------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Australia's Culture and Recreation Portal Newsletter - Monthly roundup
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August observes Vietnam Veterans' Day (18 August), the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan. Following on from Hiroshima Day and Nagasaki Day, this time of the year is always a reflection on peace and radical change. In the late 1960s, the escalation of the Vietnam War coincided with the hippy and peace movements, 'flower power', which influenced the new generation. New waves of pop, folk, rock and jazz music complemented new literary thinking, reflected by members of the Sydney Push.
This month, the Newcastle Jazz Festival (24-26 August) brings together jazz and blues musicians of local and national note. A medley of jazz bands, big bands, quartets and vocalists epitomises the best in jazz music.
Hope and hardship, war and loss, and heroes and villains are featured in 'National Treasures from Australia's Great Libraries', in Perth (until 26 August). This reflects on the loss of Australians in wars and the hopes of early settlers. A highlight of the exhibition is the helmet of Ned Kelly, marked as a notorious villain by some and a hero by others.
Dorothy Hewett's play 'The Man From Mukinupin', in Sydney (until 18 August) tells of the profound changes wrought on a community by the experience of war. The Darwin Festival (9-26 August) reflects the Asian and Pacific cultures in the region. 'Experimenta Playground', in Melbourne (25 August - 23 September), brings art out from the shadows of computer games and presents innovative artworks, interactive artworks and video installations.
Samantha Everton draws upon her surrealist influences and life in remote Australia in the photographic exhibition 'Childhood Fears', in Sydney (until 18 August). Her photographs, hauntingly beautiful and deeply compelling, delve into the realms of the unconscious and show that dangers of the imagination are just as potent as the fears felt in reality.
The Age Melbourne Writers Festival (24 August - 2 September) features prominent speakers, as well as readings, panel discussions, book launches and lively debates. Sydney Design 07 (4-19 August) deliberates on how design affects people's lives, and the social and environmental responsibilities of designers and architects.
The 'Assa Abloy Henley-on-Todd' regatta, in Alice Springs (25 August), is a sporting event full of mayhem and mirth where crews battle it out with each other and paddle canoes down the dry riverbed of the Todd. The newly-launched National Indigenous Television (NITV) provides programs by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to inform, entertain and educate about the diversity of Indigenous cultures. 'Croc Festival', initially being held in Derby, Mullewa and Alice Springs (until 30 August), aims to bring together young Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in the spirit of reconciliation and community engagement through arts, sport, health, careers and education activities.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Check out our new Australian Stories:
The battle of Long Tan and the Vietnam War: http://www.culture.gov.au/articles/longtan/
Military music: http://www.culture.gov.au/articles/music/military/
The Push: http://www.culture.gov.au/articles/push/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Featured event
20th Newcastle Jazz Festival - Newcastle, New South Wales
24-26 August
The Festival features 39 jazz and blues bands with over 130 individual vocalists and musicians. Among the guests are Bob Barnard, Janet Seidel and Lee Gunness. The program includes a Jazz Breakfast, a Jazz Gospel and a Gala Dance as well as jazz sessions with national and international musicians. Newcastle City Hall.
http://www.newcastlejazz.com.au/
http://www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/my_community/community_venues/city_hall
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Snippets from our regularly updated News pages
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Announcements
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/announcements.htm
Jennifer Craik, Re-visioning arts and cultural policy
20 July
In this monograph, Jennifer Craik undertakes a critical and historical analysis of the main imperatives of arts and cultural policy in Australia. The monograph examines options for governments to respond to public debate about involvement in enhancing, fostering and shaping the artistic and cultural production and consumption of their jurisdictions. While some areas of public policy are well served by relevant policy literature, the arts and culture area has generally not received much attention from public policy analysts.
http://epress.anu.edu.au/anzsog/revisioning/pdf_instructions.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Design and architecture
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/design.htm
Sydney Design 07 - 11th International Design Festival - Sydney
4-19 August
The Festival program shows where design is making a difference in our lives, how designers are addressing the issues of social and environmental responsibility, and provides insight into the creative processes of designers and architects. The program features exhibitions, seminars and speakers, film screenings, design markets, walks and tours, awards and exhibitions. Powerhouse Museum.
http://www.sydneydesign.com.au/sd07/
http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Digital media and film
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/digitalmedia.htm
Experimenta Playground: International Biennial of Media Art - Melbourne
25 August - 23 September
Experience the most innovative and playful artworks and videos by Australian and international artists in Experimenta Playground. With interactive artworks, video installations short films and extreme art on screen, this is art that steps out from the shadows of computer games and leaves mouse, keyboard and joystick behind. Many of the artists featured are world-leading practitioners in their fields. A highlight of the exhibition, Shu Lea Cheang's 'Baby Love', will be shown for the first time in Australia. The Arts Centre BlackBox.
