An important program supporting Ballarat's artists will be funded for the next three years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Rotary will be supporting the Ballarat Art Foundation mentoring program which connects artists with mentors both in the arts and wider business community.
Lauren Matthews was a participant in 2021 while working on her fine art honours year at Federation University, exploring trauma.
Matthews' mentor had a performance art and psychology background.
"On paper it didn't make a lot of sense, but in actuality it was the best match," she said.
"I got so many insights into practice and explored so many different avenues, it changed the trajectory of my entire honours exegesis."
Matthews is now a PhD candidate at Federation University exploring the topic Survival Memories.
Heather Horrocks, a mentor, said the program was filling a gap in the arts community and helping members connect, especially as more people are moving to town post COVID-19.
"You learn as much as you're able to share," she said.
"I made a connection with a young artist who's fantastic and who I would never otherwise have met."
Horrocks put her name forward because she knew other people were participating in the program.
"It's not something you think, I'll just do this," she said.
"It's a little bit scary, but when you actually do it, it's not because you're dealing with other artists."
Rachel Turner, another mentee who participated last year, said she was looking for community connections.
"There's creating work and then there's being able to talk about your work," she said.
IN THE NEWS:
"I think a lot of the time when you're working in a bubble, you're really by yourself and you don't have a lot of perspective on your own creative endeavours."
Turner said she was able to learn about the different tasks which were needed to put on an exhibition, like printing posters or framing work.
"[It is useful when] you don't have to do all the research yourself from scratch," she said.
"It's just nice to have someone who's done it before, to just be able to say this is a good place to go."
Application information is available on the foundation's website and will be open until April 30.
Have you tried The Courier's app? It can be downloaded here.