H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship

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2009 H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellow

The recipient of the 2009 H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship is artist Michael Callaghan

Michael Callaghan, the man behind the iconic If the unemployed are dole bludgers, what the f*** are the idle rich?  and Give Frazer the razor posters, will continue to mix politics and printmaking as the 2009 H.C. Coombs Creative Fellowship recipient. Hosted by the Painting Workshop at the School of Art, Michael will spend the next five months as artist in residence developing new works on the lingering effects of the war in Iraq and the war on terror.   The Wollongong-born artist came to prominence during the mid-1970s for his role in the irreverent Earthworks Poster Collective at Sydney University, before founding the group Redback Graphix in 1979. Redback Graphix mixed art production with graphic design work for clients including government departments, the Australian Electoral Commission, trade unions, community groups and Indigenous organisations.  His work is held in the National Gallery of Australia, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, in State and regional galleries and library and university collections across Australia, and in museum collections in California, Mexico, Japan and Paris.   The Fellowship is administered and funded each year by the Research School of Humanities within the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences

 

History

The H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship was established in 1965 at the instigation of Dr H.C. Coombs, ANU Pro-Chancellor at the time, to encourage creative work in the arts in Australia. Fellowships were filled by invitation rather than by public advertisement, and fellows selected by the Vice-Chancellor in consultation with an advisory committee. It was hoped other Australian Universities would follow the ANU example and establish similar schemes for the encouragement of creative artists. The fellowship has supported Australian artists such as Judith Wright, John Perceval, Arthur Boyd, Fiona Hall and Robyn Davidson. The invited fellowships are offered to visual and performing artists and writers on a rotation basis.

From its inception, the term creative artist was interpreted quite loosely, musicians and architects being initially the only definite exclusions, and during the course of the fellowship the University has hosted persons such as Don Burrows, Don Banks, Arthur Cantrill, Judith Clingang, George Golla, George Dreyfuss, Alan Gould, Rodney Hall, Xavier Herbert, Christina Stead, Penny Tweedie and Clive Scollay, and Judith Wright. Visual artists have included painters, ceramists, printmakers, sculptors, tapestry-weavers, graphic-designers and artists interested in the use of scientific equipment and techniques in artistic creation.

Guidelines

Purpose

The H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship allows the recipient to:

• engage in a period of uninterrupted creative work in residence at the Australian National University, to conduct research and develop new ideas
• contribute to the fostering of the creative arts within the University
• interact with the University academic community, staff, students and visitors.

The University envisages that the Fellow’s work and achievements whilst in residence will be represented by some formal legacy; performance, or documentation.

Eligibility

Applicants may be engaged in any discipline in the creative arts such as the visual arts, contemporary craft or decorative arts, music, film/video production, acting, dance, theatre, writing, contemporary design or the creative use of new media technology. To ensure that each area of the arts is equally represented by the Fellowship, a three-year cycle has been nominated as follows:

• 2009 Visual Arts (including visual arts, new media film & video)
• 2010 Performance (including theatre, music, dance)
• 2011 Writing (including literature, prose, poetry, script writing)

The Fellowship is intended for experienced artists including artists from traditional backgrounds with recognised professional standing in their community, who are in mid-career and who have an established arts practice, normally a minimum of five years professional practice. This includes aboriginal artists and musicians from traditional backgrounds with recognised standing in their own communities.

Applicants should be Australian citizens, have formal residency status in Australia, or have a strong Australian connection sufficient to demonstrate that the benefits of the Fellowship will contribute to the development of Australia’s contemporary culture.

The Australian National University is committed to the promotion of equal opportunity for all persons, including women, people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island descent, people of all racial and ethnic groups and people with disabilities.

Tenure

The Fellow is normally expected to be in residence at the University for a maximum of five months at least, half of which should be during the teaching periods.

For performance artists, and others for whom professional practice precludes long-term continuous residency, should demonstrate how shorter or intermittent residency periods could achieve the goals of the Fellowship.

Funding

The Fellowship totals $33,000, which includes percentages for stipend, accommodation, travel and material costs. For applicants proposing intermittent periods of residency, their applications should contain a proposal of how the available funding should be structured to enable their Fellowship to proceed.

The Honorarium is intended to cover accommodation, relocation and return airfares to Canberra from the Fellow’s residence in Australia. Funds must be spent in the year the Fellowship is undertaken and funds will not be carried forward. Depending upon the area of practice and individual requirements, the Fellowship will offer study or studio facilities at the University to the recipient. In some cases, these may need to be shared in some form with other practitioners.

In-kind or other assistance may be available from the University for the public programs in which the Fellow is involved: e.g. performances, exhibitions, seminars, public meetings, or workshops.
Depending upon the financial requirements of the selected Fellow, a second Fellowship, possibly for a reduced tenure period, may be awarded in any calendar year.

