Art

Daneha

FROM A TINY SEED GREAT THINGS GROW

Share the Experience of Afghan Migrants through New Artistic Program

In what will be the first major artistic engagement with the Afghan and Persian communities of Blacktown, Blacktown Arts presents Daneha, a multi-faceted artistic program made up of a visual arts exhibition, artist talks, musical performances and theatre.

Daneha (“Seeds” in English) explores the displacement of the Afghan community across the globe, and the cultivation of roots in foreign, unfamiliar soil. The program will transform The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre into a multi-functional space for community to engage with contemporary artists, as collaborators, audiences and active participants in reimagining identities.

‘The Afghan community of Blacktown has grown by almost 40% since 2011,’ said Blacktown City Mayor Stephen Bali MP. ‘Daneha is the first major artistic engagement with our Afghan and Persian communities. I am proud that our arts centre is presenting a diverse program that offers unique opportunities to reflect on the experiences of migrants and refugees, and explore the challenges they face when settling in a new land.’

The program launches on Thursday 5 July with a visual arts exhibition featuring new works by Avan Anwar (Melbourne), Elyas Alavi (Adelaide), Zainab Haidariy (Germany), Gerrie Mifsud (Sydney) and internationally acclaimed and Blacktown-based artist Khadim Ali. Khadim is an established artist who was awarded the NSW Government’s 2016 Western Sydney Arts Fellowship worth $50,000 and his work is held in numerous public collections around the world.

“I’m now a Hazara-Australian,” said Khadim Ali. “My work for this exhibition focuses on how I am enjoying being an Australian, and how this transitional period of my life is changing my art, changing my perspective.”

The arts exhibition will feature works by members of the local group Afghan Women on the Move.

“Afghan Women on the Move creates a radically safe platform for women as survivors of war and trauma, to gather and participate in arts and cultural programs, outside of religious and political influences,” said Maryam Zahid, the group’s coordinator.

The video work Borderline (2017) by Atefeh Kazemi and Zahra Akhlaqi (Soraya) is also screening as part of this exhibition. The video is a series of interviews with second and third generation Afghan immigrants who were born in Iran and continue to live in the country.

Taking place in June, the women’s artworks will be developed in workshops lead by artist Nazanin Marashian, and will connect identity and culture through the use of personal signs and symbols.

The program includes two Artist Talks. The first, on Saturday 18 August, is moderated by Abdul Hekmat and will be an opportunity for audiences to connect with Khadim Ali, Elyas Alavi and Maryam Zahid (Afghan Women on the Move), find out more about their works, life experiences and the program.

The second, on Saturday 1 September, is a discussion facilitated by Paula Abood on work creatively with refugee women and will include Maryam Zahid, Monirah Hashemi (international playwright/actor) and international theatre director, Leif Persson, from Teatre Dos.

The Daneha program will culminate with the Australian premiere of Sitaraha – The Stars, a moving one woman play which intertwines the stories of three generations of women living in Afghanistan. Navigating war and religious oppression, the women use songs, dance and storytelling to try and keep their stories alive. Taking place from Thursday 6 – Sunday 9 September, Sitaraha features Monirah Hashemi and is based on real conversations and research.

Daneha offers a unique opportunity for the people of Blacktown and beyond to come together to reflect on the experiences of migrants and refugees, and join with them in all the challenges and opportunities that present themselves as they regather in new lands.

The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm. Admission to the visual arts exhibition is free.

Booking Information

Sitaraha (The Stars)

Click here for the preview, Thursday 6 September 2018
Click here for tickets to Sitaraha, Saturday 8 September & Sunday 9 September 2018
Tickets on sale Thursday 5 July 2018.

Panel discussions

Click here to RSVP for the artist talk on Saturday 18 August 2018

Click here to RSVP for the panel discussion on Saturday 1 September 2018

Image
Photograph of Khadim Ali and Maryam Zahid by Joshua Morris.

