QCAN BlogQLD Community Arts Network

Craigslea Update "Last One" - Tamara Playne

2006-08-24T09:17:00.001+10:00

The project is now fully installed and awaits only an official opening.

Yesterday we (teacher, students and myself) trooped up to Ed Qld HQ and presented the project to a Showcase Forum including the Deputy Director-General of Arts Qld and the Assistant Director-General, Curriculum, Ed Qld. So, for all us community artists busy 'heads down' it is good to see that the value of artists working in schools is being appreciated at the top.

The good news was that the Art Built-in Artist-in-Residence program in Ed Qld Schools will continue next year so that will mean a few less starving artists in 2007!!

I am now transferring all my blogging regarding this project and others to www.tamaraplayne.blogspot.com

Please come and have a look and drop us a line.

If you have trouble with it in any way let me know at tamaraplayne@yahoo.com.au

Thanks to QCAN and Karen Tunny in particular for guiding me into blogging. I would love to see more members' activity through this blog site so have a go and thrill us all (in the nicest possible way).

Tamara Playne

Craigslea Update 7 - Tamara Playne

2006-06-15T18:31:00.000+10:00

The artwork is nearly ready for installation. . .

The primary students made the ceramic tiles which are being attached to the small water feature. They developed their designs with the cascading water flow in mind.

Here's the middle-sized water feature with some lovely organic curves in the carving.

Here's the aluminium light feature which will sit on top of the digital projection box. The light will shine through the dot patterns which repeat the braille for "You are Beautiful" on two sides and the patterns of the zodiac with the Southern Cross in the centre form the patterns for the other two sides.

The digital projection box which is a large black plywood box on the outside has aluminium panels attached to it so that it will go well with the pyramid light feature sitting on top of it. This is the template used to dot pierce the text onto the aluminium.

Not much further to go now. The revolving cubes structure is all finished bar final assembly. I'll have pics of that and hopefully the finished projections box, cascading water features, and flapping banners for the next update.

Yours creatively,

Tamara

Craigslea Update 6 - Tamara Playne

2006-05-19T12:35:00.000+10:00

Now things are really cooking. . . take a look

The hebel water features are taking shape and we picked up the aluminium water troughs for them this week that they will sit in. That's what the 'stilts' are for, so they'll sit nicely in the water and leave room for the pump.

Here's one side of tiles made by the primary students to be glued to the small pyramid water feature.

Next up are the beloved revolving cubes made by the plastic box guy after numerous phone calls to discuss every last millimetre of them. When they arrived, I bonded with my newborns at first sight! Here you can see the interchangeable insert sides (filled with laminated colour paper collages) and the next facet featuring drill-hole design sheet aluminium.

Here's the lovely letters that will spell out You Are Beautiful on one side of all the revolving cubes.

And here's the textural tiles made for another side of the revolving cubes.

Craigslea Update 5 - Tamara Playne

2006-05-11T14:42:00.000+10:00

It's been an exciting week tracking down the last of the materials and finally nabbing a metal fabricator not too busy to fit us in. Various fabricators are underway with the water feature troughs and the revolving cubes support structure. I've finally found a minute to check out the ramp where the work will be sited at the school and it's still at the dirt-track stage. But all that could change within hours with a few cement trucks, hopefully in time for our celebratory student morning tea in a few weeks. And here's some photos of this week's effort.

Above: the tie dyed fabric banners are being screenprinted with images of students from both schools. The images were created from digital photos, which were then printed out and photocopied onto litho paper. The paper was then hand cut to produce paper screens for printing.

Above: One facet of the revolving cubes structure will feature the words "you are beautiful" spelt out in plywood letters which are shown here being carefully sanded.

One of today's best surprises was to hear the xylophones ring out after being cut to size (thanks Linsey Pollac for the measurements). We had to get everyone else to stop drilling and sawing hebel first but the sound was lovely. Part of the theme of the project was to address the five senses so now we can tick off hearing!

Here's the middle sized xylo before it is finally rigged. We've used aluminium tubing for the notes, stainless steel cable and fittings to hang, and also little pieces of aluminium tubing to space the notes apart. The beaters are made from left over lantern Pahang for the stick and some lovely foam balls found in the golf section of a discount shop, drilled, and glued on. They remind me of bobby dazzlers.

