Projects
Strengthening the social fabric of our communities
2021 - 2022
Moving Story
Short Documentaries with people living with dementia. A keepsake for families. A gift for care staff.
17 short films co-created with families, including a 12 min documentary about the process made during the course of the project. Concept and film by Chris Mead. Produced with Arts Health Agency. Assisted through Arts Tasmania and Munnew Day Centre.
2018 - 2021
Soul Connection
Young and Old Souls Make Music Together.
Artists and community members support young people at risk of disconnecting with education and community life. Lyrics and melody are co-created with the young person. A song is performed, recorded and released as a single. A video music clip is launched. Soul Connection is a model of engagement that provides a safe space for creative expression, literacy, social confidence, interrealtionships and community inclusion. Produced with Arts Health Agency. Assisted through Regional Arts Australia.
2018 - 2019
No Song Left Unsung
Spoken Word & Music.
Recorded conversations with both aged care residents and young carers living in our communities. Pearls of wisdom and stories untold. The conversational pieces are infused with original compositions to create a kaleidoscopic soundscape. Recordings and new musical pieces inspired by the work, were played live for an audience in Maracoopa Cave. Produced with Arts Health Agency. Assisted through Family Based Care and Meander Valley Council.
Click here to listen.
2017 - 2018
Social Tonic Ukulele For Fun (S.t.u.f.f)
Musicians in Orana Respite and Social Centre.
Volunteer musicians hold fun ukulele sessions with clients who rekindle their love and talent for music. They practise and perform for the Carnival of the Here and Now, Seniors Week Event 2017. Tony Campbell (pictured) floors the room with a rendition of 'Old Man River' accompanied by the house band. Produced with Arts Health Agency.
2015 - 2018
Meet Me
Consultancy delivery with Respect Aged Care (Island Care) TAS and Uniting NSW
Combatting Loneliness in Residential Aged Care and Independent Living Villages. Project delivery and staff training in building social capital and delivering programs relevant to their clients interests. Produced with Arts Health Agency.
2012 - 2014
The Big Window Project
Aged Care residents support unemployed to find pathways to education and employment.
Young mothers establish relationships with residents and care staff alongside enrolling in classroom based job ready units of competence. The artist led insitu experiences included digital story recording, sewing, art and circus based movement workshops. The combination and supporting partnership of three residential care homes with the TasTafe component, produced a 92% success rate of participants entering further education and employment. Assisted through Communities for Children and the Federal Government.
2012
Animated Anthologies
7-day / 24hr Artists in Residence in a Dementia Secure Wing.
The Indirect Object (artists) and Creature Tales (producers) develop a project vision that inspires self directed participation from residents of a dementia secure wing. A gradual transformation takes place in a corner of a dining room, where construction, painting, domestic chores and consultation with residents occurs. A shed like venue that emerges is adorned each and and every day with different lights, treasures and trinkets. The residents become curious, activate their skills from a past life and invest on a daily basis. The families increase their visits. The theatre makers create puppet shows inspired by the individual stories shared and each resident, one at a time, is invited into the tiny theatre to experience their own story performed on a stage. Assisted through Regional Arts Australia, Respect Aged Care (Island Care) and Central Coast Council.
2011 - 2017
Carnival of The Here & Now
National Award Winning Arts & Community Health Event. (TAS) & (NSW)
Inspired by the theory of the carnivalesque and immersive theatre. Artists, seniors and community members disrupt the daily routine of care homes. The hallways, lounges and dining rooms are transformed. The line is blurred between audience and performer, fun and mischief abounds as we halt time and celebrate the here and now together. Imagine cabaret artists, circus performers, puppeteers, escapologists, whip crackers, pole dancers, body painters, sketch artists, tea trolley hosts, MC and a house band! There have been four incarnations of the carnival and a Seniors Week public event in Ulverstone 2017. Assisted through Regional Arts Australia, Respect Aged Care (Island Care), Central Coast Council, The Whiddon Group.
2010 - 2014
Billy, A Neighbourly Neighbourhoods Project
National Award Winning Communities for Children Strategy.
Arists, makers, seniors, families and students support Prep children to prepare for their first year of full time schooling. This rite of passage where billy carts are made and paraded in the streets declares the importance of this pivotal transistion. Our childrens best start possible in school and their sense of belonging in community becomes our collective priority. Assisted through Communities for Children and the Federal Government.