19/06/2018 0 comment

Art

Western Sydney Public Art Collections

Our current exhibition Recent Acquisitions presents artworks that have been acquired by Blacktown City Council throughout the past 4 years. The exhibition gives our community the opportunity to learn more about the individual artworks and Council’s entire art collection.

Like most public art collections, Blacktown City Council’s collection tells the stories of our City through the work of artists, reflecting the concerns and histories of our diverse communities.

Western Sydney is home to many public art collections. Does your local Council have an art collection?

Liverpool

The Liverpool Art Collection is managed by Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre and Liverpool Regional Museum. The collection was formally established in 1989 with the opening of the Museum. 30 years on, Liverpool’s collection now consists of over 30,000 artworks and heritage objects. Together, these items reflect the rich cultural and historic history of the greater Liverpool region.

Learn more and connect with Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre

Campbelltown

The Campbelltown City Council Collection contains nearly 1,500 artworks that were acquired as early as 1962. Campbelltown’s collection holds works of national significance by contemporary Australian artists and continues to focus on acquiring art by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists as well as artists from across the Campbelltown and Macarthur and Western Sydney region.

Learn more and connect with Campbelltown Arts Centre

Penrith

The Penrith Regional Gallery Collection has over 1,600 objects. Both the collection and the gallery itself are the result of Margo Lewer’s wish for her home and collection of artworks to be given to the people of Penrith. The collection has grown since the establishment of the gallery and bequest, and now consists of a large range of visual art (painting, drawing, and sculpture), Aboriginal rock engravings, furniture, books, and other printed ephemera.

Learn more and connect with Penrith Regional Gallery

Hawkesbury

Hawkesbury City Council has a unique and historic collection of 300 artworks, most of which were acquired between 1975 and 1994. In 1999, the people of the Hawkesbury were also gifted with 80 paintings and prints by artists a number of significant Australian artists including Arthur Boyd, Norman Lindsay and Lance Solomon.

Learn more and connect with Hawkesbury Regional Gallery

Visit The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre to see more artworks from the Blacktown City Art Collection (until 26 May 2018).

Photo credit
Campbelltown Arts Centre Permanent Collection. Photograph by Nikki To.

14/05/2018 0 comment

Art

Recent Acquisitions: Blacktown City Art Collection

Blacktown City Council acquires artworks for its art collection from the annual Blacktown City Art Prize and from projects previously developed by Blacktown Arts.

The Collection tells the stories of Blacktown through the work of its artists, reflecting the concerns and histories of its diverse communities. The Collection fosters a sense of civic pride for the people who live, work and play in Blacktown City, development a sense of identity and belonging, and sharing the recent narratives of city life.

Recent Acquisitions presents new works acquired by Blacktown City Council between 2015 and 2017.

Download the program:

EXHIBITION
Recent Acquisitions
22 February – 26 May 2018

Photo credit
Jason Wing. Photograph by Joshua Morris.
Recent Acquisitions features two artworks by Jason Wing, Blacktown Dreaming, 2009, and Know Your Place, 2017.

21/02/2018 0 comment

Art

Experiencing ‘Broken Glass’ with Vicki Van Hout

With mounting anticipation we are transported by bus from The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre to St Bartholomew’s Church in Prospect, the site of the evening’s performance of Broken Glass. It’s VIP night, so a good number of Blackfellas are in attendance for the maiden event, a roving performance installation throughout the chapel and grounds.

After a smoking ceremony held by local Elder Uncle Wes Marne, we walk single file into a small hall which looks like the ideal spot for girl guides or scouts to learn and earn their merit badges. Except our leaders are dressed in spare white smocks and, instead of pledging an oath of allegiance, they greet us with commiserations. An Aunty has died. We become a part of an extended family assembled in remembrance.

Soon enough good intentions give way to avaricious intent as a farcical stocktake of meagre possessions is claimed and

counter claimed. Before all is lost, the escalating tension is broken by the distracting absence of a beloved budgie, Nathan.

