A Message from the Executive Director - August 10, 2020

Artlands has been a strategic regional art gathering for two decades.

The Artlands Conversation Series heralds a new approach to the delivery of this critical national event to carry a trajectory between conferences and across conversations.

Picking up themes from most recent Artlands Victoria (2018) and the Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation Country Plan 2014-2034 framework, and leading into our national gathering in September 2021 on palawa country, this curated program presents a series of critical conversations that reflect and respond to emerging trends in regional practice. The contextual link between people, practice and landscape are considered a narrative of art as social change and the articulation of cultural identity.

RAA’s guiding principle is that place is central to creative practice and provides profound practical and emotional links between the economies and synergies of artistic and cultural practice. The new Artlands model provides an ongoing platform for dialogue and critical conversations. The programming is reflective and responsive. Sessions may generate other sessions, provocations can be picked up and explored further generating opportunities for deeper exploration.

The program is contemporary, relevant and increasingly necessary.

Artlands long-term focus has established a tradition in which artists, practitioners and arts workers in regional and remote Australia can come together for professional development and engagement in national conversations. With the series presented on a digital platform we hope to diversify our audience engagement with greater accessibility, continuity and connection.

As the national voice for arts in regional Australia, Regional Arts Australia’s role is one of a connector, joining the dots and facilitating the exchange. The conversations are designed to present contemporary thinking, champion best practice, build connection, generate exchange and strengthen a national network of artists and communities in regional and remote Australia.

We look forward to the conversations,
exploring narratives,
opening the exchanges,
connecting cultural landscapes.

We invite new ideas, stories and voices
We invite you to take part