Next week is the full tilt whole day effort on Thursday so more photos then of the water features, the light feature and the digital projection box.

Yours in creativity

Tamara Playne

Craigslea Update 4 - Tamara Playne

2006-05-03T20:06:00.000+10:00

We are rolling into phase two now: that's the exciting/nerve wracking phase where we actually make the artwork we've been thinking about in phase one (see previous updates). It's been a mad time sourcing so many different materials: aluminium pipes, sheet metal, hebel stone, water pumps, timber, fabric, pvc pipes and bits to fit. Then finding those precious people who know their stuff: like the guy who's waking up in the wee hours with the solutions to our perspex cubes we're getting him to make, and the metal fabricator who assures me it's all do-able. My secret response as we reach deadlines is "well get on and do it then". I'm still on the lookout for stainless steel split rings (like a key ring), if anyone knows where. . . let me know.

The year 11 art students are working up blisters making two of the larger hebel water features. There will be three loosely pyramid shapes from 1metre high, 75cm high and 40cm high. The triangular shapes echo the triangular shapes created by the path of the entrance ramp (the artwork site).

The second picture shows some of the inserts for the 'revolving cubes' installation. One side of the cubes is designed for temporary changing exhibitions of laminated artwork like these.

One of the other sides will have aluminium 'dot drawings' made from drilled holes which reveal the black perspex background. Picture three shows these being made using a mallet and nail to make starter marks for drilling later. The sheet of aluminium is under the paper template.

This last picture shows some of the banner fabric which has been bleached-backed tie-dyed sometimes called 'Shibori'. The five banners are different colours and dye patterns and will also be screen-printed featuring posterised faces of students. They are 2metre high and cut to a scalloped triangular shape to match the triangular theme and will be flown from the ramp railings.

I welcome any questions about the artwork and processes you may have. It is hard to know how much detail to go into so in brevity I might have also lost some meaning.

Yours creatively

Tamara Playne

QCAN AGM and Awards

2006-04-05T18:50:00.000+10:00

QCAN's AGM was held on Friday 24th March. As well as the election of the
Management Committee we were delighted to recognise Aunty Vi McDermott. Aunty Vi, a long time member of QCAN was awarded life membership. Aunty Vi is a Jinda Wakka Wakka Elder, (Burnett district - Queensland) a storyteller, singer, performer, song writer and public speaker with a deep knowledge of her culture and the sacred world.

Aunty Vi was a founding member of Icy Tea (Inala Community Theatre), a leading participant in the Magdalena Womens' Theatre Festival and Patron of the 2003 National Storytelling Festival, held in Brisbane.

Nominations for the 2005 Community Artist of the Year were all extremely worthy and were acknowledged by their nominators as outstanding cultural workers. The assessment panel, Cathy Hunt of Positive Solutions, John Jeffrey Community Arts Officer Brisbane City Council and QCAN Director Bronwyn Jewell faced a very difficult task.

The artists who were nominated were: Dr Pamela Croft, Bronwyn Davies, Dr Judy Pippen, Chris Pye, Craig Shaw, Jo Cruikshanks, Erica O'Neale, Michael Connolly, Carmen Stewart, Chris Stannard, Motoyuki Niwa and Scotia Monkovitch.

Scotia Monkovitch was chosen by the panel as the 2005 QCAN Community Artist of the Year for her work with Princess Alexandra Hospital, Access Arts and Helicon Dance. Neal Price, in his nomination of Scotia said: 'Her work achieved life changing outcomes for participants and positioned ccd processes as an integral part of healthcare and community well-being.'

As there was another outstanding nominee amongst the entrants who had made a significant contribution, it was decided to create another award: the 2005 Emerging Cultural Worker of the Year. That award went to Craig Shaw. Craig spent 2005 in tremendous change, both personally and professionally. His development was shared, nurtured and enjoyed by his community and specifically young Brisbane Murris. Craig was one of the many keen workers in the So Superfly project.

Charleville Generational Learning Project - Daryll Bellingham, Brisbane

2006-03-29T23:01:00.000+10:00

Well I've returned from Charleville with a swag of digital stories almost ready for burning to DVD and some cherished memories of some very special culturally significant places in Bidjara country.

Helping Shaun video at Carnavon rock shelter.

Reeghan interviewing Aunty Carol at Boonaroo Springs lookout.

