ARTISTS from the region have been stamping their social media posts with the hashtag #TogetherInArtSurfCoast in a move to build networks and stay connected to their practice.<\/p>\n
An initiative of Anglesea\u2019s Surf Coast Shire Art Space, gallery co-ordinator Ellise Roberts said she and secretary Daniela Rodriguez set up the hashtag soon after its website was launched.<\/p>\n
She said each post would be transferred to an online gallery, to be showcased on the Queen\u2019s Birthday long weekend (June 7-9).<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to run an exhibition together here which was predominantly going to be a fundraiser, but because of COVID-19, that isn\u2019t possible. As the art space is closed, it\u2019s now all online.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe felt it was really important to keep artists connected to the art space and to each other during this time, and we thought by creating the hashtag, we\u2019d be able to see what artists have been doing down here.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really just a window into the daily life of an artist at this time of isolation on the Surf Coast because it looks very different for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Roberts said more than 50 posts were sporting the hashtag so far and that the gallery was keen to see creative expression across all mediums including poetry, animation and performance.<\/p>\n
She also said the art space\u2019s team of volunteers had been working hard to make use of social media and better promote the gallery during its closure.<\/p>\n
\u201cCommunity spaces have a stigma of being a bit old-fashioned and daggy, but we really want to make this a professional space people want to exhibit at and is known for having great exhibitions. The art space has had a great reputation in the past and the community have worked hard to make it this way.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re now offering artists the opportunity to expand their creative networks and keep them connected with the art space.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we do is we get the connections for them and then we direct it directly to the artists, so it\u2019s basically just another opportunity for artists to sell artworks through our networks. And because the art space isn\u2019t open, the artists get 100 per cent profit.\u201d<\/p>\n
The space\u2019s most recent exhibition Women of the Hinterland was the last to be showcased before the gallery was closed in accordance with federal and state government restrictions.<\/p>\n
Surf Coast Shire council\u2019s arts development officer Harriet Gaffney said she requested the committee build a website once it had shut the art space\u2019s doors.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fabulous committee jumped right on it and had it up and running within a few weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother reason behind the website creation from council\u2019s point of view was to ensure that we could keep arts workers employed at this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe website builds on a very conscious decision to build the space\u2019s profile, and follows the design of the new logo and introduction of a paid co-ordinator and voluntary committee last June.\u201d<\/p>\n