The Ian Potter Cultural Trust Annual Grants Review 2024-25
DEDICATION
ANNUAL GRANTS REVIEW 2024–25
The Ian Potter Cultural Trust acknowledges the Wurundjeri people as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we work. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present.
Established in 1993 with a remit to encourage the diversity and excellence of emerging Australian artists, The Ian Potter Cultural Trust has assisted the professional development of over 1,900 individuals through grants totalling more than $15.6 million. The Trust’s grants support talented artists in undertaking professional development opportunities overseas, including research, study, training, and learning from peers and leaders in their field to advance their artistic practice. The Trust funds nationally, from visual to performing arts, music to literature, multimedia to design, spanning traditional art forms through to experimental mediums.
FUNDING PRINCIPLES
— The Trust’s funding is governed by a commitment to excellence. We support individuals who are passionate about their work and have the potential to be outstanding in their field in an international context.
— The Trust seeks to encourage diversity, distinction and opportunity for Australian emerging and mid-career artists.
WELCOME
In addition to one-off professional development grants for individual artists, the Trust offers longer-term support for artists in their early and mid-careers through its fellowship programs: the Ian Potter Emerging Performers Fellowships, in collaboration with the Australian National Academy of Music, and the Ian Potter Creative Fellowships, in conjunction with the Sidney Myer Fund.
The Trust has previously funded several significant arts commissions, including sculpture, music (composition) and moving image art.
WHO DO WE SUPPORT?
— The Trust assists emerging, early-career and mid-career artists.
— We support applicants who can demonstrate both initiative and exceptional talent, together with an ability to convert their ambitions into reality.
Sir Ian Potter, Founder 1902–1994.
TRUSTEES
Mr Craig Drummond Chairman
Lady Potter AC, CMRI (Life Governor)
Mr Patrick Houlihan (commenced April 2025)
Professor Emma Johnston AO
Mr Anthony Burgess
The Hon Alex Chernov AC, KC (retired April 2025)
Professor Richard Larkins AC (retired July 2025)
Ms Alison Watkins AM was appointed to the Board of Trustees in December 2025.
The Hon Susan Crennan AC, KC (retired July 2025)
Professor Sir Jonathan Mills AC (commenced August 2025)
Mr Allan Myers AC, KC
Mr Leon Davis AO (retired December 2025)
Professor Karen Day AM
Professor Kathryn North AC
(commenced October 2025)
Professor Brian Schmidt AC (retired July 2025)
Paul Conroy Chief Executive Officer
Louise Joel Senior Program Manager
Paula Cruz Manrique Program Officer
Coral East Administration & HR Manager
Sue Wilkinson Administration Officer
Nicole Hunter Executive Assistant and Office Coordinator
Ximena Avalos Mendez Research & Evaluation Officer
Anna McCallum Chief Finance Officer
STAFF
Abigail Whyte Left to right: Anna McCallum, Ximena Avalos Mendez, Sue Wilkinson, Coral East, Paul Conroy, Nicole Hunter, Sara Hearn, Bianca Suparto, Abigail Whyte, and Louise Joel.
Staff of The Ian Potter Cultural Trust with inaugural Emerging Performers Fellows, Katie Yap and Mee Na Lojewski, taken at the Australian National Academy of Music, Abbotsford Convent, 2025. Image: Hynesite Photography.
EXECUTIVE REPORT
Still of grant recipient Eloise Kent’s work in La Fille du Régiment, directed by Damiano Michieletto, performed at the Bayerische Staatsoper, Munich, 2025. Image: Geoffroy Schied.
At the core of every artist’s practice is a lifelong dedication to their craft, and at the core of The Ian Potter Cultural Trust is a long-standing commitment to supporting this pursuit through our grant programs.
The Trust proudly awarded $2,477,593 to our Emerging Artist Grants program and our Ian Potter Creative Fellowships program. We also continued our support for exceptional Australian performers through our Emerging Performers Fellowship program.
Congratulations to the six Fellows and 76 Emerging Artist Grant recipients we supported this year. Whether they are in the midst of a fellowship or have completed
their overseas project, each plays a vital role in enriching Australia’s diverse and dynamic creative landscape. We are thrilled to share what these emerging and mid-career artists have been able to accomplish when provided with the time, resources and freedom to dedicate themselves wholly to their practice.