It was a real buzz to be with the young and old as they explored sites like Lost City, Goats Rock, Bulla Cliffs, Boonaroo Springs and the Carnavon Ochre Pots. As the 11 young people and the Elders they were matched with started to absorb some of the specialness of the sites they were given much to think about. Digital stories with their emphasis on oral storytelling and visual creativity seemed a perfect match.

Our show and tell session on Friday evening at the Indigenous Health centre was wonderful. Fed with marinated kangaroo kebabs and a great salad, my wonderful volunteer, Christabelle Baranay, and I wrestled with the vagaries of Microsoft MovieMaker, recalcitrant laptops, a different data projector and a hastily thrown together sound system to show the participants' Digital Stories in an open air movie theatre under the western stars.

I'm really looking forward to getting back to Charleville again and doing another project with a focus on the Elders' stories. Hopefully we can get the funding because it would be good to extend the training component of the project. I believe Digital Stories has tremendous potential as a community cultural development tool.

More detailed report - austories.blogspot.com

Daryll Bellingham, 29th March 2006

Craigslea Update 3 - Tamara Playne

2006-03-23T20:12:00.000+10:00

This will be my last post for another month as we end the first 6 weeks of workshops and take a break till next term.

The primary students today saw the blog and I am hoping to get some comments from them to add here soon.

In the meantime here's some pics of one of the water features being made. It will be a square based pyramid made of hebel and covered in hand-made ceramic tiles. The students have worked in pairs to make each facet emphasising texture and anticipating the water flow over the texture.

Yours
Tamara Playne

More on Craigslea Project - Tamara Playne

2006-03-22T19:31:00.000+10:00

Time for my second foray into blogworld. Thanks for the comments. I don't know where I am supposed to respond to them so it'll be in this post.

Left: here's a sample of some bleach dyeing we've been doing for the banners. There will be a series of 5 triangular banners 2 metres long. They'll be tie-dyed and then screen-printed. One of the teachers, Wendy McHugh, revealed her talent for shibori, which involved a combination of a 1metre drainpipe, some fabric, some students and 250metres of string. Wendy resisted the temptation to tie the students to the post. . .

Digital Installation. . . what is it?
There are six separate art features on the site. The one I'll feature today is the digital installation. It's basically a sturdy plywood box sited next to the ramp with two slots so people (of differing heights) can peek and in and . . . watch a visual story. The visual is coming from a data projector and laptop which will also go inside the box from time to time. On top of the box is a light sculpture in the shape of a pyramid made from hole-punched sheet aluminium. The idea of the box allows people to view digital stories in the day-time as well as night and mimics the building site hoarding where there is often a peep-hole for passers-by.

The students working on the digital story are interested in the "You are beautiful" concept. The YAB is an international non-commercial phenomenon. Google You are beautiful and you'll get an idea.

The basic notion is to remind people among the hustle,
bustle, and crazy consumerist world that you, everyone, individually, is
beautiful from the inside out.

The message is being spread in lots of different ways including public artworks, messages left in lifts, stickers placed in surreptitious corners etc. There is no merchandise to buy and no-one is making a profit from it. It's just a lovely reminder of what's important in this world.

As a starter the students are photographing lots of different people in different locations wearing you are beautiful shirts, highlighting both diversity and sameness (equality of all life). Simple but cool.

So that'll be the first digital story that goes into the box but expect more. Because like quite a few of the artwork settings on the ramp (the banners, the revolving cubes, the water features) they are intended to be re-fitted for the next lot of creatives to make another addition .

Lastly, Junes comments about herb gardens, we're working on it. It's not a workable garden site but we want to address the sense of smell through planting lavender, rosemary and anything else that's hardy and aromatic. Suggestions welcome.

That's all for now, I'm off to story-telling of the Harry Potter kind. Anyone for Quidditch?

Yours

Tamara Playne

Art Built-In Craigslea Schools - Tamara Playne

2006-03-17T09:03:00.000+10:00

Picture: Craigslea State School students constructing a scale model of the ramp, which we then used as a working tool to test out proposed artworks and to get a sense of the site which is still under construction.