As the three women reconcile, a lone figure enters dressed in a purple floor-length colonial skirt. She clutches a round case close to her chest, individually taking us in before asking for something to drink, or perhaps a morsel to eat. As she leaves, she beckons us to follow her. This woman will be represented by each actor in turn as we are guided to each site. We later learn she is a Darug woman, although she could be the ancestor of many urban Blackfellas, forced into the fold of colonial culture.

This is a delicate three-hander placing the fundamental incompatibility between the Indigenous and colonial ways of bein

g at the forefront of the episodic narrative. From loud familial comedic role play, to the cli

nical treatment processing of the morticians’ rooms, where the mix of responsibility and revulsion is expressed through prose peppered with equal measures of procedural jargon and personal anecdotes. From the church to the grave site, we are gradually immersed into a multifaceted cultural experience of loss, where the ecclesiastical and spiritual are articulated in equal measure.

Embedded with Indigenous knowledge practices, Broken Glass acts as a song cycle, an in

digenous primer ensuring perpetuity for the next generations to utilise, as well as a work of entertainment. Broken Glass stands as a poignant testament to the ways in which Aboriginal culture has adapted.

The lighthearted opening is a clever device and before you know it you are embroiled. Invested. The tables have momentarily turned and it is the general public who are taken into the fold.

Moments not to miss:

Performer Andrea James wide-eyed stare of pious incredulity as she makes a self righteous bid for the microwave while the body lay directly behind in a wicker casket.

The cylindrical back and forth of Andrea and Liza-Marie Syron

describing the morticians’ experience.

Karen Norris’ lighting in the church creating an all-encompassing stained-glass effect as dancer/performer Katie Leslie moves with steady solemnity.

The unfolding tableaux (also in the church) reminiscent of Australian modern dance pioneer Margaret Barr’s women in Hebridean Suite, which begins with the four women as they process through the bracken mound installations and ending with their colonial selves looking prophetically to a future filled with bustling automation as they faced the motorway.

The broken glass memorial plots that twinkle like jewels.

The curious mourning head pieces which prompt us to contemplate the event with fresh eyes, as if from another planet.

Lily Shearer’s haunting wail for lost souls in the recessed alcove filled with funeral programs attached to the walls followed by the town’s elders affectionately clutching the same notes, and the discovery that they are/were comprised of deceased loved ones.

The lighting on the trees accompanied by a sound score by Brenda Gifford that makes them appear like witnessing spirits, making sure that we are practicing right-way.

By Vicki Van Hout

Broken Glass was presented by Moogahlin Performing Arts and Blacktown Arts for Sydney Festival 2018.

Photo credit
Joshua Morris

21/01/2018 0 comment

Art

Applications open for 2018 Creative Residency Program

Are you an artist looking for a great space to create new work in? Do you have a creative project ready for the next development phase?

Blacktown Arts Centre’s Creative Residency Program supports artistic development and emerging arts practices in all forms.

The 2018 program offers space and funded residencies in the following categories:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Residency $5000
Pat Parker Memorial Residency $5000
Performing Arts Residency $5000
Performing Arts Space Residency
Studio Residency
Without Borders Residency $5000.

The Creative Residency Program offers exciting opportunities for artists who want to engage with people or places in Blacktown, often resulting in a rich collaboration between artists and communities.

Applications for the 2018 Creative Residency Program close on Thursday, 14 September 2017.

Apply for a 2018 Creative Residency.

Download the Residency Guidelines.

Photograph
Sandy Maestro, 2017 artist-in-residence, by Joshua Morris

28/08/2017 0 comment

Art

10 Places You’ll Find Art in Blacktown

Sometimes you find art in the most unlikely places. Here’s a 10 step tour of Blacktown that will take you to some of our city’s most creative corners!

1. Bidwill Square, Bidwill

From left: Funpark 2016, photograph by Audrey Newton; Annemaree Dalziel’s gabion wall and footpath mural by Province, both photographs by Jodie Polutele.