This year brought a number of changes. The Trust has reduced the number of funding rounds for the Emerging Artist Grants program from three to two per year. While the frequency has changed, our commitment to investing in Australia’s brightest talents remains the same. The timing of the two rounds has been carefully considered to align with periods when international professional development opportunities are most accessible and beneficial to our homegrown artists.
The past year also saw significant changes to our Board of Trustees. We bid farewell to Professor Richard Larkins AC, the Hon Susan Crennan AC KC, Professor Brian Schmidt AC, Leon Davis AO and the Hon Alex Chernov AC KC. Their wisdom and knowledge helped shape the Trust’s strategic direction, particularly in establishing our fellowship programs. These programs are now in full swing, and their impact is already evident in the positive transformations seen in our Fellows’ careers (see pages 18–23).
On behalf of the Board and staff, we extend our heartfelt appreciation and best wishes for their future endeavours.
At the same time, we are delighted to welcome Patrick Houlihan, Professor Kathryn North AC, Professor Sir Jonathan Mills AC and Alison Watkins AM to the Board.
Each brings with them decades of experience from the corporate, health and arts sectors that will enable them to make valuable contributions to the Board.
It is an honour and a privilege to continue Sir Ian Potter’s legacy – creating opportunities for artists to flourish. We are confident that Sir Ian would be proud of the breadth and calibre of the artists who continue to benefit from the Trust’s grant programs.
Craig Drummond Chair
Paul Conroy Chief Executive Officer
EMERGING ARTIST GRANTS APPLICATIONS RECEIVED
FACTS & FIGURES
EMERGING ARTIST GRANTS BY PRACTICE AREA
382
3
EMERGING ARTIST GRANTS AWARDED
76
TOTAL VALUE
$2,477,593*
*Includes $1,600,000 for the Ian Potter Creative Fellowships program.
EMERGING ARTIST GRANTS COUNTRIES VISITED
In 2024–2025, the Trust saw 76 outstanding Australian artists undertake professional development opportunities around the world. From undertaking postgraduate degrees in Austria to learning traditional techniques with local ceramicists in Japan, our grantees have shown an unwavering commitment to advancing their careers, gaining expert knowledge and refining their skills.
FACTS & FIGURES
TOTAL COUNTRIES VISITED*
*Some artists visited multiple countries during their development project
TITLE
DEDICATION
The Ian Potter Cultural Trust’s programs are predicated on supporting exceptionally talented Australian artists, enabling them to fully commit their time and energy to pursue their craft.
Artists require more than talent to sustain and advance their careers; they must also demonstrate discipline, resilience, curiosity and a dedication to creative growth. This dedication is reflected in artists’ continued pursuit of professional development throughout their careers. The Trust’s funding is designed to support grant recipients in channelling these qualities into their practice.
Artists’ continuous self-investment not only strengthens their individual practice but also contributes to the vibrancy of Australia’s diverse arts sector. We believe this enduring dedication to their artistic development is at the heart of artistic excellence.
To better understand what dedication looks like in practice, we spoke with three grant recipients whose journeys each reflect a deep commitment to growth, collaboration and community.
KATIE YAP DEDICATION
Katie Yap. Image: Albert Comper.
DEDICATION KATIE YAP
Katie Yap is a violist, curator and composer. She is a core member of several chamber music groups, including the Gryphon Baryton Trio, Van Diemen’s Band, Van Diemen’s Fiddles, Honmono no Gaijin, Wattleseed Ensemble and Bronzewing Duo.
Through her Emerging Performers Fellowship, Yap has developed a sustainable artistic practice and deepened her connections with the multiple communities she’s embedded in, including taking on leadership roles. She has recently taken on a curatorial role with Van Diemen’s Band, working alongside its Artistic Director, Julia Fredersdorff, to craft concert programs and assemble artist lineups.
Yap’s mentors have played a pivotal role in helping her navigate the delicate dance between ambition and rest. As any artist would know, striking this balance is vital to creative work but can often feel like a luxury rather than a necessity.
In 2024, Yap joined composer Katy Abbott’s CATAPULT Artist Mentoring Program, where Abbott’s transformational guidance encouraged a shift toward more fluid, risk-embracing creative approaches.
With support from Musica Viva’s FutureMakers Program, creative producer Michela Coventry helped Yap produce her upcoming project Diaphanous. As a specialist in experimental dance and theatre, Coventry’s mentorship gave Yap insight into a very different part of the arts world than her own.