http://www.experimenta.org/
http://www.theartscentre.net.au/discover_spaces-and-places_detail.aspx?view=7
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Festivals and conferences
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/festivalsandconferences.htm
2007 Darwin Festival - Darwin
9-26 August
The 2007 Darwin Festival features art and entertainment that reflects the Indigenous, Asian and Pacific cultures of the region. Arts and entertainment include theatre, dance, visual arts, music, film, workshops, free outdoor events, comedy and culinary delights. Drawcard events include the Nabarlek band, Santos Concert on the Esplanade, Galuku Gallery, Indigenous Dance Program, The Kransky Sisters, Fist Full of Films and Ngarakuruwala. Various venues.
http://www.darwinfestival.org.au/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
History and identity
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/museums.htm
National Treasures from Australia's Great Libraries - Perth
30 June - 26 August
This exhibition brings our national memory to life, drawing together for the first time over 170 priceless treasures from the magnificent collections of Australia's national, state and territory libraries. The theme of the exhibits include Hope and Hardship (e.g. Harold Lasseter's diary), Heroes and Villains (Ned Kelly's helmet), Innovation and industry (the Holden car) and Culture (Dame Nellie Melba). Western Australian Museum.
http://www.museum.wa.gov.au/oursites/perth/whatson.asp
http://www.museum.wa.gov.au/index.asp
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indigenous arts
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/indigenousarts.htm
Croc Festival - Derby & Mullewa, Western Australia & Alice Springs, Northern Territory
7-9 August, 14-16 August, 28-30 August
The Croc Festival is held in a number of locations around Australia to build partnerships whilst celebrating youth and culture in rural and remote communities. The festivals engage young Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in education, careers markets, health expo, sporting events and inspirational activities as well as performing and visual arts and crafts in a 100% drug- and alcohol-free environment. Various venues.
http://www.crocfestival.org.au/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Language and literature
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/languageandliterature.htm
The Age Melbourne Writers Festival - Melbourne
24 August - 2 September
This year's Festival features a thought-provoking and lively series of events, Big Ideas @ Storey Hall. These events encompass important issues, ideas and visions beyond the merely political. Ten days of chat, banter and provocation with the world's top writers, the Melbourne Writers Festival is where ideas come alive and words are made flesh. Whether you want to take flights of fancy or be brought down to earth, there's bound to be a session or two in the more than 250 events that you will want to hear. Keynote speakers include Clive James, Jane Clifton and Noel Pearson. Malthouse Theatre and other venues.
http://www.mwf.com.au/2007/content/standard.asp
http://www.malthousetheatre.com.au/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Performance
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/performance.htm
Dorothy Hewett, The Man From Mukinupin - Sydney
19 July - 18 August
Dorothy Hewett's play The Man From Mukinupin has it all - star-crossed lovers, rivalries and feuds, dark secrets, hidden lies and many sets of twins. Stargazers and star-crossed lovers, Shakespearean players and knights of the road, strange doings at night and a murderous past. This town might have more than its fair share of eccentrics, but Hewett doesn't simply tell a folksy tale. There are serious themes running underneath to earth the humour, charm and quirkiness: the clash of European and Indigenous cultures, the tensions and differences between city and country people, the effects of outsiders on a tight-knit community, and the profound changes wrought on a community by the experience of war. New Theatre, Newtown.
http://www.ramin.com.au/online/newtheatre/#Mukinupin
http://www.ramin.com.au/online/newtheatre/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sport and recreation
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/sportandrecreation.htm
Assa Abloy Henley-On-Todd - Alice Springs, Northern Territory
July, entries by 24 August, event 25 August
Held in the centre of Australia at Alice Springs, the Henley-On-Todd can motivate the most mature, conservative business people into the roles of 'Vikings' and 'Pirates' crewing battle boats bristling with mortars and high-pressure water cannons. The multi-event program attracts many local and international participants who race in bottomless 'eights', 'oxford tubs', 'bath tubs' and yachts through the deep coarse sand of the Todd River.
http://www.henleyontodd.com.au/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visual arts and crafts
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/visualarts.htm
Samantha Everton, Childhood Fears - Sydney
18 July - 18 August
Samantha Everton is best known these days for being one of Australia's leading surrealist photographers. The daughter of a miner, Everton spent her childhood in some of the most remote parts of Australia. She says her influence as a child was Salvador Dali, and the photographer who has made the most lasting impression on her is Jerry Uelsmann, the American surrealist. Her work has been on show at New York's prestigious AIPAD (the Association of International Photography Art Dealers) photography exhibition. Now her third solo exhibition, Childhood Fears, has opened in Sydney. Each of her photographs is 'like a theatrical production', with props, models and precisely researched locations. Byron McMahon Gallery, Redfern.
http://www.sandrabyrongallery.com.au/site/frontviewBrowseExhibitionContent.asp?page=1&pid=0&aid=0&ExhibitionID=56
http://www.sandrabyrongallery.com.au/site/default.asp
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Websites - new
http://www.culture.gov.au/news/websites.htm
National Indigenous Television (NITV)
July
National Indigenous Television (NITV) is a new 24-hour television service established by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. With the very best of Australian content in the programs, NITV will inform, entertain and educate, preserve Indigenous languages, tell stories and showcase the rich diversity of Indigenous cultures and creative talent from all over Australia.
http://nitv.org.au/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------