The Advisory Committee

The H. C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship is administered by the Research School of Humanities (RSH) and a H. C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellow Advisory Committee. This Committee is chaired by the Director of RSH with representatives from the University Humanities and Creative Arts disciplines. Two independent arts specialists are also invited each year, with specific expertise to the discipline being considered.

Application Process

1. The Committee actively consults widely with University colleagues seeking their interest to nominate appropriate artists for the Fellowship. The nomination will reflect the proposed areas relevance to the three-year cycle.

2. At its discretion, the Committee may advertise externally for expressions of interest.

3. Proposals to be developed must include the following:

• Nominate the artist (c.v. to be attached)
• Indicate the contact person who agrees to undertake the organisational responsibilities in hosting the Fellowship with the Research School of Humanities.
• Describe the facilities available and academic colleagues who may be involved with the Fellow
• Outline the proposed creative arts program and its duration
• Indicate the extent of interaction with the University community and any other connections expected to be made
• Outline of the budget proposed
• Provide an indication of the likely outcome of the residency.

Nominations must be supported by an academic unit of the University in addition to the Research School of Humanities. Written nominations should be submitted by the nominating academic unit of the University on behalf of the nominated person. Fellows will be co-located between the Research School of Humanities and the nominating area with office space arrangements determined by the nature of the Fellow's practice.

Please note that only hard copy nominations will be accepted. An acknowledgement of the nomination will be sent to the artist.

2009 Applications should be sent to:
Suzanne Knight, School and Development Manager
Research School of Humanities,
Old Canberra House, Building No 73,
The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200

Closing date for submissions 31 October, 2008.
Outcome notified mid November, 2008.

 

Selection Criteria

Fellowship proposals will be assessed by the H. C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellow Advisory Committee in terms of:

• the quality of the proposal
• its likely contribution to the life of the University
• the capacity of the proposed Fellow to execute their proposal
• Artistic standing of the proposed Fellow.

Other considerations:

• Demonstrated and active support and infrastructure available from the University academic area interested in hosting the Fellow.
• Quality of the proposed creative work program and its potential for visibility and engagement with the University community.
• Potential for contact and collaboration with other parts of the University and the community.
• Feasibility of the program.

The University reserves the right not to award the Fellowship in a particular calendar year.

Acquittal

The Advisory Committee requires a written report providing an account of activities during the course of the Fellowship, outlining the benefits of the residency. Other comments and recommendations on ways in which the Fellowship could be improved within its existing limits for the benefit of future Fellows are welcome.

This report should be completed by the Fellow prior to leaving the University at the completion of the residency period. Final Fellowship payments will only be paid to the Fellow upon the University’s receipt of the Report.

 

The H.C. Coombs Creative Arts Fellows

John Perceval – Painter
Sidney Nolan – Painter
Stan Ostoja-Kotkowski – Mixed Media Artist
Arthur Boyd – Artist
Norma Redpath – Sculptor
John Hopkins – Painter
Keith Looby – Painter
Jan Senbergs – Painter
Alan Gould – Poet
Archie Brennan – Weaver

Bea Maddock – Printmaker
Narritjin Maymuru – Painter
Banapana Maymuru – Printmaker
John Reid – Graphic Designer
Dusan Marek – Painter
Tim Moorhead – Ceramist
Margaret Benyon – Holographist
Michael Taylor – Painter
Michael Le Grand – Sculptor
Trevor Nickolls – Painter
Noel Counihan – Visual Artist

Don Burrows – Musician, Composer
Ron Robertson Swann – Sculptor
Don Banks – Musician, Composer
George Dreyfus – Musician, Composer
Christina Stead – Writer
Arthur Cantrill – Film maker
Corinne Cantrill – Film maker
Penny Tweedie – Audio Visual Artist
Clive Scollay – Audio Visual Artist

Judith Wright – Poet
Ian MacDougall – Composer
Rudi Krausmann – Editor of ASPECT
Robert Barnes – Goldsmith
Don Asker – Choreographer
Judith Clingan – Composer
Graham Koehne – Composer
Rodney Hall – Writer, Musician
Garth Welch – Choreographer, Dancer
Malcolm Williamson – Composer

George Golla – Musician
Xavier Herbert – Writer
Udo Sellbach – Printmaker
Robin Wallace-Crabbe – Painter
Kate McNamara - Writer
Gordon Bennett – Painter
Fiona Hall – Sculptor
Gary Kildea – Film maker
Margaret Barbalet – Writer
Kay Lawrence – Artist

Mark O'Connor – Poet
Peter Callas – Video Artist
Christine O'Loughlin – Sculptor
John Harding – Writer
Geoffrey Lancaster – Fortepianist, Conductor and Musicologist
Anne Rochette – Sculptor
Richard Stanford – New Media Artist, 2003
Nigel Westlake – Musician, Composer, 2004
Robyn Davidson – Writer, Semester 1, 2005
Michael McGirr – Writer, Semester 2, 2005

Jon Rhodes – Photographer, 2006
William Yang – Performance Artist, Photographer, 2007
Frank Moorhouse - Writer, 2008