Composer Leilehua Lanzilotti also provided transformative mentorship, helping Yap strengthen time management and build a communityfocused support network.
Yap recognises the vital role mentors play in artistic development and professional growth towards embracing leadership roles.
‘My mentors have taught me a huge amount, and I continue to lean on them for support. They help me to manage my schedule and my time in ways that allow a creative process to flow without as much pressure or impact on my health; and to understand and navigate my changing roles and interpersonal relationships as I take on positions of leadership.’
Yap plans to continue curating with Van Diemen’s Band through 2026, while nurturing Diaphanous toward its next stages of development, which include a concert presentation and album recordings.
Katie Yap. Image: Darren James.
ELOISE KENT DEDICATION
Still of Mephisto, directed by Jette Steckel, performed at the Münchner Kammerspiele, Munich, 2025. Image: Armin Smailovic.
DEDICATION ELOISE KENT
Set designer Eloise Kent works across theatre, circus, opera, immersive performance and public installations. Early in her career, Kent received an Emerging Artist grant to intern with renowned scenographer Jan Pappelbaum, head of set and costume design at Berlin’s Schaubühne theatre.
Internships are a vital pathway into theatre and opera design, particularly in Europe. They provide industry access, insight into local workflows and steps to building professional networks. The experience opened Kent’s eyes to the dynamic environment of European theatre.
While Kent has worked on various projects in Australia, Europe called out to her again. It was only natural for her to use her second Emerging Artist Grant at the end of 2024 to undertake two back-to-back internships in Munich, Germany.
This time, Kent interned at the state theatre Münchner Kammerspiele for Mephisto and at the Bayerische Staatsoper opera house for La Fille du Régiment. Although stylistically different, both productions were anchored by bold, conceptual designs led by their respective long-standing department heads and executed by their cohesive creative teams.
After living in Germany for a longer period, Kent gained confidence and an intimate understanding of the theatre system. Her extended time abroad and newly developed proactive strategy led to further internships, paid work, and professional credits in Munich, Berlin, Stuttgart and Vienna.
Now approaching mid-career, Kent aims to maintain her diverse practice. Inspired by the design collectives she encountered in Europe, she hopes to establish or join a collective in Melbourne to foster cross-disciplinary dialogue. Her long-term goal is a sustainable career that moves fluidly between Australia and Europe, contributing to the performing arts sector on both continents.
‘Receiving a Cultural Trust grant meant a lot. It provided practical support to get to Europe, and a sense of validation at a moment when I was questioning how to sustain and grow my career […] It turned what could have been a short trip into a sustained, transformative period of professional development.’
eloisekent.work
Eloise Kent. Image: courtesy of the artist.
MEE NA LOJEWSKI
Mee Na Lojewski performing at Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Finland, 2025. Image: Juusto Westerland.
DEDICATION MEE NA LOJEWSKI
Cellist Mee Na Lojewski is the Founder and Director of Affinity Quartet, an acclaimed Melbourne-based string quartet founded ten years ago during Lojewski’s time as an ANAM student. Lojewski’s longtime vision has always been to expand the quartet’s professional opportunities both locally and globally – and it has certainly paid off this year.
Affinity Quartet has laid the groundwork for long-term sustainability by establishing a new strategic framework, which includes a dedicated Board of Advisors and a part-time General Manager. The quartet also secured Deductible Gift Recipient status, enabling them to apply for grants from a wide range of philanthropic organisations to support their future activities.
Lojewski spent the first year of her Emerging Performers Fellowship planning a bold world tour for Affinity Quartet. This year, they’re executing it – with over 60 performances across Australia, Japan, the UK and Europe. The quartet became the first Australian ensemble to perform at two of Europe’s most esteemed classical music festivals: Germany’s Rheingau Musik Festival and Finland’s Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival.
Sharing the stage with composer and violist Brett Dean at the Rheingau Musik Festival marked a milestone for Affinity Quartet and a deeply personal full-circle moment for Lojewski, having first worked with Dean on tour with the Australian Youth Orchestra more than 15 years prior.
The Ian Potter Cultural Trust’s funding provided vital space for Lojewski and her ensemble to grow their work and build a future for chamber music in Melbourne. Affinity Quartet continues to expand by developing programs that invite composers, collaborators, guest artists and students into its creative fold.