Hi everyone,
Yes it's the Maiden Voyage for me into the land of Blog, so please forgive any first-timer mistakes.
I want to share an exciting project and link up with others doing the same one.
I am one artist (of 12) selected to work on the Education Queensland version of Art Built-in for 2006. Basically it's a residency within a school to create some permanent and temporary artworks with students.
I am aware of one of the other artists, but wondered if there were any others out there who can share their paralell experience.
I am working with Craigslea State High School and Primary School, side by side in Chermside Brisbane. We have a site which is the entrance to the arts auditorium being built as we speak.
The entrance is a long multi layered ramp and is the only entrance since the construction budget was cut and there are no longer any stairs.
Half the students I am working with have disabilities and the schools are a great example of accessibility in physical layouts and inclusivity in education. I am working with primary and secondary.
The brief is to create artwork that heightens the sensory experience of people entering the arts auditorium. So there are, some large scale xylophones (a la Linsey Pollak), an interactive revolving cubes installation, some water features in ceramic and hebel, a digital installation or two, some celebratory textile flags and hopefully a cable installation designed to grow things up.

Yours creatively
Tamara Playne
p.s. I noted somewhere that Roland Nancarrow is doing an ABI up north. If you know him say hi from me. He was one my art teachers in high school!

This is another picture from someone else's project (google you are beautiful). The YAB concept is being used in our project too. More about that in the next blog.
Hooray for now. . .

Tamara Playne

Digital Storytelling Adventurer - Daryll Bellingham

2006-03-13T21:48:00.000+10:00

QCAN members and staff at 'First Person' Digital Storytelling Conference. L to r, Daryll Bellingham, Lisa Christensen, Bree Capell, Christabelle Baranay, Karen Tunny.

I'm not sure when I became not only totally convinced but also quite excited about the potential of Digital Storytelling as a wonderful community cultural development tool but it was definitely before the First Person International Digital Storytelling Conference in February this year. (Thanks Arts Qld. for Prof. Development Grant.)

Maybe it was when I started exploring the BBC 'Capture Wales' website after listening to Daniel Meadows' public lecture at QUT. The Capture Wales site - http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/capturewales/ - is a quite amazing documentation of the BBC sponsored project which ran digital storytelling community workshops in towns and villages across Wales. They taught the participants the basics of digital storytelling and published their stories on the web site and broadcasted them on BBC2.

Digital Storytelling came out the Centre for Digital Storytelling, CDS, in Berkley California and some pioneering community digital theatre being performed by Dana Atchley and Joe Lambert among others in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Their work has since inspired many people around the world to explore and develop the potential of digital storytelling.

I remember hearing about digital storytelling quite some years back but I was too much into my storytelling performance work and using traditional oral storytelling for ccd to give it any time.

Now something has changed for me. I'm not sure what it is but I suspect it has something to do with familiarity with the digital world. I've been using Apple Macs for some years now and they really do make it easy to be creative digitally.

I've explored community and educational story creation and publishing in a range of ways including web sites. I've helped produce a CD of migration stories. Just last year when the Children's Book Council announced their Book Week theme of Reading Rocks, I couldn't help myself. I had to make a little movie about some rocks that could read. i-Movie made it easy.

That's number one I guess. Not sure what the second reason has been but I've definitely jumped on the digital storytelling bandwagon.

After listening to Daniel Meadows, Gail Robinson and I put together a submission to the State Library which encouraged them to use their Innovations Grant to fund a Qld Stories Project which would make funds available to libraries to run community projects. The results would be stories that could be published on the Queensland Stories web site. QUT had lobbied for much the same thing as well.

The two community digital storytelling projects I initiated and completed as part of Qld Stories were 'Loving Logan - adapting to a new city' and 'Stories, Music and Chermside Virtuolygies'.

'Loving Logan' was with community cultural groups working connected with MultiLink in Woodridge and was sponsored by Logan City Council. It resulted in a DVD of 10 different stories from individuals belonging to 10 different cultures living in Logan. They were all adults with strong stories to tell.

The Chermside project was with young regular users of the Brisbane City Council Branch Library. These stories are about sport, youth culture and issues all within a Chermside setting. Their stories were not as strong as the Logan adults but their creativity and their confident use of the digital tools was impressive.

What have I learned? Well lots but I'm not going to try and put it in this post. Like one of the serials I used to watch at a Saturday afternoon matinee at the old Gaythorne picture theatre, you'll have to come back to my next post and find out -

"Will our brave Digital Storytelling adventurer survive? Will he return to fight the good fight for CCD and truth and fair play?"

