Cairns Vibrance Issue 1 - February/March 2020

Vibrance is more than a ‘What’s On’, we also aim to highlight ‘What has been going on’. From new public art installations and artists-in-residence works to successful grant outcomes and other exciting announcements. Every two months we will let you know about how you can be involved in our festivals, what grants are available, and what events and shows we have on. Vibrance will also provide updates on our partnerships, co-productions and creative developments. Over the years you may have perused the printed programs of Tanks Arts Centre, Cairns Performing Arts Centre, Cairns Festival and the Cairns Children’s Festival. These programs, seventeen a year to be exact, were all created by the marketing team at Cultural Services, a branch of Cairns Regional Council. In 2020 we have made a change, Vibrance…

While tens of thousands of people attend our events every year, many people may not have heard of Cultural Services. We are a branch within Cairns Regional Council whose role it is to harness the creative energy of Cairns and build upon the strength of the arts and culture already embedded in our community. Our major events include Cairns Festival, Cairns Children’s Festival and Carnival on Collins. We also operate and program Cairns Performing Arts Centre, Munro Martin Parklands and Tanks Arts Centre. Cultural Services is also the heart of arts and cultural strategic planning for Cairns Regional Council. Our team is made up of dedicated and passionate people from our community. We are, Planners, Producers, Curators, Marketers, Designers, Technicians and Administrators, and we love what we do. Our offices are at…

Cultural planning plays an essential role in decision making at Cairns Regional Council and guides Cultural Services in delivering our programming. In mid-2016, our Cultural Planner facilitated a process of community engagement with 84 organisations and groups comprising of more than 200 people from across nine distinct arts and cultural sectors. The aim was to gain a better understanding of the strengths, issues and scope of the arts and cultural environment in the Cairns region. We worked together to build consensus and acceptance of priorities and to improve and develop responsive and relevant programs and services. From this community engagement, Cultural Services developed a five-year strategy for culture and the arts in parallel with Cairns Regional Council’s Corporate Plan 2017-2022. Council’s Strategy for Culture and the Arts 2022 was adopted in 2018…

Highlights of the year include: • Launching Cairns Performing Arts Centre • Commenced design, restoration and revitalisation of the Cairns Courthouse • Developed and delivered the Commonwealth Games Festival 2018 • Launched Cairns Arts and Culture Map, a website about our region’s arts and cultural offerings • Boosted the region’s arts and cultural industry and not-for-profit organisations through the provision of grants and resources to the value of an estimated $956,000 • Development of two Conservation Management Plans • Initiated the development of two new strategic plans, Strategy for Young Creatives and Arts and Disability Strategy • Completed a strategic review of the 2012/18 Public Art Program along with the development of a new Strategy for Public Art and Placemaking • Engagement of an Arts and Cultural Grants Coordinator position to streamline processes, procedures and facilitation of Cultural Services…

“…arts is vital to a sense of connection and creativity” To increase opportunities for young people to more fully participate and engage in arts and cultural experiences, (in partnership with Arts Queensland), Cultural Services engaged well-respected arts industry leader, Lenine Bourke to assist us with developing a place-based Strategy for Young Creatives. The Strategy is being developed after a comprehensive program of research and consultation from February-September 2019. A wide range of individuals and organisations contributed to discussions and the sharing of ideas. This included face-to-face meetings and workshops with around 15 arts and educational organisations, 50 arts practitioners, and 250 children, young people and their families. The consultation looked at a number of key themes concerning trends and issues affecting young people in Cairns including: how young people and families are accessing…

“Our first step will be to consolidate our networks and cultivate working partnerships” Strategies for meaningful inclusion, engagement and participation in arts, and cultural experiences for people with disability have become a higher priority for Cairns Regional Council’s arts and creative programming recently. Consultation with disability service providers and the education sector in the development of Council’s Strategy for Culture and the Arts 2022 underscored the need to address this. In February 2019, in partnership with Arts Queensland, we engaged Queensland’s peak arts and disability organisation, Access Arts, to facilitate the development of a new and focused Arts and Disability Strategy. The project was process-driven and included opportunities for active engagement, including workshops and think tanks with Cairns Regional Council’s Cultural Services and Community Development staff, along with around 35 interviews with disability…