‘It’s exciting to be in a position to be looking at what the next 3–5 years of Affinity Quartet could look like, which feels more tangible now than when I commenced the fellowship.’
As the quartet continues to earn international acclaim and secure its long-term sustainability, Lojewski is now more committed than ever to sharing what she’s learned with the next generation of chamber musicians.
affinityquartet.com.au
Mee Na Lojewski. Image: Hynesite Photography.
IANTITLEPOTTER
CREATIVE FELLOWSHIPS
The Ian Potter Creative Fellowships is an extension of the Sidney Myer Fund’s long-standing Creative Fellowships program, designed to provide Australian artists with financial support and freedom over their creative practice.
Creative Fellowships are intended for early mid-career artists, creatives and cultural leaders across all artistic disciplines. Each Fellow receives a grant of $200,000 over two years, with no prescribed outcomes; Fellows are free to use their grants as they see fit.
Contemporary musician James Rushford and writer Josephine Rowe were announced as the inaugural Ian Potter Creative Fellows in late 2024. They joined eight Sidney Myer Creative Fellows in receiving a life-changing grant.
The Trust caught up with both Fellows to reflect on their experiences during the first year of their fellowship.
JOSEPHINE ROWE
Josephine Rowe is a writer working across and between literary forms, approaching fiction with the distillation and ethos of poetry. Her narratives often focus on the stories of the lives less seen and highlight the fluidity and uncertainty of time, place and memory.
josephinerowe.com
Home, estrangement, identity and place are frequent themes in Rowe’s work, explored through a lens rooted in the human condition. Her fourth novel, Little World, follows the journey of a mysterious child saint and the lives it touches across time.
The timing of this fellowship allowed Rowe to devote herself to the final editorial stages of Little World for its Australian and US editions. In the months since the book’s release, Rowe has been able to dedicate herself to travelling to publicise the book – something she could not normally do otherwise.
‘This grant has enabled me to be even more instinctual, more inside the work, rather than simultaneously standing at a remove, considering how to explain or justify it from a publishing vantage.’
Without the pressure of completing projects for shortterm remuneration, Rowe has been able to develop work with more patience, allowing ideas to find their own natural shape and form. Despite Rowe’s travels, this first year gave her a renewed sense of ‘groundedness’ – both in her personal life and in the sustained focus required to develop her work.
‘The creative freedom and autonomy fostered by the Creative Fellowship allows me to work freely (and guiltlessly) in the manner that I’ve found to be most conducive to my own processes; to tackle several projects at once, and to be secure enough for these to occupy physical, tactile space.’
With Little World now available worldwide, Rowe is focused on mapping new ideas for upcoming projects, saying, ‘I hope these works will carry something of the freedom, dynamism, and creative intrepidity that this grant makes possible.’
Josephine Rowe. Image: Dom Krapski.
JAMES RUSHFORD
James Rushford is a composer-performer and researcher in the field of experimental music. His practice includes instrumental and electronic work, interdisciplinary collaboration, theoretical and practical research, and study of historic musical forms.
A master composer, Rushford’s work has been commissioned and performed by leading soloists and ensembles around the world, such as the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Festival Présences Électroniques, MONA FOMA, Unsound New York Festival, Adelaide Festival, and many more.
Rushford’s unique, idiosyncratic notated music has been presented at venues and festivals around the world, including Amsterdam’s STEIM Institute, Warsaw’s Centre for Contemporary Art, Oslo’s Only Connect Festival, Los Angeles’ Monday Evening Concerts, New York’s Blank Forms, and countless local performances.
For most of his career, Rushford has undertaken an ambitious schedule of international touring and artist residencies that have broadened his professional network and deepened his engagement with contemporary experimental music. The fellowship has allowed him to pause – to take a step back from performances and instead devote his time to creative exploration.
‘At a point in my career when financial pressures inhibited my artistic growth, this fellowship has positively changed my creative practice by enabling time for deeper research, larger-scale projects and increased artistic freedom.’
While Rushford is using the fellowship to slow down, he is by no means stopping. He continues to create commissions, including a score for Melbourne-based choreographer Martin Hansen and a viola piece commissioned by ANAM for The ANAM Set 2025, performed by Jamie Miles. He is also working on a new album, Midmeste, with cellist Judith Hamann, scheduled for release in early 2026.
