Falls Creek’s Artist-in-Residence Program
Falls Creek is one of Australia’s leading alpine resorts, with snow-related activities during winter and an array of outdoor activities during summer. Over 500,000 people pass through the resort over the course of the four seasons.
Falls Creek Alpine Resort (FCAR) has a strong history of engagement with the arts and has previously supported many cultural events including, artist camps, art exhibitions, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, film festivals and Falls Creek Museum. Falls Creek’s community includes permanent year round residents, seasonal community members, business owners, stakeholders, organisational staff and people from the broader region who call Falls Creek ‘their mountain’, and who show a sense of ownership and loyalty which goes beyond the geographic area.
FCAR seeks to increase creative spaces, public art and cultural opportunities within the Falls Creek Resort through an annual Artist-In-Residence (A-I-R) Program.
The A-I-R Program will provide an opportunity for creative artists, academics and curators to take time away from their usual obligations and draw from the unique features of Victoria’s pristine alpine environment, surrounded by National Park, to reflect, research and develop creative ideas.
Aims of the Program
Priority themes for the program include raising broad awareness and appreciation for our alpine environment, creative development about alpine-specific concepts and a response to the impacts of climate change in alpine areas. By supporting the emergence of a cohort of artists who understand this environment and are immersed in ongoing discussions about creative exploration of these themes, FCAR hopes to position itself as Australia’s arts mountain. Specific aims for the summer Artist-in-Residence program include:
• Re-invigorate Falls Creek as a creative sanctuary for artists who will draw inspiration from the region’s natural, yet threatened, beauty and ecology
• Provide creative development for the ultimate delivery of site-specific artworks in a variety of media
• Create opportunities for regional artists to work collaboratively with national and international artists
About the Residency
The Falls Creek A-I-R program will provide accommodation, work space and other resources for up to 6 artists for a period of 2 to 6 week’s residence at Falls Creek annually. The residency will be open to both individuals and groups of artists, inclusive of local, national and international artists, practicing all forms of creativity, both emerging and established. If you are applying as a group, please contact us first to discuss your application.
The length of time you propose to stay is up to you. The time spent at Falls Creek can occur at any time during the green season from 01 November to 30 April. It is preferred that the residency period be taken in one block (i.e. consecutive weeks). FCAR will support the accommodation of the artist, with additional support provided by partners on the mountain. Artists will need to cover their own travel costs to and from Falls Creek, living expenses and any arts materials and equipment costs during their stay. You will also be responsible for personal clothing suitable to alpine environments. FCAR staff will welcome you, help you settle in and introduce you to staff members and stakeholders on the mountain who will provide assistance, information and local knowledge on request during your stay.
It is understood this initial period of residence is primarily for creative development. We want you to feel free to let your imagination respond to the environment and what you see and find while you are here.
We hope that the ideas and concepts you generate during this time may be further explored in collaboration with FCAR who will work jointly with you to secure funding for the subsequent production and presentation stages. Selected artists will be contracted to agreed timeframes and outcomes.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists are actively encouraged to apply.
Benefits to Falls Creek
• Raise the profile of the resort and of the region
• Provide development and networking opportunities for visiting artists and the local community
• Provide an avenue to explore specific themes of environment, sustainability and climate change
• Contribute to the cultural development and sustainability of Falls Creek Village
Benefits to Artists
• Creative space for development of new ideas
• Stunning and unique alpine environment
• Opportunity for subsequent collaboration with FCAR in sourcing funds to produce the work
Conditions Apply
Successful applicants will be required to enter an agreement with FCAR specifying that they will:
• undertake the creative development proposed in their application and within the agreed timeframe
• observe and abide by codes of responsible behaviour in Alpine Environments
• undertake a Working with Children Check, if deemed necessary by FCAR
• acknowledge FCAR in all promotional materials, publications and works associated with the process and outcomes of the residency as follows: “This project has been assisted by Falls Creek Alpine Resort.”
• provide FCAR with a full report of their project, including images, for its own records and for possible future publication or exhibition use.
• grant license to FCAR to use any material produced by the artist as part of the residency to promote the Falls Creek Artist-in-Residence Program and cultural activity at Falls Creek generally
• The author/originator of any work resulting from a Falls Creek Artist-in-Residence program retains copyright over resulting work. Any involvement of FCAR in subsequent commercial development of such work will be subject to a separate agreement.
Further Information
If you would like to discuss any aspect of this program please contact:
03 5758 1200 or info.fallscreek@alpineresorts.vic.gov.au
