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Creative ID: 548

Art form(s): Community arts, Crafts/objects, Film, Multi-disciplinary, Visual arts
Language(s): English
Based in: Waikato
When I'm available: I am flexible and happy to work around a school schedule.

My arts or creative practice (including details about my specific focus within that art form/practice and my strengths)

I am an artist and teacher originally from Sydney, Australia. My art practice centres around storytelling, with a focus on uncanny and hidden stories. I work across a range of mediums including filmmaking, photography, and printmaking. I have run a number of exhibitions. I am now making a new film, based on my recent experience working across a wide range of educational organisations in the USA, and the strange structures and behaviours I encountered there. I have held over ten solo exhibitions, and numerous group exhibition in Australia, the UK, and the US. I also work as an independent curator and enjoy supporting non-profit and experimental arts spaces. Some examples of my work can be seen on my website (link available on request).

My track record of experience and success - or the track record of experience and success of the creative or artist that I will partner with

I have been a practicing artist for over ten years. For most of my career I have exhibited in artist-run spaces in Australia. My work has been supported by grants from the Australia Council, Creative Victoria and the City of Melbourne, and I have undertaken residencies in Australia and Iceland.

In 2009 I co-founded a non-profit gallery in Melbourne, Australia (website available on request). This project space worked with local communities and schools to present a program of experimental arts projects. For one exhibition I worked with students at a local primary school to draw things that were hard to see. My solo work has been reviewed in Artlink. I have also written reviews of the works of my peers for a number of magazines (details available on request).

In Melbourne I was a lecturer in Fine Arts at a local University; here I developed and delivered undergraduate and graduate lecture courses in 19th and 20th century art history with a specialisation in photography and performance art. I also taught studio art classes in contemporary art and drawing. In my role in Australia I was proud to work with Yulenji Indigenous Unit to provide workshops on indigenous perspectives in course design. I have been in New York for the past three years where I managed a kids art studio, and lectured in Art History in Brooklyn. In 2019 I finished my PhD in fine arts, and exhibited a film at a faculty gallery in Melbourne as part of this research. To make this film I worked with my students in Brooklyn. My PhD was supported through a Graduate Research Grant. 

Describe the experience you have had working with children or young people, teaching or facilitating creative processes

Teaching has always been a big part of my arts practice. I started tutoring at an overseas University while completing my Masters in Fine Art. Here I tutored in art history, and also taught studio classes in contemporary studio arts, and drawing. While at this University, I was promoted to the role of Lecturer, and I was responsible for designing and implementing undergraduate courses in art history and studio arts. My favourite thing about teaching is seeing the spark of an idea grow and expand into a fully realised art project.

Since moving to the United States in 2017 I have continued to teach at a tertiary, middle and primary school level. I lectured in Brooklyn, the college is part of the CUNY network and offers affordable university education to New York residents. Here, I designed and taught a course on the history of photography, and introduced a programme of field trips to support my students’ access to the New York art world. While in the US I also managed a studio [name redacted]. This studio provided onsite and offsite art classes for kids ages 5 to 12. I worked with a small team of teachers to deliver programmes in ceramics, textiles, painting, drawing, printmaking and filmmaking.

As an educator with my teaching philosophy has always prioritised student-driven education, responding to individual strengths and interests in order to grow learner confidence. A career experience I am proud of was working closely with children and their families in domestic violence support accommodation in Brooklyn, NY. Here, I was able to deploy my empathy and humour to listen and respond to individuals experiencing disruption and displacement. Through material play and art making I was able to bring joy and support social and emotional growth. 

Why I want to be part of the Creatives in Schools programme and how my involvement will link to my creative practice

I am interested in the Creatives in Schools programme because my current project is on ideas of a 'good education' and I feel that students will have a lot to say about this project. My work employs different forms of storytelling. I have a lot of experience working with young people on creative projects, and I propose to work with students to develop their own voices and stories. These stories can be expressed through a wide range of mediums, from digital film to printmaking. As I have recently re-located to Aotearoa, New Zealand I am interested in making connections to communities and contributing to the arts in my new home. I propose to work with the student towards a public exhibition of their final work, this will allow the participant to develop and realise final projects, and work as curators, and as writers and promoters. I hope that students will have an opportunity to develop their ideas and artistic methods by trying out new techniques. Through a public exhibition students will also have an opportunity to work like professional public artists.

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