‘The fellowship has, most critically, provided time. I have been able to slow down production and dig deeper into artistic concepts and craft. I know that my work will evolve considerably through the next two years.’
James Rushford. Image: Keelan O’Hehir.
EMERGING PERFORMERS FELLOWSHIPS
The Ian Potter Emerging Performers Fellowship program, a joint initiative of The Ian Potter Cultural Trust and the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM), is now entering its third year.
This program was developed specifically to support outstanding ANAM alumni in pursuing independent musical performance careers that extend beyond the standard orchestral route.
The Ian Potter Emerging Performers Fellowship program awards two fellowships annually. Each Fellow receives $100,000 from the Trust and tailored mentoring support from ANAM over a two-year period.
KAYLIE MELVILLE
Kaylie Melville is a percussionist who works across contemporary classical and experimental music. She is the Co-Artistic Director of two organisations: the chamber music ensemble Rubiks Collective and the innovative sonic group Speak Percussion.
Driven by collaboration, Melville thrives on working with composers, theatre makers, choreographers and artists across various practices to create new, bold and unexpected works. The fellowship has enabled her to dedicate more time and resources to her ensembles, particularly Rubiks Collective.
‘Wearing so many hats, it can be a challenge to find the time and support to do this kind of work. The fellowship has felt like a huge vote of confidence in our creative vision and has helped Rubiks to reach new audiences across Australia.’
Melville hopes to reach even more local and global audiences soon, with plans in place to build touring networks. The fellowship has also provided space to refine her craft and invest in long-overdue care for her instruments, including restoring her beloved and welltravelled marimba.
Ultimately, what Melville values most from this fellowship is time. ‘After years of racing from one project to the next, it’s been a gift to have the space to reflect on our vision for Rubiks: to think clearly about the next steps, and to have the time to actually put them into action.’
As Rubiks Collective celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, the ensemble is already sowing the seeds for its next decade.
Kaylie Melville performing Scream Star by Speak Percussion, Arts House, Melbourne, 2022. Image: Bryony Jackson.
ELIZA SHEPHARD
Flautist Eliza Shephard’s career is rooted in championing Australian flute repertoire. Growing up in regional New South Wales, Shephard is a passionate advocate for community engagement, particularly for young flute players.
Shephard is most known for her long-running project March of the Women. Beginning as a project to spotlight the work of female composers, it has evolved into a global online resource featuring nearly 200 works by female composers and involving over 150 collaborators.
Additionally, Shephard has commissioned new works by six leading Australian female composers, producing a touring series of lecture–recitals that she hopes can demystify the commissioning process of contemporary music.
Besides commissioning, Shephard has also been busy composing a new body of work, which she premiered at the 2025 Australian Flute Festival. She has also deepened her work as an animateur, introducing new music to young audiences through solo performances and collaborations with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Monash University.
There’s no slowing down for Shephard, with plans already underway for 2026. She is preparing to record, including an album of works by her father, composer John
Shephard. She will also travel to the United States for the National Flute Association Convention, all while developing exciting new programming for the seventh year of March of the Women.
‘The fellowship has granted me the time to explore elements of my practice in a deeper, more focused way. Without the need to worry about where the next paycheck is coming from, I have more room to breathe and spend time contemplating creativity.’
elizashephard.com
Eliza Shephard. Image: Maria Leon Paez Garcia.
This year, the Trust awarded 76 Emerging Artist Grants that saw some of Australia’s most talented individuals undertake professional development opportunities overseas. The early-career artists featured provide insight into how they are using the grant to deepen their connection to their craft and expand their international networks. The full list of grantees and their projects can be found on our website’s Grants Database.
ianpotterculturaltrust.org.au
CRAFTS MADELINE WRIGHT VIC
Madeline Wright is a contemporary jeweller, enamellist, and object maker whose practice explores the shapes of her immediate landscape and those of her ancestors.
Wright’s passion for history drove her to fill her knowledge gap of traditional enamelling techniques. Wright learned the basics of enamelling during her undergraduate degree at RMIT University. However, outside of university, there are very limited opportunities to receive supervised training in traditional enamelling techniques for a sustained period.
The Emerging Artist grant enabled her to undertake immersive field research in Turkey, tracing her familial migration and drawing strength from the matriarchal lineage that shapes her artistic identity.