I sure hope so because I've just started yet another Digital Storytelling adventure in the shape of the West End Digital Storytelling project and on Thursday I'm driving out to Charleville to facilitate a generational learning digital storytelling project through Indigenous and Community health there. So I will have heaps to tell you about.

Daryll Bellingham, Storyteller
Brisbane
13th March, 2006

Bloggin' for a Writer in Community - June Perkins

2006-03-04T18:38:00.000+10:00

Image from Archives in the Land, an online exhibition by June

A blogging life is a beautiful life, for its somewhere I can escape my artistic and cultural isolation as a writer in small country town I have only just moved into. I can form networks of living threads into a Cyberthreads Project and reach out to a friend of twenty years in Holland, a friend of a decade in Darwin, a friend of five years in Canberra, and friends of a few months from Brisbane.

A blog is different to an email, in that I can create a space that has texture, mystery and invite you to visit. It is more accessible to me than a website as I am just not ready to take that journey. I can incorporate emails, phonecalls, images and everything that moves me to be a writer in community, now a writer in blogsphere. I can send you an invitation to my online exhibition no matter where you are. Lately I have created an archive of the land and memory in Pearlzo Art Exhibitions . I am amazed at how this exhibition has kept me afloat as I begin to make networks in a new town. I am even able to teach my partner the techno wiz of our family all about what I know about blogging.

Exploring the blog beat, a cyber cultural heart beat has led to innovations in the way I see myself writing in community. It is only a few short months since QCAN introduced me to the wonders of blogging through workshops and voluntary work. Yet it is as if I have taken a huge journey as inspiring and as confusing as Gulliver on his travels - I wonder what Jonathon Swift would have made of blogging and today's definition of Yahoo. I am almost certain he would have taken to blogging with a passion. I am sure it is a gift for all us community artists and writers to access such a tool and keep in touch with the networks we make.

June Perkins, Cardwell Shire.

First Person: International Digital Storytelling Conference - Karen Tunny

2006-02-21T16:34:00.000+10:00

'We need to organise, build capacity, direct governments, hold them accountable for our values, hopes, dreams for coming generations. Artists need to recognise the value of each citizen's voice and the power of art for transformation. In times of ungoverned global commerce artists and cultural workers have a special role to play.'
John O'Neal, co-founder 'Free Southern Theatre',
civil rights activist, keynote presenter.

And so began the second international digital storytelling festival, 'First Person' at ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image) in Melbourne.

Digital storytelling is now practised in many ways in many locations all around the world. A good explanation of the practise can be found on the Center for Digital Storytelling, Berkeley website and also on the ACMI website. Essentially digital stories are short, personal, often developed in a workshop situation and draw on personal archives (photographs, audio tapes, video, letters or other material that can be scanned). It is also a grassroots movement strongly grounded in social justice principles.

Brisbane was very well represented at the Conference with seven QCAN members in attendance as well as a contingent from QUT (Qld University of Technology).

'First Person' had three thematic areas:

Broadcast convergence: new forms of storytelling
Storytelling and the digital generation
Democratisation and the documentation of voice

Exciting work is happening: in Wales Kate Strudwick is coordinating the Breaking Barriers digital storytelling project, specialising in working with difficult to reach groups and helping to give a voice to communities whose voices are rarely heard, in South Africa staff and volunteers from Engender Health and MAP (Men as Partners), are developing stories which will be used for advocacy and training relating to the issues of HIV/Aids and violence agains women and in Sao Paulo, the Museu da Pessoa (Museum of the Person) aims to provide each and every individual with an opportunity to integrate his or her history into a network of social memory.

Ana Serrano from Habitat new media lab (Canadian Film Centre) in the 'New forms of narrative and relationship to audience' session spoke about an archival audio project 'murmur' http://murmurtoronto.ca/ Murmur allows Torontonians to share stories about particular locations in order to keep city stories alive.

David Withers from ACMI spoke in a session entitled 'Working in Communities: the practicalities'. An outline of ACMI's community projects can be found on their site. Several communities are developing Digital Stories with ACMI through the Vic Health funded project Telling Stories: Building Communities.

Another rich session was 'Storytelling and Local Identity'. Speakers included Malcolm McKinnon (artist and film maker working in rural communities), Christine Peacock (Principal member of Uniikup Productions, Torres Strait Islander and Qld Community Arts Network Committee member and Kim Montgomery (ACMI Content Development Manager responsible for MAP - Memory and Place project).

