Celebrating the arts and culture of central Victoria in a specially curated program encouraging community connections with local artists and artforms, the Castlemaine State Festival will take place in March 2021.
The Festival has announced the recipients of its COVID-19 artist relief commissions program, WE ARE HERE, focussing on offering financial support to local regional performing and projection/visual arts projects.
Central Victorian artists Jessie Boylan, Andrée Cozens & Mark Penzak, Furze Brothers and commonplace productions, Hermione Merry & Helen Mathwin, Brodie Murray, Cameron Robbins and Wide Open Road artist collective will each receive a share of the $15,000 grant pool to develop and create their performing, projection or visual arts productions.
The Castlemaine State Festival has made its home at the newly renovated space Goods Shed Arts, announcing a new set of COVID-19 relief offerings to provide support to local creative businesses and artists during difficult times.
Goods Shed Arts, the new central hub for creativity, is seeking residents to utilise a range of working, meeting and creative development spaces available for individuals or small organisations.
With a view to further extending the Festival’s desire to support local creative businesses as well as artists during these difficult times, they have just announced a new set of COVID-19 relief offerings at Goods Shed Arts.
Expressions of Interest are now open for a series of no-cost, try-before-you-buy offerings including free venue hire sessions for the first twenty applications; three free one-week residencies for creative developments and a special offer of one-month free on all 12-month co-working space tenancies.
Castlemaine State Festival Director Glyn Roberts will be offering free Thursday afternoon Artist Clinics to talk (virtually for now) with local artists, to provide advice on project ideas and developments.
Roberts said that as a community, regional Victorians are looking to the arts to find comfort, connection and perspective. “With regional Victoria in stage three restrictions in the current global pandemic, we are relying on the arts to provide us with hope and security for the future,” he said.
“We are committed to presenting our 2021 Festival, and provide a place for artists and the community to come together to celebrate our strength in the local arts space,” said Mr Roberts.
Castlemaine State Festival runs from 19 March to 28 March 2021. Expressions of Interest are now open for free COVID-19 relief offerings at Goods Shed Arts. For more information, and to apply, visit: www.castlemainefestival.com.au for details.
Image: Castlemaine Goods Shed – photo by Samantha Slicer