Wright gained valuable historical insights into traditional Byzantine and Levantine enamel techniques and motifs at Turkey’s archaeology museums and sites. Most importantly, she travelled to Lithuania and undertook 60 hours of intensive, specialised enamelling under the mentorship of master enamellist Nikoloz Gamkhitashvili.
Enamelling is an intricate and highly tactile craft that relies on a nuanced understanding of materials, tools and processes. Its intuitive nature makes in-person training essential for developing and maintaining this increasingly rare craft. Therefore, learning and observing critical details from an expert like Gamkhitashvili is invaluable to her practice.
In Australia, Wright balances her time between working as an artist and teaching jewellery making at a secondary school in Melbourne’s north. The international research opportunity afforded by this grant allowed her to take time out of her teaching career to devote herself solely to advancing her practice at a technical and conceptual level.
‘My sculptural enamelling practice and functional jewellery practice have sat side-by-side for a long time. This experience melded them, letting me develop new directions of inquiry into contemporary enamel jewellery.’
Madeline Wright. Image: Edith Kenny-Smith.
DANCE BIANCA PERRONE VIC
Bianca Perrone is a dance artist from Melbourne. Since graduating from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Perrone has returned to Melbourne and is devoted to shaping her artistic practice.
Perrone is interested in improvisation as performance – integrating acrobatics, momentum and floorwork to expand her expressive and adaptive movement style.
At this stage in her career, Perrone views her practice as an evolving research space. This motivated her to apply to b12’s Mavericks program – ‘b12: research or die’ is a world-class festival for professional contemporary dance and performance art based in Berlin, Germany.
The Mavericks program is b12’s brand-new, three-month-long program dedicated to choreographic research, experimentation and performance. The intensive program featured a series of workshops that explored the creative process and performance projects under the guidance of world-renowned dancer and choreographer Akira Yoshida, an artist whose unique style resonates strongly with Perrone.
The final phase involved participation in the b12 Summer Festival, where Perrone engaged in a range of workshops and a large performance project led by Antony Hamilton, the Artistic Director and co-CEO of Melbourne’s own Chunky Move.
‘The support provided by this grant allowed me to dedicate three months to an intensive research and performance experience, something I would not have been able to undertake without the support. It allowed me to step outside of my usual environment, challenge myself and expand my practice in ways that will continue to unfold.’
Immersing herself in an international community of fellow dance practitioners has given Perrone newfound confidence in her practice and a deeper connection to her evolving creative voice.
Judd Burgess.
Bianca Perrone. Image:
DESIGN GEORGIA STEVENSON VIC
Georgia Stevenson’s practice sits at the intersection of design, ceramic craft and circular material research. Guided by her ongoing project, Breaking Ground, Stevenson works with construction and demolition byproducts and transforms them into ceramic tiles and objects.
Each project Stevenson undertakes is site-specific, exploring a hyperlocal identity through materiality, colour and embedded narratives. She aims to innovate with overlooked resources, reduce reliance on extracted minerals, and shift society’s perceptions of ‘waste.’
Stevenson will soon undertake a professional development tour of Europe focusing on circular material innovation in ceramics. The tour will begin in the Netherlands, where she will gain work experience with Rotterdam-based designer Lotte Douwes, who specialises in integrating recycled matter into commercial ceramic applications.
Stevenson will then undertake back-to-back artist residencies at Guldagergaard: International Ceramic Research Centre in Denmark and at the art studio Vuur Collective in Amsterdam. She will also network, conduct site visits and research with the Sitterwerk Foundation in Switzerland, as well as the Jan Van Eyck Academie and Lab AIR in the Netherlands.
‘Receiving the Emerging Artist Grant is both a milestone and a catalyst. It enables me to deepen the professional connections I’ve made in recent years, work with inspirational mentors, and focus on expanding my research into construction and demolition waste. It allows me to dedicate time to creative risk-taking and learning without the usual daily pressures.’
This jam-packed European adventure distills to Stevenson’s singular goal: to deepen the theoretical and conceptual grounding of her practice. Each facet of Stevenson’s trip abroad has been specifically selected to complement and support different aspects of her unique ceramics-focused and sustainability-centred practice.
Jessica Wheatley is a writer and director who used her grant to attend the Stowe Story Labs’ Development Lab and Writers’ Retreat in Ireland. Stowe Story Labs is an organisation dedicated to supporting screenwriters and filmmakers by connecting them with industry professionals to develop their craft.
