“Artists are often at the forefront of recovery in disasters using their innovative repertoires to bring people together, activate spaces, and support businesses and their local community” states Kylie Caldwell – a Bundjalung woman, an artist, and the Indigenous Arts Officer at Arts Northern Rivers.
Kylie is also an artist living in the Northern Rivers, an area heavily affected by the floods earlier in the year. She is just one of many artist and art organisations who are raising money to support flood victims. This comes at a time where the federal funding for regional arts has been reduced by half . In a community effort local arts organisations and artists are banding together not only to raise money, but to also visualise and work through the trauma of the floods through their artistic practice and output.
Blak Douglas also shared his perspective living in flood affected Lismore in his painting, ‘Moby Dickens’, the newly awarded winner of the 2022 Archibald Prize. It is inspiring to see how the artists are contributing to recovery efforts after the floods personally, communally and societally. Read more in this terrific article from the Sydney Morning Herald by Hannah Story.
