Arts funding to advance careers for Queensland artists

23 Aug 2019

Sixteen Queensland artists, musicians and cultural workers have been able to develop their practice and advance their careers thanks to funding from the Queensland Government.

The 16 artists were carefully selected from a total 81 applications across a variety of art forms, and are sharing in a total $105,821 as part of the Government’s Individuals Fund. The funding program is helping artists take the next step in their professional careers and connecting them to local and global audiences.

The funding helps to continue developing the arts and cultural capabilities in Queensland, and enables artists to build international audiences, develop new markets, and expand their industry networks. It also creates opportunities for local arts and culture experiences.

Across the latest round of grants, Queenslanders will undertake residencies in the USA, and others given the opportunity to expand their talents right here in Queensland. The 16 successful applicants will all have the opportunity to embark on career development and bring that knowledge back to Queensland.

One of this round’s grant recipients, composer and pianist Dr Yitzhak Yedid, has received funding to work with the Barngarla Aboriginal community in South Australia to develop two large scale music compositions with outcomes for regional and First Nations communities.

Dr Yitzhak Yedid, who lectures at Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University, said skills he will learn in his residencies and the opportunity to collaborate with an Aboriginal community will propel his career to the next level of professionalism.

“It will be towards the creation of new works by a Queensland-based composer and Queensland performers with strong connections to our nation's history,” Dr Yedid said.

There was an impressive variety of art forms in this round of successful applicants, from all across Queensland.

Ruby Donohoe of Maroochydore will research inclusive art-making practices for artists with disabilities by working with companies Open Doors in New York, Aha Ensemble in Queensland and Oficina Theatre in Portugal.

In what will be a significant career move for two opera singers, Samuel Piper will study bel canto opera in Italy and Shikara Ringdahl of Woodridge will take up a three month mentorship opportunity at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

Toowoomba-based physical theatre performer David Steggall will undertake a two-week clown theatre intensive in Switzerland with the intention to develop his own clown practice and his performance piece for children who have experienced trauma.

For more information about Arts Queensland’s Individuals Fund visit http://www.arts.qld.gov.au/aq-funding/funding.

A full list of Individuals Fund recipients is below.

Individuals Fund: $105,821

• Morgan Balfour, Brisbane - $6075 for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City Resident Artist program
• Phoebe Bognar, South Brisbane - $3752 to perform alongside world renowned artists for Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival 2019, held in Massachusetts USA
• Chi Lui Flora Wong, Brisbane- $4200 to premiere new Australian work at Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival 2019, in Massachusetts USA,
• Thomas Busby, Currumbin - $3198 and Jeremy Marou, Rockhampton - $3410 to tour Ontario, Canada, developing an international market for duo Busby Marou.
• Elisa Carmichael, South Brisbane - $6059 to participate in Transits and Returns exhibition at Vancouver Art Gallery in Canada, and engage in the associated symposium with international First Nations community members, artists, curators, writers and researchers from across the Pacific Ocean.
• Tenzin Choegyal, Brisbane - $5800 totravel to New York and Philadelphia USA in November 2019 for a series of intensive workshops, working with composer Phillip Glass to develop and refine an original multimedia theatre piece.
• Ruby Donohoe, Maroochydore - $9114 to support research into inclusive art-making practices through two case-study companies: Open Doors (NYC)- artists who are wheelchair-bound due to gun violence- and disability theatre-dance company Aha Ensemble (Queensland). From this ruby will conduct independently-led research for new theatre-work, Jerk, about being Epileptic with support from Oficina Theatre (Portugal).
• Kailum Graves, Brisbane - $10,000 to undertake a three-month period of professional development and mentoring at the SEA Foundation in Tilburg, the Netherlands. This is a highly competitive international program with only 6 professional artists chosen to participate annually.
• Nicole Murphy, Brisbane - $2048 to support her being a resident composer at Mizzou International Composers Festival in Columbia and Missouri last month as one of eight resident composers.
• Kali Napier, Brisbane - $4764 to develop and edit eight short stories
• Samuel Piper, Brisbane - $10,000 to study in Bel Canto opera repertoire in Italy.
• Shikara Ringdahl, Brisbane - $10,000 to undertake a three-month study trip to London to work with coaches and teachers at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and observe stage and staging rehearsals.
• David Steggall, Toowoomba - $9551 to travel to Switzerland for a two-Week Clown Intensive with Pierre Byland, which will be the clown masters' final offering of this infamous course.
• Elizabeth Willing, Brisbane - $7850 to help present her artwork internationally, and the production of a new body of work within a residency context.
• Yitzhak Yedid, Brisbane - $10,000 for Music for Ancient Rituals: a residency, to develop and compose an album at Barngarla Aboriginal Community in South Australia, with outcomes for regional and First Nations communities.