Cultural Fund announces more than $500,000 of funding to Australian organisations and creators
August 1, 2024
Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund announces $428,835 funding for 25 Australian organisations and a further $100,000 for five writers and visual artists. The Grants for Organisations and Create Grants were awarded following a competitive application process to the respective grant programs.
Earlier this year, the Cultural Fund announced a shift in funding priorities to accommodate the increasing number of applications and Copyright Agency’s strategic goals. Grants for Organisations now prioritise support for Australian organisations offering audience development opportunities for writers, publishers, and visual artists; as well as supporting sector development projects for the publishing industry.
Some of the key projects that will be supported from the first round of funding for organisations include the black&write! editor training at the State Library of Queensland; Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation’s (DAAF) Open Studios, the UNSW Press Bragg Prizes for Best Australian Science Writing and the Australian Publishers Association BookUp Conference.
Copyright Agency CEO Josephine Johnston says, “The Cultural Fund’s grants provide pivotal support for Australian creative organisations and writers and visual artists. This round of grants will enable more work to be published and presented, as well as supporting crucial sector development programs for publishers through BookUp and the black&write! Editor Training.
“We are also pleased to support the Indigenous Art Code Ltd to develop an ICIP declaration and protocol for members. This will be of enormous benefit to visual artists around the country.”
The Create Grants for writers and visual artists provide support to early to mid-career writers and visual artists. Creative writers apply for funding to write their second book and visual artists (who have no more than three solo exhibitions) apply to create a new work for exhibition.
Of the 42 applications received for Create Grants, three writers and two visual artists were selected by a panel of writers and visual artists to receive funding of $20,000 each. They are as follows:
- Author: Sharlene Allsopp – Project Title: Through a Glass, Darkly
- Author: Sam Carmody – Project Title: Gracetown
- Author: Evelyn Araluen – Project Title: Carrion: Writing Fiction in the Shadow of Colonial Patriarchy
- Visual Artist: Georgia Banks – Project Title: All of Me & Death Warmed Up
- Visual Artist: Hop Dac – Project Title: Firefly
Josephine says, “The Create Grant recipients are impressive and testament to the creative talent we have on offer in Australia. We’re delighted to support five writers and visual artists at such an important time in their career, giving them the financial support to help get their projects off the ground.”
Copyright Agency have also announced this year’s Reading Australia Fellowship, awarded to Victoria high school teacher Maya Mulhall. Find out more here.
For media enquiries contact:
Lydia Spooner lspooner@copyright.com.au
About Copyright Agency
The Copyright Agency is an Australian not-for-profit organisation that represents 40,000 members across the publishing, media, visual arts and education sectors. Our mission is to provide simple ways for people to reproduce, store and share words, images and other creative content, in return for fair payment to creators.
About the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund
The Cultural Fund is the philanthropic arm of the Copyright Agency, providing support to individuals and organisations to run projects that will enrich Australia’s publishing and visual arts industries.