I arrived in Launceston, Tasmania on Monday in preparation to attend the Junction 2010 Regional Arts Australia National Conference and associated festival.

I will be performing a one hour audiovisual improvisation with VJ Jim Coad at the festival Junc Room this Thursday from 8:30pm. It’s a free event in a big circus tent in Civic Square. We’ll be working live with material recorded from the festival and the Launceston environment as well as quirky eyeballs and custom electronic instruments. Come and check it out.

Thanks to the Australia Council’s ArtStart grant program for giving me the opportunity to travel to Tasmania. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.

For those young and emerging artists in Melbourne there is an ArtStart information session at the old council chambers on the corner of Lygon and Victoria Streets, Carlton on Tuesday the 25th of May, 6 – 8pm.

You can “hear from successful ArtStart recipients about how they are using ArtStart to fertilise their careers, ask questions and find out what activities ArtStart could fund and find out other ways the Australia Council can support you and your art”.

If you’re interested in attending RSVP to Melissa Habjan, ArtStart Administration Officer via m.habjan@australiacouncil.gov.au or on (02) 9215 9162.

Following on from the recent CareerOne interview, national Australian newspaper MX published an article about me and the Australia Council’s ArtStart grant program. Check out Art Starter Feeds Creativity (PDF 520KB) by Rhiannon Elston.

There is an ArtStart information session tomorrow (20th January) at Fraser Studios, 10-14 Kensington Street, Chippendale NSW. If you’re interested in learning more about this new Australia Council grant for young and emerging artists drop by the studios at 1pm.

Kath Melbourne will be running the session, with short talks and Q&A by recent grant recipients Anna Lise De Lorenzo, Claude Jones and myself.

Anna was awarded an ArtStart grant for her ‘object design studio launch supported by a series of curated exhibitions investigating emerging local object design’, Claude was awarded a grant ‘to develop and implement a marketing strategy to raise [her] profile, increase gallery and media attention and sales’ and I am using the grant for ‘laying the foundations to make a living as a sound and multimedia artist’. You can read more about what other recipients are using their grants for in the ArtStart December 2009 Assessment Meeting Report.

CareerOne recently interviewed me about my work as a Sound and Multimedia Artist and ArtStart grant success. Check out the Big Breaks for Budding Artists article by Rhiannon Elston.

The Australia Council for the Arts just awarded me a $10 000 ArtStart grant to assist in “laying the foundations to make a living as a sound and multimedia artist”.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.

Amongst other things I will be using the money to upskill, purchase new equipment and collaborate with interstate artists and organisations. Check out the ArtStart December 2009 assessment meeting report for further information.

If you are a recent creative arts graduate I highly recommend submitting an application in a future ArtStart grant round. The next deadline is the 8th of March 2010.