Since FUNPARK first came to Bidwill in 2013, various creative projects have emerged in the area including Annemaree Dalziel’s curved gabion wall – a structure supported by wire cages – and a large-scale footpath mural made by Province in collaboration with the Bidwill community. Designed through a series of structured workshops with children from the neighbourhood, the mural tells the story of the community through abstract patterns.

A number of other projects are currently being planned. Watch that space!

2. Water tanks, Blacktown International Sportspark (Eastern Road, Rooty Hill)

From left: artwork by Donna Brown and Jamie Eastwood, photographs by Aroha Groves.

Local artists Donna Brown and Jamie Eastwood have painted large murals on the new water storage tanks at Blacktown International Sportspark. The tanks were built as part of the Angus Creek Stormwater Harvesting and Reuse Scheme, and revealed in 2016.

3. Our backyard, Blacktown Arts Centre (Campbell Street, Blacktown)

From left: Blacktown Arts Centre featuring Brook Andrew’s ‘Travelling Colony’, photograph by Joshua Morris; Toni Warburton’s ceramic sculptures ‘Risk: Pendulum Actions (arc 3/2015)’ and The Democratic Garden, both photographs by Emily McTaggart.

Blacktown Arts Centre’s backyard is more than just a carpark. In 2011, Blacktown City Council planted the Weaving Garden, which continues to be maintained by Blacktown’s community through workshops and gatherings initiated by Blacktown Arts. #ThisIsHowWeGather

The backyard is also home to Brook Andrew’s large caravan artwork, Travelling Colony, Toni Warburton’s ceramic sculptures Risk: Pendulum Actions (arc 3/2015), and the vertical Democratic Garden, which was first developed in partnership with Urban Theatre Projects in 2014.

4. The Village Green (Flushcombe Road, Blacktown)

Blacktown Village Green with artworks by Nerine Martini, photographs by Blacktown City Council.

The Village Green is home to a number of site-specific artworks by local artists Jacinta Tobin, Nerine Martini, Tracie Bertram and Robyn Caughlan.

5. Wall mosaics, Mount Druitt Swimming Centre (Mount Street, Mount Druitt)

Murals at Mount Druitt Swimming Centre, photographs by Blacktown City Council.

These murals were created by artists Joanne Saad and Abbas Makrab. Students from Colyton Public School and Chifley College Senior Campus helped design the murals. Local artist Leanne Tobin was also engaged in developing the concept and design of the artwork, drawing inspiration from Wiannamatta ‘Mother’ Creek Story (South Creek Story).

6. Nurragingy Reserve entry (Knox Road, Doonside)

Nurragingy Reserve roadway entry, with artworks by Danny Eastwood and Jamie Eastwood, photograph by Blacktown City Council.

The new roadway entry into Nurragingy Reserve, off Knox Road in Doonside, was opened in 2015. The site features 31 artworks by local Indigenous artists, Uncle Danny Eastwood and his son, Jamie Eastwood. The artworks on the ribbon entry symbolise the original history of the site, featuring flora and fauna, the waterways, bushland and recognise the significance of Nurragingy and Colebee.

7. Main Street Studios (Main Street, Blacktown)

Sarah Dahia in her studio (2016) and Khadim Ali’s studio (2015), photographs by Emily McTaggart.

This site has been used as a long-term studio for visual artists-in-residence since 2008. There are currently 3 suites occupied by approximately 6 artists each year. Read more.

8. Charles Lomu’s Garage Barbershop (Cooper Street, Blacktown)

Charles Lomu, photograph by Joshua Morris.

Charles Lomu – local barber, all-round good guy and one of the stars of our recent exhibition Garage Barbershop – practices the fine art of barbering from his own garage in Blacktown. Book a cut with Charles!

9. The streets (Blacktown)

Legal or not, you’ll find art pasted across the streets of Blacktown. In 2016, artist Wendy Murray wrote an article for Art Guide about her self-made tour of Blacktown’s street art scene. Does Blacktown have its own Banksy? Read more.