Held at the historic and famously haunted Renvyle House Hotel in County Galway, this prestigious program only admits 20 international writers annually, guided by 12 experienced mentors. The retreat champions a ‘Write, Reflect, Revise’ approach through various script consultations, workshops, panels, and peer feedback sessions.
Wheatley’s main goal was to refine the pilot script for a limited series she has been developing, entitled Alternate. Alternate is heavily influenced by Irish culture and folklore, making the setting of this Writers’ Retreat the perfect match for her project.
‘I can still hear the cacophony of stones along the beach as each wave crashed and receded, creating a rain-like roar as the Atlantic sifted through the tumbled rocks. Ultimately, the time with mentors and The Wild Atlantic Way was the highlight of the trip. Walking the Cliffs of Moher and battling hurricane winds in Galway as the city braced for impact was a grand adventure.’
The retreat made Wheatley realise that Alternate was, in fact, a supernatural thriller rather than the fantasy horror genre previously envisioned – an important shift that significantly strengthened its concept.
She is now developing a short film, The Call Out, as a proof of concept for Alternate. As she continues to refine her pilot script and transition into her mid-career, Wheatley is focused on bringing The Call Out to life.
Jessica Wheatley on the set of This River (2021). Image: courtesy of the artist. jesscwheatley.com
MULTIMEDIA KALU OJI VIC
Kalu Oji is a filmmaker, writer and artist whose work is rooted in narrative storytelling. Driven by collaborative, process-led methods, Oji explores the intersections of memory, place, and identity.
This year, Oji spent six weeks in the UK working under the mentorship of award-winning producer, writer and story developer Angeli Macfarlane to refine his screenwriting skills as he develops his second feature film.
Having previously collaborated with her remotely, Oji was drawn to Macfarlane’s distinctive approach to screenwriting as a fluid, holistic and character-driven process centred around deep narrative excavation. Macfarlane’s thoughtful engagement with story structure made her an ideal mentor for Oji at this point in his career.
Oji’s trip abroad coincided with the London Screenwriters Festival, the largest screenwriting conference in the world that brings together some of the industry’s most respected script editors.
The experience both deepened Oji’s conceptual understanding of screenwriting and expanded his connections with international filmmakers and industry professionals – each contributing their unique sensibilities and creative ambitions to the filmmaking process.
Returning from London, Oji has already applied his newfound knowledge and perspectives to his shorter, experimental video work, while continuing to nurture his long-form projects currently in development.
‘Receiving the Emerging Artist Grant felt like a moment to take a deep breath out, exploring my practice with a freedom that is often hard to come by. It encouraged risk-taking, experimentation and reflection. As artists who are so often bound to rigid, quantifiable outcomes, it was deeply empowering to make work from a place of curiosity rather than constraint, trusting the process to surprise and inspire me along the way.’
Kalu Oji directing on set. Image: courtesy of the artist.
MUSIC CLASSICAL DARIO SCALABRINI QLD
Dario Scalabrini is a clarinettist based in Helsinki, Finland, where he is undertaking a Master of Music in Performance at the Sibelius Academy.
With a collaborative and versatile practice spanning classical to avant-garde, Scalabrini has performed across Australia and New Zealand and is now expanding onto the international stage. Finland’s rich music culture made it the ideal next step in his career.
This program focuses on high-level music performance. Through the Academy, Scalabrini has weekly access to esteemed master clarinettists Christoffer Sundqvist and Harri Maki, as well as members of the many Helsinki-based orchestras.
Finland’s thriving music scene has allowed Scalabrini to quickly establish relationships with several professional orchestras, and he is working to secure a full portfolio by the time he graduates at the end of 2026.
Scalabrini also used the grant to attend the International Clarinet Seminars with worldrenowned clarinettist Yehuda Gilad. These seminars provided Scalabrini with the opportunity to learn and network with some of Europe’s top young clarinettists outside of Finland.
‘Gilad has an incredible ear as a pedagogue and can find the crux of any technical issue within a matter of minutes. His approach is highly informed, and he can explain any aspect of playing down to extreme detail. I have learned so much about the inner workings of the clarinet just from playing and watching others in these seminars.’
Scalabrini will soon travel to Los Angeles for a semester exchange at the University of Southern California, where Gilad is a professor of clarinet. He plans to use this time to train and work with American-based composers and musicians to gain a new perspective on music-making.