A full copy of this report is available to QCAN members upon request. Please contact Karen Tunny, Information and Publications Manager mail@qldcan.org.au or phone 07 3254 4922.

So Superfly Workshops 05 - Amanda Hayman

2006-02-01T15:45:00.000+10:00

QCAN in partnership with Red Cross ran a series of workshops for homeless Indigenous young people. The workshops engaged these youth in various art and cultural based workshops, incuding Traditional Indigenous Games (Blackbase), Beat Mixing and Hip Hop (SpeakOut), Circus (Vulcana), Singing (Troy and Trevelyn Brady), Capoeira (Zambiacongo), African drumming (Eliott Orr) and more. The Brisbane Powerhouse gave free access to space and Access Arts allowed us to use their bus for transportation. QCAN would like to thank all the elders, volunteers and youth service providers that came along to support the project. We are currently seeking funding to continue working with these young people. It is our intention to run a cultural camp for them in 2006. We have already acquired $5000 from the Quakers.

Risk Management for Artsworkers in New Farm - Destiny Gultom

2005-11-24T09:03:00.000+10:00

The contact training for QCAN's Risk Management for Artsworkers was held at the Merthyr Uniting Church in New Farm on the 12th and 13th of November. It was a two day training held as part of the 6 weeks self paced course facilitated by Trainer Nicholas Oughton. 11 of the 16 people enrolled in the course attended. The two days went by smoothly and a few snaps were taken by yours truly. Thanks so much to the Participants who helped out at the end of each day.

Impact Team – Facilitation Workshop - Amanda Hayman

2005-10-05T16:22:00.000+10:00

The Impact Team is a youth management team that is steering the youth stream of the Ignition 05 Symposium.

The Impact Team was delighted that, QCAN member, Chris Pye, joined our group to run a proffesional development workshop for us on Tuesday 4th October. Chris shared the ESSARE System with us and focused on Encounter and Context. With the help of Chris, our group identified circumstances to consider when preparing for a workshop, good facilitation skills and methods of engaging a group.

All Impact Team members had only positive feedback and thought the workshop was beneficial and will certainly assist in facilitating a successful Solutions Session and Chill Out Space at Ignition 05.

The Ignition 05 project is supported by Brisbane City Council, through the Visible Ink program.

Yarning Circle in Beaudesert - Karen Tunny

2005-09-05T18:33:00.000+10:00

Participants at our most recent Yarning Circle in Beaudesert were delighted with the day and are already making plans for future such events. Twenty six people gathered in the circle to learn, share and network for future possibilites. It was an honour to have Aunty Mulanjali from the local Mulanjali clan join us and to be welcomed by Marc Paulson who performed a Mulanjali dance. It was great to also see several members of the RADF Committee, Beaudesert Shire Council staff and QCAN members.

The Yarning Circle was facilitated by Debra Bennet McLean, QCAN Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and Cultural Development Manager. The Yarning Circle is a process which Debra has built from the wisdom passed on by Elders and her own participation in various ceremonies.

The timing of the Yarning Circle was most appropriate as the Beaudesert region is currently working on the development of their cultural plan.

RADF Committee Training TAMBO -Destiny Gultom

2005-08-22T09:15:00.000+10:00

QCAN's Training and Education Manager Audrey Hutchison presented a Regional Arts and Development Fund (RADF) Committee Training in regional Queensland, Tambo on the 30th and 31st of July. Eleven people participated. One participant each from neighbouring shires Ilfracombe, Murweh and Quilpie attended the training, and the others were from the host shire Tambo.

Queensland Stories - Meeting with Chris Sayer - Karen Tunny

2005-08-15T09:49:00.000+10:00

Recently Information and Publications Manager Karen Tunny met with Christine (Chris) Sayer, Creative Communities Officer at State Library of Queensland. Chris has been an active QCAN member for many years and was QCAN Treasurer for some time.

As Creative Communities Officer one of Chris' responsibilities is implementing strategies and programs to deliver ongoing community cultural development outcomes including the Queensland Stories initiative. This initiative focuses not only on telling and sharing stories but also enhancing public library service through developing stronger connections between libraries and the communities they serve. Training in digital story production is a significant part of the project. Pilot workshops have been delivered in Mt. Nebo. Planning is underway to deliver workshops in three more regional communities. For more information visit the Queensland Stories website. (Please note that at the moment there is a Mac incompatibility with the site however this should be resolved soon.)

