
DATE: Wed 2 June
Where do you go when your work doesn’t fit the traditional boundaries?
Artistic practice is evolving, and a lot of institutions have struggled to keep up. Some organisations just aren’t evolving artistically at the rate that audience taste is evolving.
While the growth is slow, we’ve seen a range of alternative arts festivals and programs flourishing nationally in the last ten years, suggesting an appetite for innovative work.
Join our guests Annika Moses, Jeremy Smith and Steve Berrick to discuss some of the challenges experimental artists are dealing with when looking for platforms to present their work, and what are some of the opportunities out there.
GUESTS: Annika Moses (Sound-maker) Jeremy Smith (PICA General Manager) Steve Berrick (Coder)
What are the advantages and disadvantages of an ensemble-based company model? Could major and small-to-medium performing arts companies have a core ensemble of performers and creatives? How would this work? How flexible could it be? How could it be inclusive and diverse? What would it cost? How would it be funded?
GUESTS: Humphrey Bower (independent theatre-maker) Arielle Gray (Core artist – The Last Great Hunt) Guy Boyce (General Manager – Sensorium Theatre)
DATE: Tue 15 June
Is there a way to ensure we share and prioritise environmental sustainability in the WA arts sector? Let’s sit and talk about ways we can collectively commit to environmental policies, procedures and sharing practical knowledge throughout the arts ecosystem.
Facilitated by Jamie David & James Berlyn
DATE: Thur 17 June
Join us for a discussion about what makes a creative space culturally safe, how to manage expectations of cultural representation, and examining some positive frameworks for productive relationships and creativity!
DATE: Tue 15 June TIME: 3.30pm – 4.45pm VENUE: Subiaco Arts Centre, upstairs foyer
Following on from our Week 2 conversation on Disability Identity and Pride, this is an action-focussed discussion on how financially limited artists & arts organisations can work to make their performances and processes more accessible.
Facilitated by Sam Nerida and Bruno Booth
DATE: Wed 16 June TIME: 2pm – 3:15pm VENUE: Subiaco Arts Centre
Let’s talk about the basics of how to manage money as an artist. Come in with all your “probably a stupid question…” Anything from superannuation, BAS, PAYG, ABNs to where we should be investing our money. No judgement!
Tax accountant Kylie Thompson from Sorrento Strategic will be here to answer your questions. She has worked with artists for many years and understands the unique challenges we face.
DATE: Fri 11 June TIME: 2pm-3.15pm VENUE: Subiaco Arts Centre, upstairs foyer