Festivals Forum at Mission Beach

Eve Stafford and Melissa Robertson of Arts Nexus facilitated a one-day Festivals Forum at Mission Beach on 27 November 2008 hosted by the Cassowary Coast Regional Council, and attended by staff from Queensland Events. Gathered participants worked on planning the future of calendared events within the region, building networks, and on ways to collaborate and share skills and resources.

Eve and Melissa also facilitated a public meeting on 4 November to test the draft cultural policy being developed by Judy Pippen for the newly amalgamated Cassowary Coast Regional Council (from Johnstone and Cardwell Shires). This identified the need to follow up with this one-day Festivals Forum gathering as a priority action.

Arts for All Abilities (Arts Nexus)

ARTS FOR ALL ABILITIES (AAA) was a project initiated by Arts Nexus Inc and funded by Disability Services Qld. AAA is now in its closing moments as a pilot program of workshops and activities that has provided opportunities for communities in Cairns, Innisfail and the Tablelands.

Activities were programmed to encourage people to come together regularly to develop new or enhance existing skills in creative expression. Access all Areas is a weekly gathering of like-minded people who want to experiment with lots of art forms such as painting, film-making, music, dance, writing and production. This includes occasional outings to the theatre, cinema art galleries and special events. Other opportunities in training and professional development for people who are more serious about their creative expression.

All members of the regional community were invited to come together to play and create in a safe, accessible, and non-critical space. People with disabilities, their family members and carers were encouraged to participate in a series of workshops experimenting in various art forms. There are still opportunities for people to come forward with their support. If you would like to be involved in the organisation of the program, please let us know your areas of interest by contacting Arts Nexus on 4051 5533. We are currently working on the Evaluation of the pilot to support the sustainability of AAA into the future.

Festivals Reports published on website

Arts Nexus has recently been assisting some of the north's local Councils towards developing new cultural policies and cultural plans, including being on the Cairns Regional Council's reference group. One key aspect of all cultural plans is support for festivals and community events.
As a contribution, now published on the Arts Nexus website are the Arts Nexus Festivals Summit Report of 2006-2007, and the CREAME Group's Festivals Development Report (the latter funded by Cairns Regional Council RADF and AQ, and auspiced by Arts Nexus). Download both festival reports here www.artsnexus.com.au

Cultural Facilities Planning

Arts Nexus, as the peak non-profit cluster for all arts, culture, heritage and creative industries across the region has been leading community consultation over the past 3 years with key stakeholders about Cairns cultural facilities needs. Findings have led to Arts Nexus’ advocacy for a Cairns Cultural Facilities Masterplan for the next 30 years, including developing visual concepts for the collocation of presentation facilities as a Cairns Cultural Centre. 

This would include a proposed new Performing Arts Centre, and a Regional Museum and other sympatico facilities, to be built on the one destination site as funds become available over time. Advocacy has included a deputation to Cairns Regional Council in June, and in July to the peak economic body for the region's development, Advance Cairns, as well as working closely with the 3 tiers of government via federal and state members and the Cairns Regional Council. Announcements can be expected soon . . .

Nexus CDO to QMusic planning day

Melissa Robertson as the Cultural Development Officer (CDO) at Arts Nexus who also doubles as an elected board member on QMusic <www.qmusic.com.au> has just returned from Brisbane where she worked with the QMusic Board and staff in an all day planning session.

FestlinX to be a home for tropical festivals

Arts Nexus is busily finalising a new Festlinx website as a home for all our region's 85 or so tropical festivals and major events. Resource rich and containing the annual calendar of events and many how-tos and templates, the Festlinx website was a an identified priortity as Phase 2 following Arts Nexus' large scale capacity building project for the north's events sector in 2006-2007. The FestlinX website is supported by Cairns Regional Council, Cassowary Coast Regional Council and Cook Shire Council RADF, in partnership with Arts Queensland.