Meeting of the National CANs - Bronwyn Jewell

2005-08-09T15:22:00.000+10:00

A meeting of community Arts Network WA (CAN WA), Community Arts Network SA (CAN SA) and QCAN was held in Perth during July. Community Cultural Development NSW (CCD NSW) was not able to join us this time. The directors, Bronwyn (QCAN), Lisa (CAN SA) and Pilar (CAN WA), met for three days to discuss issues around training, organisational management and the future of the national projects, ARTWORK Magazine and ccd.net.

Volunteers at QCAN - Wendy Hall

2005-08-09T12:32:00.000+10:00

This morning I'm sitting here in the QCAN office with Eliane Polek, a media student from Germany. Eliane is in Australia until December and is currently writing her thesis and volunteering at QCAN. Eliane has been extremely helpful and is training all QCAN staff in how to blog. I first spoke to Eliane a about a month ago when she phoned the office to find out how she might be a volunteer.

I was a volunteer at QCAN myself for about a year before finding employment here. Volunteering with QCAN helped me change career paths and get some 'on-the-job' experience to see if I really wanted to go in a new direction.

Now I look forward to the days when our volunteers come in. Tash, Craig, June, Alastair and Sharen help us out regularly and do all kinds of interesting things such as working in the library, helping with the monthly Bulletin mailout, updating the blog, website and RADF slide kit and thousands of other things that constantly pop up.

Expanding the Circle Workshop & Culture Shock Block Party - Amanda Hayman

2005-08-02T16:40:00.000+10:00

Debra Bennet McLean (QCAN’s Manager for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Programs) and Sarah Patrick (SpeakOut’s Indigenous Programs Officer) facilitated a free Murri Music Industry workshop, last Friday at the Qld Performing Arts Centre. The workshop was based on the Yarning Circle process focused on improving the Indigenous Music Industry. A report from the SEQ Murri Music Industry Consultative Group was presented as a result of the 2004 Murri Music Yarning Circle Forum, which was held at the Big Sound Conference. Young Indigenous artists attended as well as special guest, Kev Carmody, renowned musician and cultural activist. This was a Brisbane City Council Black Diamond's event; hosted by QMusic and supported by, SpeakOut, Access Arts and Queensland Community Arts Network, as part of the 2005 Queensland Music Festival. The workshop culminated in a Showcase of local Indigenous Hip Hop artists in the Spiegel Tent. We would like to thank QCAN members who attended and supported this event.

Cuppa with Uncle Herb Wharton - Karen Tunny

2005-07-28T22:17:00.000+10:00

Earlier this week Uncle Herb Wharton visited QCAN to talk with Debra Bennet McLean (Manager Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and Cultural Development) and Amanda Hayman (Trainee) about his upcoming trip to Great Britan and France where he will be promoting his latest books Kings with Empty Pockets and Imba – I’ll tell you a story.

Whilst in Great Britan Uncle Herb will be paving the way for emerging Queensland Indigenous writers to connect with the literary world at various writers festivals and universities throughout England, Scotland and France. From mid to late August Uncle Herb will be Writer in Residence at the Rebecca Hossack Gallery, London. In September he will be in Lyon, Hamburg and Amsterdam. In October he will be at the Mercer Gallery, Harrowgate for the Songlines Festival. Uncle Herb has been invited by the Hamburg and Lyon Universities, the Aboriginal Museum Amsterdam and the Australian Study Centre in Berlin.

Our staff helped Uncle Herb to upgrade his CV and scan sketches onto a CD to prepare for the trip. Over a cuppa Uncle Herb shared stories about his previous trips to Germany with our new volunteer Eliane Polek and other QCAN staff.

Wonderful Websites - Karen Tunny

2005-07-28T12:25:00.000+10:00

Independent music producer and online exporter, Andrea Rieniets inspired QCAN members with some great ideas about developing their business online at our most recent member event.

Andrea showed how developing a great website could, rather than creating more work, actually free up ccd workers' and artists' time as well as creating the potential of other income streams.

Andrea's great tips included -

work with a buddy (that will make it easier and more fun!) to answer the following questions - what am I offering? how does it help people? where are they hanging out?
tell people about the benefits of what you're offering rather than simply describing it
begin with a market or niche markets and find out what they want rather than beginning with a product.

