Ozculture Newsletter - Australia's Culture and Recreation Portal

culture.gov.au | August 2008

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August - Australia in the Asia Pacific The Vietnam War was one of the defining moments for Australia in relation to its place in the Asia Pacific in the 20th century. There was a perceived diminishment of the influence of the USA and a requirement to do business with Asia. Australia accepted Vietnamese refugees from 1974-75 and this was celebrated with the arrival of the four millionth migrant to Australia, Mai Thanh Thuy in 1988. Posters, photographs and visual arts as well as television, film video and installation productions reported, debated and portrayed the experience of Australian engagement in Vietnam. Today Fiona Hall uses all these media in transforming ordinary objects to address issues such as consumerism, colonialism and natural history. Indie Music gives us the heart of this experience. Across Australia this month, the Darwin and Garma Festivals and Queensland architects look towards Asia and the Pacific for the diverse design responses to climate and changing lifestyle patterns that is the changing face of Australia. New and revised Australian Stories The Battle of Long Tan and the Vietnam War Fiona Hall Australian indie music	Quick links Home News feed Australian Stories News Design & architecture Digital media & film Festivals & conferences History & identity Indigenous arts Language & literature Performance Resources & funding Sport & recreation Visual arts Websites - new
Featured event Darwin Festival - Darwin 14-31 August 2008 The Darwin Festival is recognised as a premier festival for the ‘Top End’ of Australia and the Asia Pacific Region, and for its quality, diversity and innovation in arts programming and presentation. Held over 18 days and nights, it features local and touring performances and events including outdoor concerts, workshops, theatre, dance music, comedy and cabaret, film and visual arts. More...
Featured website Australian Museum: The Pacific collections The Pacific collections and research at the Australian Museum focus on material culture, ethnography, history and archaeology of the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific region. There are approximately 60,000 ethnographic objects from Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia in the Pacific Collection. Selected objects are presented online and provide a glimpse into the depth of the collections.
News snippets Design and architecture culture.gov.au/news/design.htm Place Makers: Contemporary Queensland Architects - Brisbane 2 August - 23 November 2008 Place makers presents the work of 22 Queensland architects in a major new exhibition exploring diverse design responses to climate, changing lifestyle patterns and population growth. More...
Digital media and film culture.gov.au/news/digitalmedia.htm St.George Bank Brisbane International Film Festival - Brisbane 31 July - 10 August 2008 The 17th St.George BIFF presents cinema from Australia and the world. A mix of local and international films, retrospectives, seminars and special guests, it embraces the vibrant art of filmmaking. More...
Festivals and conferences culture.gov.au/news/festivalsandconferences.htm Garma Festival - Gulkula, Arnhem Land, Northern Territory 8-12 August 2008 The Garma Festival is an intimate, spectacular celebration of cultural traditions and practices - dance, song, music, and art. More...
History and identity culture.gov.au/news/historyandidentity.htm Picture Paradise - Canberra 11 July - 9 November 2008 This is the first exhibition to survey the history of photography of our region – from India and Sri Lanka, Southeast and East Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands to the west coast of North America. It features pioneer local photographers as well as Europeans working in the region. More...
Indigenous arts and culture culture.gov.au/news/indigenousarts.htm Big Eye - Darwin 2 August - 6 September 2008 Big Eye showcases four Indigenous animators. It presents Aboriginal voices and perspectives from within 'old world' and 'new world' traditions, including stop-motion, 3D and other animation techniques. More...
Language and literature culture.gov.au/news/languageandliterature.htm Tasmanian Living Writers' Week 2008 - Tasmania 15-24 August 2008 Tasmanian Living Writers' Week offers over 100 literary events at locations across Tasmania, with most events being community-generated. The festival culminates in the Tasmanian Book Fair on Sunday 17 August. More...
Performance culture.gov.au/news/performance.htm Gallipoli - Sydney 25 July - 23 August 2008 In this production, theatre director Nigel Jamieson brings a cast of over 40 performers to the stage of Sydney Theatre, combining spectacle, mass choreography and choral work, aerial performance and huge projected images across multiple tiers of set. More...
Resources and funding culture.gov.au/news/resourcesandfunding.htm Visions of Australia - National Entries by 1 September 2008 Visions of Australia aims to enable more Australians to enjoy diverse culture by accessing exhibitions of cultural material. It provides funding to eligible organisations to develop and tour exhibitions of Australian cultural material across Australia. More...
Sport and recreation culture.gov.au/news/sportandrecreation.htm The Drumley Walk - Queensland 15-17 August 2008 Now in its fourth year, the walk is a three-day pilgrimage. It follows the footsteps of Billy Drumley in the early 1900s as he regularly set off on a 70km journey to check on his sister and her family. More...
Visual arts and crafts culture.gov.au/news/visualarts.htm Grace Crowley: Being modern - Perth 14 June - 21 September 2008 Grace Crowley: Being modern is a retrospective exhibition of paintings and drawings by one of Australia's most influential modern artists. This is the first exhibition of Grace Crowley's work since 1975. More...
Websites - new culture.gov.au/news/websites.htm Artistcareer The National Association for the Visual Arts and the Australia Business Arts Foundation have launched a new website for visual art, craft and design practitioners. Artistcareer is an independent, non-commercial website whose goal is to offer high quality resources and information to support artists' professional and business skills development. More...
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