Dario Scalabrini. Image: Lauren Murphy.
MUSIC CONTEMPORARY NEIL CABATINGAN VIC
Neil Cabatingan, who goes by the stage name Kuya Neil, is a musician and digital artist working across electronic dance music, pop, hip-hop and R&B in collaboration with vocalists and rappers across Australia and Southeast Asia.
In 2022, he started CONTENT.NET.AU, an independent record label and digital platform that he manages with fellow artists in Sydney and Melbourne. In his spare time, he runs a community program with Melbourne Sound School, offering free and low-cost electronic music and AV workshops.
‘As an artist, I see music as a way to cope with life, connect with people and build local culture.’
Community and collaboration are at the heart of Cabatingan’s practice. His interest in building networks and projects that speak to the Southeast Asian region led him to undertake a monthlong residency at AirHue in Huế, Vietnam.
During this residency, Cabatingan collaborated with local musicians who not only assisted him with sound and video production but also provided him with access to local cultural knowledge and insight into the contemporary art and music scene in Southeast Asia, as well as an understanding of how his work fits within this landscape.
Cabatingan also developed an audiovisual project with support from AirHue’s curatorial team, who sharpened his ideas on artmaking and clarified his artistic approach to his practice. Ultimately, the residency provided Cabatingan with the time and space to focus on his work, which he valued above all else.
Cabatingan has been active in several projects since his return – including developing a live commission with his CONTENT.NET.AU musicians, preparing a tour, planning a UK album recording and conducting archival research for an upcoming karaoke-based project that connects Southeast Asian musicians.
Neil Cabatingan. Image: Lucy Foster.
PERFORMING ARTS KAVITHA ANANDASIVAM SA
Kavitha Anandasivam is a storyteller who works across acting, writing and directing. Her work often sits between forms and cultures, and she is drawn to bold and unsettling stories that explore identity and belonging.
Anandasivam is particularly interested in using folklore, humour and physicality to explore big ideas in unexpected ways. These interests led her to undertake the Shakespeare Summer School at the London Academy of Music and Art (LAMDA) in the UK.
As someone who dove headfirst into the screen industry in her teen years, the eight-week program offered Anandasivam the structured classical and technical training she was seeking. It deepened her understanding of literature and stage fundamentals through voice, movement and combat training.
‘I listen differently. It’s reshaping the way I write dialogue, build scenes, and hold presence as an actor. It gave me tools I didn’t know I was missing.’
Anandasivam looks back at her time at LAMDA with gratitude, saying, ‘This grant has given me the chance to invest in my growth at a time when I really needed it. For emerging artists, especially those without formal training or industry backing, this kind of support allowed me to study something that will give my practice a creative edge, somewhere I wouldn’t have been able to afford [to go to] on my own.’
Anandasivam has been busy implementing her learnings from LAMDA into her career. She is currently developing a theatre piece, a debut feature film and is heading into pre-production of her third short film. Whether it’s on the stage or behind the screen, Anandasivam has the drive to do it all.
Kavitha Anandasivam during Shakespeare classes. Image: Zoë Birkbeck.
kavitha.au
VISUAL ARTS JOHANNA NG NSW
Johanna Ng is an artist working across photography, moving image, installation and performance. Her practice experiments with imaging technologies to test their limits of reproduction and truth-telling, while implementing strategies of ‘trickery’ and ‘refusal’ to activate a critical response from the audience.
With this grant, Ng undertook the Koganecho Artist-in-Residence Program in Yokohama, Japan. Koganecho’s history as a former red-light district was of interest to Ng’s research, which focused on researching and highlighting inaccessible local histories through visual art. Ng experimented with the limits of digital photography to explore the blurred boundaries between public and private, anthropology and memoir, the political and the personal. She also conducted in-person interviews with immigrant women who live and work in the area, providing a different narrative from how Koganecho was advertised in the twentieth century.
‘With this financial support, I experienced an emotional freedom during my residency and felt free to let go and play. I shed my tried-and-true methods to challenge my preconceptions of what photographic practice should be or look like. This opened up a more honest dialogue between me and my camera. My camera had something to say this whole time.’
The residency cemented Ng’s love of research. She is currently applying to complete a Master of Fine Arts degree through a research pathway and looks forward to delving into a research topic in a deeply focused and sustained manner.
