Expect the unexpected when the arts, science and culture come together in a new program celebrating Bass Coast places and people.
Photos: Terry Melvin
By Laura Brearley
A NEW environmental program of eco arts events and activities for the Bass Coast community is about to begin. It’s called For Our Future and it brings together the arts, science and culture.
Supported by a grant from the Bass Coast Shire Council, the Phillip Island Conservation Society (PICS) will be facilitating the program and is also contributing financially.
A NEW environmental program of eco arts events and activities for the Bass Coast community is about to begin. It’s called For Our Future and it brings together the arts, science and culture.
Supported by a grant from the Bass Coast Shire Council, the Phillip Island Conservation Society (PICS) will be facilitating the program and is also contributing financially.
For Our Future is designed to inspire environmental stewardship in community, deepening a sense of connection with each other and the Living World. The program is structured around four projects: Country is Listening; Living Water Ways; Ocean Messages; and an Eco Arts Community Celebration at the new Cowes Cultural and Community Centre.
The projects will be led by artists supported by interdisciplinary teams of eco arts collaborators. Four short films will be produced, documenting each of the projects.
The projects will be led by artists supported by interdisciplinary teams of eco arts collaborators. Four short films will be produced, documenting each of the projects.
| For Our Future will offer community activities and an educational stream of eco arts activities and events across Bass Coast. Members of an interdisciplinary team comprised of artists, musicians, conservationists and First Nation cultural educators will come together to facilitate a program of environmentally focussed activities and learning experiences. It will include intercultural collaborations, performances, workshops, concerts, exhibitions, an international print exchange and conservation walks and talks. The project will be looking for lead artists and eco arts collaborators for the four projects whose creative ideas, vision and practice meet the following criteria:
The role of lead artists will be to offer creative ideas with an ecological focus that inspire positive environmental action in the community. The role of eco arts collaborators will be to invite different forms of engagement, enriching creative ideas through multiple ways of knowing and being together. For Our Future has been developed by members of the Phillip Island Conservation Society’s Committee of Management’s arts working group, Dr Laura Brearley, Anne Davie, Jeff Nottle and Michelle Maes. They have established The Eco Arts and Cultural Hub (TEACH) to manage the program. The program builds on other intercultural and environmental arts projects which have taken place in Bass Coast over the last 10 years, including the Shearwater Festival, the Intercultural Arts Program of the Island Whale Festival and the Coastal Connections project. For Our Future’s working group has been drawn from community members representing a cross-section of interests and expertise. Their role will to provide guidance and oversight and to contribute to the selection of lead artists and eco arts collaborators. They will offer support and advice on the delivery of project and provide input into its evaluation. Bass Coast Mayor Michael Whelan will launch the For Our Future at the Penguin Parade Visitor Centre on Saturday November 5. As a community we share a love of place and a deeply felt desire to protect it for the future. We look forward to seeing what emerges from our creative collaborations. |  Terry Melvin’s recent film gives a context to the For Our Future project. Working group
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