More great ideas and wonderful ways of learning about websites on
Andreas's Blog Tips and Tools for Creatives and at her website Gorgeousworld.

Andrea shares some tips with QCAN member Flloyd Kennedy

Kids Help Line Workshop - Amanda Hayman

2005-07-15T13:34:00.000+10:00

QCAN staff are often invited to make presentations and run workshops.

Most recently Deb Bennet McLean (Manager Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and Cultural Development) and Amanda Hayman (Trainee) were invited to run a workshop with staff at Kids Help Line.

Deb provided staff with an overview of the Yarning Circle process which she has devised and highlighted the ways in which it could be used to connect with young Indigenous people who contact the Help Line.

Busy with Books - Karen Tunny

2005-07-14T18:35:00.000+10:00

We always enjoy seeing members when they call in to borrow (or return!) books from our resource library. The library has been fairly busy lately - not sure whether that's due to slightly cooler weather, students focusing on study or the fact that the library catalogue can now be accessed online by members (just log in). The library has nearly 2,000 items and includes quite a range of topics: cultural planning, community theatre, facilitation, Aboriginal arts and cultural development and more. We're always happy to consider purchasing items that members may suggest.

Many QCAN members choose to join so they can have copies of our popular newsletter the Bulletin or because they wish to access library resources. Whether you're a current 'QCANer' or yet to join our fabulous organisation please feel free to call and speak with Information and Publications Manager, Karen Tunny if you'd like more information about our library services (07 3254 4922 or toll free 1300 763 108).

RADF Training for Bungil Shire - Karen Tunny

2005-07-12T18:35:00.000+10:00

QCAN contract trainer, Annie Cowling delivered Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF) Committee training for Bungil Shire at Roma on the weekend of 9th and 10th July. There were twelve participants, including some who had travelled from as far as Injune. Annie also delivered training in May for Maroochy Shire Council.

RADF training has been delivered this year in Rockhampton (February), Mirani (April) and in Aramac (June). Training is also scheduled for Tambo, Millmerran, Bauhinia and Fitzroy and Monto.

NAIDOC Day at Musgrave Park - Karen Tunny

2005-07-10T17:45:00.000+10:00

Welcome to our new QCAN Blog! We've decided to create a Blog so we can more easily share some of the events and activities that form part of our daily work at Queensland Community Arts Network (QCAN).

Friday 8th July was NAIDOC Day. It was a beautiful day and lots of people gathered at Musgrave Park in Brisbane to celebrate. NAIDOC Day is hosted annually by the Musgrave Park Cultural Centre.

QCAN staff members Deb Bennet McLean (Manager Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and Cultural Development), Amanda Hayman (Trainee Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and Cultural Development) and Karen Tunny (Manager Information and Publications) attended the launch by Hon. Anna Bligh, Minister for Education and Minister for the Arts of Cherbourg Dorm Girls by Jeannie Mok. Jeannie is the Coordinator of the Multicultural Centre in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.

Deb Bennet McLean with new QCAN Trainee, Amanda Hayman celebrating NAIDOC Day.

Cherbourg Dorm Girls is the story of twelve courageous Aboriginal women who grew up in the dormitories of the Cherbourg mission near Murgon. One of those woman was the late Aunty Gloria Beckett who was a QCAN member and, as Jeannie acknowledges, 'a driving force' behind this publishing project.

Hon Anna Bligh with author Jeannie Mok

Jeannie Mok with Aunty Carmel Kina and Aunty Vera Willmot

NAIDOC Day also saw the launch of QCAN member Michael Connelly's Aboriginal Australia number plates. Michael has been working on the development of the car number plates over the last fifteen months. At the launch Andrew Bartlett reminded us that Australia has 'not just a black history but also a black future' and that Michael's work reminds us of the importance of having pride in and celebrating Aboriginal culture.

QCAN congratulates Michael for the Community Achievement Award for SE Queensland which he was awarded as part of this year's NAIDOC Day celebrations.

It was a pleasure to see one of QCAN's former trainers at NAIDOC Day. Leonora Adidi was a trainer in 2004 in our accredited training course Maintain and Protect Culture. Leonora is now a lecturer in language and linguistics at Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education in the Northern Territory and was visiting as part of a student recruitment drive.