Dubbo Regional Council’s (DRC) Western Plains Cultural Centre (WPCC) is delighted to announce the launch of HomeGround 2022, a professional development program for emerging artists. HomeGround is supported by Orana Arts, and sponsored by Wingewarra Dental, and is targeted specifically for artists who live in the Central West.
The Dubbo region has a remarkable depth of artistic talent and the HomeGround program gives artists the opportunity to work with the Curatorial staff of the WPCC for over a year to develop and challenge their practice, culminating in solo exhibitions at the renowned venue.
Western Plains Cultural Centre Curator Mariam Abboud said it’s important to provide locally based artists with an opportunity to showcase their talents. “We want to give regional artists the kind of opportunities that are more easily available to artists living in the city or urban areas. Opportunities such as access to exhibition space, professional advice and mentoring,” said Ms Abboud.
“We don’t want regional artists to be disadvantaged by their postcode. The WPCC is committed to delivering a high quality program for those who are practicing art in remote, rural and regional areas. WPCC wants to see our stories on the wall, artwork that has been developed from within regional NSW. The successes of last year’s inaugural Dubbo Art Fair has shown us how passionate the community is about our local art scene”
Applications are now open for the next round exhibitions in 2023. HomeGround is seeking applications from artists who consider themselves emerging and who live within Central West NSW. Successful applicants are given a minimum of twelve months to develop a new exhibition idea, to explore an idea or theme through the creation of new works. The artist/s work closely with the team of curators at WPCC to realise the exhibition, with regular artist consultations and studio visits supporting the development of the work.
“We are looking for artists who want to explore an idea or concept through their work, applications that highlight a well thought out and cohesive idea will be prioritised,” said Abboud.
“HomeGround is such a great opportunity for regional artists to explore an idea that they may have been considering for years, we look forward to seeing how the artists embrace the opportunity.”
Applications are due 5pm Friday 21 October 2022.
Applications are available to be downloaded from WPCC website; https://www.westernplainsculturalcentre.org/homeground
