Benjamin Millar
Hobsons Bay’s creative side will be on show when the first projects of the council’s Art Apart program get underway this month.
Launched in response to the heavy hit on the arts inflicted by the COVID-19 crisis, the Art Apart program encourages creative practitioners to engage the community via a mix of digital, virtual or socially-distant artworks.
Hobson Bay Council has allocated $30,000 to fund the program, with up to $5000 available per project.
The first three successful applicants, announced last week, will deliver street theatre performances, shop front gallery projections and an online musical arts showcase.
‘Born in a Taxi: Meet You Out The Front’ will bring street theatre to residential streets in Altona North and Brooklyn, featuring illuminated angels, bandicoots, zebras and spontaneous art.
‘Winter Windows’ will project children’s and community art onto the front windows of Woods Street Arts Space in Laverton and The Long Space Gallery on Melbourne Road in Newport, in partnership with local children’s arts collective Little Art Big Art.
‘Art Speak’ will involve Altona composer and producer Martin Case conducting online interviews and recordings of Hobsons Bay musicians across diverse music genres and cultures.
Hobsons Bay will also host a series of online arts events this month including the annual Williamstown Literary Festival and Newport Folk Festival.
Hobsons Bay mayor Colleen Gates said further details will be available on the council’s website.
“Street theatre, shadow puppets on local window fronts and music make a wonderful, eclectic mix of performance and art from our first batch of grant recipients and will provide fantastic opportunities for our community to get involved, especially in current times,” she said.
