Art & About – Who We Are
Artists from Darwin’s Free Space Studio (FSS) are taking over the Live Darwin Hub and exploring identity in their latest exhibition Who We Are.
Darwin’s FSS was set up in 2013 to foster the talents of young artists with disabilities in the Top End. Off The Leash caught up with creative producer Amina McConvell to talk about this month’s show.
What is the latest exhibition all about?
Who We Are examines ideas around identity; the exhibition theme is broad to allow artists room to move in terms of approaching the theme from their own areas of interest.
How have the artists responded to the theme?
The artworks in the exhibition show diverse responses – some works relate to poetic notions of the self, other works are political, and others are humorous or reference pop-culture.
Tell us about whom you are – who are the artists at the FSS?
FSS is home to a collective of 17 visual artists who come together three times a week for studio workshops and to develop various studio-based projects. It’s an inclusive project focused on developing studio skills for artists with disabilities.
Darwin Community Arts has moved location – what does the move mean for FSS?
Yes, we have moved to Coconut Grove – it's very fresh and we have been in our new studio for just under a month now. Darwin Community Arts now has two locations, with more on the way, in the not too distant future. FSS is now at Unit 3 in the Clock Tower complex on Dickward Drive –we officially have our dream studio set up, and in the coming months we will be opening a small gallery space at the studio.
Mon 4 – Fri 22 Jun | Opening Fri 8 Jun, 12.30pm | Live Darwin Hub | See the event listing
Thumbnail and above: Tara Darcy, 'Maningrida Community', 2017, acrylic and posca on canvas, 76 x 76cm