Youth Mentoring scheme explained at Nexus

Arts Nexus is association with the Youth Arts Queensland provided a lunchtime info session on the Young Artist Mentoring Program (YAMP) at Arts Nexus on Wednesday 24 September. Open to young regional applicants aged 18-26, the YAMP program presented by Sarah Woodland of Youth Arts Queensland (pictured) provides support for young people interested in an arts career to team up with a suitable mentor in their specialised field to guide and support them to realize their creative career ambitions. Applications close Friday 14 November 2008. Visit www.yaq.org.au/yamp

Pathways to Philanthropy at Nexus

Kathy Davis, the Queensland Manager of Artsupport Australia gave a guided introduction for 18 organisations about developing a philanthropy program in the Arts Nexus meeting room on Thursday 18 September 2008.

Kathy will be back in Cairns on 21 November for her next session at Arts Nexus at to explain this free mentoring service to help artists and organisations establish and maintain their philanthropic fundraising programs. Contact Arts Nexus on 4051 4433 to book. www.australiacouncil.gov.au/philanthropy

Arts Nexus to lead cultural tourism strategy

Pictured at the launch: Queensland's Tourism Minister Desley Boyle MP at right, then from left, Arts Nexus personnel - Program Manager Susan Reid, Administrator Mema Edwards, Cultural Development Officer Melissa Robertson, trainee Pamika Brischke, board member Wilma Reading, and Executive Officer Eve Stafford, then Jim Bitomsky from Kleinhardt P/L as the cultural tourism strategy study consultants.

Arts Nexus will lead the development of Tropical North Queensland's first ever Cultural Tourism Strategy with the help of $20,000 announced by Queensland's Minister for Tourism, Regional Development and Industry Desley Boyle at a media launch in Cairns on Friday 3 October 2008. This matches $20,000 co-funding through the Dept of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, also announced by federal Member for Leichhardt, Jim Turnour.

Arts Nexus will work closely with the new Cairns Regional Council in particular as the third tier but also establish a steering committee representing key cultural and tourism stakeholders to ensure the new strategy encompasses the region's cultural richness and diversity.

Arts Nexus executive officer Eve Stafford said, "Cairns as a major hub on the edge of the Asia-Pacific rim is increasingly becoming the front door to Australian culture. Both tourism and arts are leading industries within our region. This first-ever cultural tourism strategy is a missing link to bring them together to add culture to nature-based tourism."

Queensland's Fourth Poet-in-residence 2008 visits Cairns, tropical Australia

Arts Nexus in partnership with Queensland Writers Centre presented a free twilight poetry soirée and reading for an entralled audience of 33 on Friday 3 October with the international author and critic Michael Hofmann at Arts Nexus. Twenty aspiring poets then came next day to the 3 hour poetry workshop at TNQ TAFE with this 2008 visiting Queensland poet-in-residence.

Michael Hofmann is German born, but studied in UK where he lives pursuing his own freelance writing as well as translating and reviewing. As Professor teaching half time at the University of Florida USA since 1993, he is currently editing the Faber Book of 20th Century German Poetry, as well as translating Rilke for Penguin. He has won numerous awards for both his poetry and translation. His more than 50 celebrated works include translations of Berthold Brecht, Franz Kafka, and Patrick Süskind, and as editor of others, such as Robert Lowell (Faber 2001) and Penguin Modern Poets (1998). His Behind the Lines: Pieces on Writing and Pictures is a published collection of his reviews for the Times Literary Supplement, the London Review of Books, and the New York Times.

Now in its fourth year, the Queensland visiting poet-in-residence program is supported by the Queensland government and managed by the Queensland Writers Centre. The Queensland Writers Centre, Australia, is contactable on (07) 3839 1243 or email qldwriters(at symbol)qwc.asn.au Arts Nexus, whose mission is growing creative people, communities and industries located in tropical Queensland, Australia, is at www.artsnexus.com.au