The Melbourne Arts Precinct Corporation (MAP Co) and the University of Melbourne have announced that the first two visual artists selected for their new joint artist-in-residence program are interdisciplinary artist Keg de Souza and sculptor Francis Carmody.
Through these residencies, the artists will work alongside researchers from the Faculty of Science at the University’s Burnley Campus and respond to themes of ecology, sustainability and biodiversity explored through the Melbourne Arts Precinct Plant Trials.
“The Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation is providing exciting opportunities for independent artists to experiment and approach their work in new and interesting ways,” said Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks.
“This residency program is a great example of how the creative industries are primed to work with other fields – including scientific research and education – to bring a creative perspective to the world around us.”
The Melbourne Arts Precinct Plant Trials is a three-year research project conducted at the University of Melbourne’s Burnley Campus that evaluates the plant species and mixes best suited to thrive in Laak Boorndap – the urban garden at the centre of the Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation (MAPT).
The trials test a range of growing conditions, the impacts of an increasingly hot environment and aesthetic considerations, ensuring what goes into the ground at Laak Boorndap will flourish year-round and continuously foster biodiversity.
Keg de Souza is an architecturally trained artist of Goan ancestry who creates work that explores plant politics, themes of displacement and the stories of plants, people and place, while Francis Carmody’s practice traces social and natural networks as a form of speculative storytelling through a variety of creative mediums.
“I’m looking forward to searching for and learning plant-related stories that have been overlooked or overshadowed, and sharing these narratives in new ways,” said Keg de Souza.
“I’m excited to engage with the Plant Trials and explore how novel material experimentation can intersect with ecological research. Through the residency, I hope to develop work that responds to the site’s living systems, drawing from the University of Melbourne’s research context to expand my practice into new mediums,” said Francis Carmody.
Through the residency, the artists will have access to a studio at the Burnley Campus and the Plant Trials, as well as access to living botanical collections, nurseries and glasshouses, and a wide range of materials from the University’s archival and art collections.
Embedded in the horticultural campus, the artists will connect with academics, ecologists and botanists, discover the nuances of the plants, and immerse themselves in the research project. They will also have opportunity to consult with academics and museum and collection staff across the University.
Inspired by the research, the artists will create work that gives a creative voice to the Plant Trials and related concerns around ecological sustainability and renewal.
In collaboration with the University’s Faculties, curriculum and public outcomes will be produced including education programs with University of Melbourne students from a range of disciplines, exhibitions, publications, and events in the Test Garden at Fed Square.
The artist-in-residence program, facilitated by MAP Co and the University of Melbourne’s Burnley campus and Art Museums, is supported as part of the Victorian Government’s Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation project. The program offers yearly studio residencies to visual artists whose practice is informed by a deep interest in plants, horticulture and ecology.
“The Melbourne Arts Precinct Plant Trials is at the forefront of research and experimentation in the development of Laak Boorndap, and the artist-in-residence program will similarly support visual artists to pursue an in-depth research project, through creative, critical and interdisciplinary practice,” said Sarah Tutton, Director of Programming & Interpretation, MAP Co.
“Keg and Francis were selected for their commitment to uncovering and exploring the stories of plants, their histories and relationships with humans, and we’re excited to bring to life the outcomes from this artistic practice through public exhibition, events and publication.”
The Melbourne Arts Precinct Plant Trials is a partnership between the University of Melbourne (Burnley Campus), MAP Co, Development Victoria, design practice Hassell, plant practice Super Bloom and international horticulturalists James Hitchmough and Nigel Dunnett.
For more information about the Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation, visit: www.artsprecinct.melbourne for details.
Images: Burnley Plant Trials – photo by Sarah Pannell | Keg de Souza – photo by Neil Hanna Photography | Francis Carmody (supplied)