Council grants for Redlands Coast arts projects

The Redlands Coast arts community will benefit from close to $63,000 in grant funding to assist creatives in the region.

Redland City Council has announced grants for seven local projects through round two of the 2020-2021 Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF).

Mayor Karen Williams said the funding would support individual artists and community arts events, underscoring the importance of arts and culture on Redlands Coast.

“We are fortunate to have a thriving arts community and this funding will support projects that reflect the distinctive people and places of Redlands Coast and its communities,” Cr Williams said.

Recipients of round two RADF grants were:

Jeremy Staples – $10,000 for Redlands Coast Islands Festival: this inaugural festival (1-4 October) will present a program of cultural events and experiences built around the Karragarra Sea Market. Maree Goebel – $10,000 for ‘A Night at the Famous Cotton Club’: a Minjerribah community-based, multi-media Cabaret play and capacity building project. Dr Sharon Jewell – $9,924 for Canaipa Mudlines September Residency: up to 15 artists will work on site in Turtle Swamp Forest, Russell Island. Work will be documented and posted online and included in the Redlands Coast Islands Festival. Deborah Jordan – $9,000 for ‘Island Storytellers’: the inaugural Lamb Island Writers and Readers four-day festival, as part of the wider Redlands Coast Arts festival. Maryann Talia Pau – $10,000 for ‘Oceania’: a Pasifika and First Nations-led community singing workshop and art exhibition as part of the 2021 Pacific Choirs Project event at Redlands Performing Arts Centre. Natalie Sprite – $10,000 for ‘The Luminous Heart’: a targeted professional development program for writers who were part of the ‘Water Stories’ project. Jan Nary – $4,000 for ‘The Other Diggers’: the first step in creating and performing a play about the operations and individuals in the Redlands-based Land Army during World War II.

The Regional Arts Development Fund is a partnership between the Queensland Government and Redland City Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland.

Minister for the Arts Leeanne Enoch said that the long standing RADF program would help to boost Queensland’s plan for economic recovery, supporting artists and arts workers with employment opportunities through $4.2 million in funding for regional cultural projects.

“The Palaszczuk Government is investing $2.08 million in RADF for 2020-21 and an additional $2.13 million will be contributed by 59 councils across Queensland,” Minister Enoch said.

“Each year RADF showcases the extraordinary innovation of the arts and cultural sector in regional communities, delivers rich arts experiences and provides important professional opportunities for artists and arts workers.”

Council is calling for applications for RADF 2021-22, with round one opening 1 September 2021 and closing at midnight 17 October 2021. Round two will open 16 February 2022 and close at midnight 31 March 2022.

For more information, including how to apply for grants, visit redland.qld.gov.au/RADF