In addition to this, several Rupert Bunny Foundation Special Project Grants are available for visual arts projects of up to $10,000 each. These grants are for projects undertaken in the City of Port Phillip.
In 1991 a fire swept through St Kilda Town Hall destroying part of the building and its contents. A number of artworks were damaged including The Forerunners by Rupert Bunny – a significant and valuable painting.
In the spirit of the contribution Rupert Bunny made to the visual arts, the insurance funds from the painting were used to establish the Rupert Bunny Foundation. The Rupert Bunny Foundation Visual Arts Fellowship was established in 2005 and aims to support contemporary visual artists with an identifiable commitment to visual arts excellence.
Port Phillip Mayor Marcus Pearl said: “The Rupert Bunny Foundation Visual Arts Fellowship is a fantastic opportunity for artists to extend their arts practice, expand their imagination and make a contribution to the City of Port Phillip.”
“We are committed to continuing our support for the development of exceptional artistic thinking and talent.”
Previous Rupert Bunny Foundation Visual Arts Fellowship recipients Dr Betty Sargeant and Justin Dwyer from PluginHUMAN used the Fellowship to investigate carbon neutral and carbon negative working practices and materials.
“The Rupert Bunny Visual Art Fellowship provided us with time to further develop and deepen our arts practice. The research and development that we undertook during the Fellowship will continue to feed our practice for years to come.”
