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Wilderness Times | Summer – Autumn 2022
SPEECH NIGHT GUEST SPEAKER MARTHA LOTT
Who Am I? When I saw the message from Mamta asking me to call the School I thought ‘Why?’
producer and artistic director, some of my adventures have been successful, some okay, and some colossal failures.
I mean surely they wouldn’t be chasing a library book after 33 years?
But at every low point, I’ve gotten up and given it another go, something that’s not particular to just the Arts industry.
Then when I spoke to Jane, I was quite surprised at her request for me to speak tonight. And I tried to remember who spoke at my Speech Night and couldn’t. But I assured myself that it was probably someone with letters after their name or a gown that symbolised more achievement than l was sure I was ever going to reach. Jane asked me to talk about why art and creativity are important. As an artist and creative, my life is about taking risks and facing challenges head-on, and there’s also the saying ‘Fake it, till you make it.’ So, I said yes. And here I stand. In my line of work, there is a clear requirement for arts and creativity. As an actor you prepare, brace yourself; you walk out onto stage trusting yourself and the creative team around, and you just go for it. As an Artistic Director, you look for ways to engage and challenge the audience and give a platform to artists and creatives from which to thrive. Before Holden Street Theatres, I had started from the bottom and climbed the ladder so many times. And as an actress, writer, director, event coordinator, venue manager,
I believe that art and creativity are two of the most powerful assets we have as a society. Because art shows us who we are and what we have done, and creativity gives us the tools to change the future. Art is incredibly powerful, and it’s everywhere; it’s Literature; Visual and Graphic Arts; the Plastic and Decorative Arts; the Performing Arts and Music Composition; Architecture and Design. It’s a form of communication, an expression of thought and feeling that gives us a greater understanding of the human experience, and it gives a voice to people who can’t speak out, for whatever reason. Art can rally us to stand up for what’s right and evoke hope that our future will be better - that we can improve social relationships, and improve the world we live in. Art records history for everyone, and forever. It can show us what we need to change and give us hope that great moments of change will happen again. It also gives colour to our lives. It adds enjoyment to what otherwise would be a beige existence. Now many of you may not be considering a career in the Arts, but it’s not actually the point.
The point is you get to decide how our present will be remembered as your history, and how the future will be sold to the generations to come. You are the artists, the trend-drivers. You are the influencers of the future and the role models for the next generation. More than ever, art, marketing and advertising sells hope. Hope that if you buy this thing, look this way, eat this food or smell this good, then your family will be perfect, your life will be perfect and your career will be perfect, and you too can spend the rest of your life in perfection purgatory dancing on a beach in the Bahamas with Zac Efron. Or living it large in Hollywood like Kylie Jenner with over 283 million followers on Instagram. Did you know that the most-followed individual on Instagram is footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, with over 369 million followers? That’s 15 times the population of Australia. Icons now known as influencers gain the trust and loyalty of the consumer, the audience. It’s propaganda, and propaganda or, more commonly known today as SPIN, and can sway a population to believe a leader, a leader who may be a politician, a musician, movie star or celebrity who made it famous by posting a skit on TikTok. But this doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It’s an amazing opportunity for you. Art sells hope; hope breeds optimism.