10. Blacktown Arts Centre (Flushcombe Road, Blacktown)

Blacktown Arts Centre, photograph by Joshua Morris.

With 2 gallery spaces, a 75-seat performance studio and a workshop studio inside its walls, Blacktown Arts Centre supports artistic innovation and offers exciting, new experiences for audiences through an award-winning curated program of exhibitions, performances, workshops, residencies and events. Read more.

What have we missed?
Have you seen other pieces art pasted or performed across our City? Tag us in a photo on Instagram/Facebook, or send us a message.

01/08/2017 0 comment

Art

Playlist | The Western Sydney Jam

We’ve started putting together a collaborative Spotify playlist inspired by the Western Sydney Jam Session.

The playlist samples a mix of tunes that are popular among our jammers. Expect classic tracks from Prince, Stevie Wonder and Bill Withers, alongside originals from our locals Glenn Lumanta and Michael Duchesne.

Follow and collaborate with us:

The next Western Sydney Jam Session
Wednesday, 9 August 2017
7 pm – 10 pm
Blacktown Arts Centre
RSVP

Photo credit
Glenn Lumanta and Michael Duchesne at The Western Sydney Jam Session in April 2017. Photograph by Emily McTaggart.

01/08/2017 0 comment

Art

Archive | It’s Our Thing (Part I)

Throughout June and July 2016, Blacktown Arts Centre presented It’s Our Thing: More History on Australian Hip-Hop (Part I).

Curated by Kon Gouriotis and Paul Howard, this first iteration of the exhibition series was inspired by chance encounters between some of Australia’s founding hip-hop crews and visual artists in Blacktown in the early 1990s.

The exhibition revisited the emergence of this dynamic sub-culture, examining how the collaborative practices and styles of hip-hop culture have influenced the work of contemporary artists Khaled Sabsabi and Minky Rawat. Sabsabi and Rawat presented new and archival artworks, alongside works by some of the most iconic artists of the 20th century – Joseph Beuys, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol.

It’s Our Thing: More History on Australian Hip-Hop (Part II)
22 June 2017 – 12 August 2017
This second iteration presents the work of 14 contemporary performance and visual artists who continue to explore the explosion of hip-hop culture in Blacktown during the 1990s and its impact on current artistic practices.
Read more

Image Background: Khaled Sabsabi, 70,000 Veils, 2014, digital 1080 Progressive Scan PAL HD Video, MP4 Format, each channel 700 seconds, 100 parts, H 400 x L 1320 X W 100cm. Foreground: Street Level Archive & It’s Our Thing Plinth Installation. Photograph by Sharon Hickey.

13/07/2017 0 comment

Art

Barbering | The Lifestyle and the Lessons

Charles Lomu and Kiko from our Garage Barbershop project look critically at the art of barbering.

six_fades Last Day at the #GarageBarbershopExhibtion with Kiko giving his first razor fade and nailing it [Instagram]

What is unique about barbering?

Kiko | It’s the lifestyle, there are rules and it’s more about how you live your life. It’s about being clean and respectful.

Charles | Barbering has such a huge culture and history. Fundamentally, it’s about customer service and service to others. The importance of teaching young men barbering today is that we live in a society where everything is going digital. But one thing that’s for sure is that you’ll never be able to automate a haircut online. It’s something that will still be in need in years to come, so I find it a very important skill to pass on to young men. And it’s more than just a haircut – it’s about knowing how to communicate, knowing how to present yourself well, knowing how to treat others with respect, and it’s knowing how to be a good listener.

As a barber, do you have a signature cut?

