Free creative event coming to Bellambi Lane

WORKSHOPS, discussions, and live music will celebrate the ‘Gong’s local creative industries at Bellambi later this month.

Creative Dialogues – Connecting through Art, Music and Conversation will be held on Saturday 18 May when Wollongong City Council will temporarily take over the New York-style Buckaroo Leatherworks warehouse in Bellambi Lane for the free, event. The event is open to everyone, especially local creative producers, performers, and artists.

Council’s Culture Manager Sofia Gibson said that the Creative Dialogues event is an opportunity for people interested in artmaking to get together and learn something new. The day would kick off with a number of free workshops.

The workshops include lessons with local documentary and music photographer Chris Frape; an experimental paper pulp sculptural workshop with artists Mignon Steele and Paige Northwood; a workshop on recording music in non-studio environments with the Stranded Recording Studio; and a basic leather crafting and design workshop with Heaps Good Leather Work.

“We’ll open the doors to a number of creative studios located in Bellambi Lane so that people can meet local artists and check out their work,” Ms Gibson said.

“In the evening, we’ll host conversations on engaging topics such as, how to survive the robot apocalypse as an artist, decoloniality and culturally safe art practice, and how to do shameless self-promotion for creative types. Finally, we’ll finish the night with live music, curated by Stranded Recording Studios and featuring Expensive Music Band, Punko, Solo Career and Dag.

“This is a one-of-a-kind creative event and I encourage everyone to come along and check out the creative soul of Wollongong.

“This is an event for artists as well as those interested in the arts to get together in one space, meet like-minded people and share ideas.”

While this event is free, some activities require bookings. See the Creative Dialogues event page for the full program.

When & Where

• Saturday 18 May, 12noon – 9pm at the Buckaroo Leatherworks, 16 Bellambi Lane.

Workshops & open studios

All workshops are free but require bookings. See Council’s Creative Dialogues program for more details.

• Photography with Chris Frape
• Curious Recording Ideas with Stranded Recording Studio
• Paper Landscapes with Mignon Steele and Paige Northwood
• Heaps Good Leather Workshop with Benny Mitchell
• Open studios (various artists) – 12noon to 2pm.

Panel discussions

• 2 – 3pm: In Conversation: Getting it Right? Decoloniality and Culturally Safe Practice in the Arts with Adriana Mahanga Lear, Kirli Saunders OAM, Aneshka Mora and Alinta Maguire.
• 3 – 4pm: In Conversation: Born to Stand Out – Shameless Self Promotion for Creative Types with Jamie Dawson, Rachel Foster, Jack Manning Bancroft and Susie Fagan.
• 4 – 5pm: In Conversation: Surviving the Robot Apocalypse – Emerging Tech and the Arts with Lindsay McDougall, Wes Wickham, Brian Yecies, Grant Elmers and Jane Venegas (Nested Realities).

Live music

• From 5.30 to 9pm.

Curated by Stranded Recording Studios, feat. Expensive Music Band, Punko, Solo Career and Dag.

Free subscription to The Bulli & Clifton Times

OR DONATE BY CREDIT CARD

Don’t have PayPal? Instead, you can support The Bulli & Clifton Times by leaving a secure $2 debit or credit card donation. Your generous patronage of my work and research, however small it appears to you, will greatly help with my continuing publication costs.