Cartoonist Luke Watson at the Big King Street Draw
Photo: Jason Chatfield
Artbank e-bulletin - October 2007
Part of Artbank’s charter is to participate in events that encourage and support the development and diversity of Australian contemporary art. Artopia is one such event. It’s a biennial festival that Artbank is proud to be involved with. It focuses on the visual arts in Western Australia, and Artbank’s WA Art Consultant, Mariyon Slany was part of the festivities this year. She shares her Artopia 2007 experiences here.
Geoffrey Cassidy – Artbank Director – October 2007
Artopia engulfs Western Australia
Artopia opened with a bang. The festival kicked off on a sunny Perth day with a ‘Big Draw’ event, which ensured King Street passersby fully understood that a pencil in hand is worth more than two in the bush! Two artists (and two volunteers) performed on stage for ‘Ready Steady Draw’, whilst a cartoonist drew caricatures of the Arts Minister Sheila McHale and MC Russell Woolfe, who joked that he had not been represented handsomely enough.
The festival was a feast for art lovers, with 250 arts events being staged across 23 days, in Perth and regional centres. The idea was to get people looking at art and interacting with it in different ways, not just in galleries. Festival goers enjoyed an amazing variety of events—nearly 100 open studios, sculpture walks and Big Draws in areas as diverse as Geraldton, Armadale and Northcliffe.
Other events included an Artists’ Car Boot Sale at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, where some artists performed from their car boots; the Walkpath in Baywater where works were created for installation along a riverside path; the City of Melville Fibre Studios with 16 fibre studios showcased the work of 48 artists and there were discussions about wearable art.
Artbank was pleased to take part in Artopia, and as Artbank’s WA Art Consultant, I spoke at a Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sundowner and our Senior Curator, Jackie Dunn, was a special guest speaker at the Open Studio Preview at Old Customs House, in Fremantle.
Let’s hope the Western Australian arts flourish with the help of events such as Artopia and that more people will be tempted to quip, like one 2005 Artopia visitor – “I had no idea there were so many really good artists tucked away.” Artopia was a fantastic free state-wide celebration of artists in WA.
Mariyon Slany, Artbank’s WA Art Consultant