Charles | The fade – it’s something I’ve always loved since I was a kid. I’m a big fan of hip-hop and street culture. I think the urban art of fading is something that represents street fashion, or street culture, and I love it. I think it makes people look clean and very smart.

six_fades Give a man to fish, Feed him for a day Teach a man to fish, Feed him for a lifetime [Instagram]

The fade is something I had to learn about more as time went on. When I was young, we used to use the terminology “blend”. “Blends” were pretty much fading so you couldn’t see a line, where fading pays a lot more attention to the gradient of the colour of the hair, so making sure it goes from light to dark, but compacts the colour in a lot tighter area. I see it as more of an art compared to blending, which is quite simple and easy to do.”

Kiko | I’m not really sure yet, to be honest. I don’t really have a signature cut, but the main one I always do is a mid-fade. From the neckline, you go from zero, to one and a half and then two – using the ear as a guide.

Kiko, what have you learnt from Charles during the Garage Barbershop project?

Kiko | He’s taught us this important thing, called the 5 Cs, which are consistency, cleanliness, customer service, commitments and cuts.

Charles, what have the young men taught you?

Charles | They’ve taught me that it’s important to be a role model, to set an example in what I do rather than just what I say.

They’ve also reminded me of how important this role is, of giving back to the community.

@six_fades First #FreeHaircut of the day by @_kinggjeezy_ on Irishman Patrick who brought stories of laughter and could easily be a successful stand up comedian. Young ones feel comfortable around their peers but growth awaits the young one who draws from the untapped wisdom of the elderly. [Instagram]

They’ve reminded me also that we live in a world that has turned into a rat race, and there’s hardly any time anymore for even their parents to stop and pay full attention to them because they’ve got to try and hold a job down and look after them and feed them and keep the lights on and a roof over their head. It’s shown me the importance of giving back, because we can help one another raise each other’s children.

They’ve taught me the importance of education by demonstration.

I’ve learnt much of an impact we can be when we work together as a community. The services, youth workers such as myself at the grass roots level, the young people, the young people’s families, the parents, everybody working together and supporting one another makes a huge difference.

By Michelle Lo

Book a cut with Charles aka Six Fades

Photos
Feature Image: Garage Barbershop by Harold David
Other Images: @six_fades

22/06/2017 0 comment

Art

Montages: The Full Cut 1999-2015 | Where to next?

If you missed the exhibition at Blacktown Arts Centre, chances are you’ll get to see it again! Montages: The Full Cut, 1999 – 2015 is touring nationally over the next three years thanks to Artspace, Sydney and Museums & Galleries of NSW.

18 locations. 33 months.

2017
Shepparton Art Museum | 28 January – 19 March 2017
Blacktown Art Centre | 23 February – 22 April 2017
Wagga Wagga Art Gallery | 6 May – 2 July 2017
Wanneroo Library and Cultural Centre |15 July – 26 August 2017
Newcastle Art Gallery | 2 September – 5 November 2017
Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre | 11 November – 3 December 2017
Bathurst Regional Gallery | 8 December 2017 – 28 January 2018

2018
Goulburn Regional Gallery | 2 March – 21 April 2018
Lismore Regional Gallery | 12 May – 24 June 2018
Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum | 15 June – 31 August 2018
Toowoomba Regional Gallery | 7 June – 26 August 2018
KickArts Contemporary Arts, Cairns | 8 September – 3 November 2018
Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts, Townsville | 9 November – 16 December 2018
ArtGeo Cultural Complex, Busselton | 20 December – 29 January 2019

2019
Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin | 1 February – 31 March 2019
Caboolture Regional Art Gallery | 5 April – 2 June 2019
Broken Hill Regional Gallery | 10 May – 23 June 2019
Tamworth Regional Gallery | 26 July – 15 September 2019

Montages: The Full Cut, 1999–2015 was curated and developed by Artspace, Sydney and is touring nationally in partnership with Museums & Galleries of NSW.

Montages Logos from MGNSW

Related Content
Exhibition Review by Johanna Roberts

Image credit
Tracey Moffatt & Gary Hillberg , Lip (stills), 1999, 10 minutes, looped video, sound. Courtesy the artist, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery and Tyler Rollins Fine Art, New York.

02/05/2017 0 comment