Arts

Joan de Bondt. Percy Grainger was a composer and pianist born in 1882 whose legacy is generally associated with his piano arrangement of the folk dance tune ‘Country Gardens’ ... Percy Grainger was a cousin to Bruce’s great grandfather. A wedding photo of Bruce’s grandfather, Stewart Hamilton Grainger, is attached to a photo of Percy at about the same age and the resemblance is unmistakable.

Eric Yunkaporta was about to step onto the ceremonial dance grounds at Laura when photographer Wayne Quilliam asked if he could take a quick photo. The picture of Mr Yunkaporta in his ceremonial headgear and body paint, titled Silent Strength, has now won a $50,000 prize.

Rachel Kennedy stood out on a wild frontier dominated by men ... her extraordinary and unputdownable pioneering story is told for the first time ... Rachel Kennedy was a colonial folk hero. Born in the wild and remote Warrumbungle mountains of western New South Wales in 1845, she was described by Duke Tritton of The Bulletin as Australia's greatest pioneer woman of them all.

A moving and hilarious fish-out-of-water memoir of a millennial leaving his inner-city life to take over the family farm. Sam Vincent is a twenty-something writer in the inner suburbs, scrabbling to make ends meet, when he gets a call from his mother: his father has stuck his hand in a woodchipper, but ‘not to worry – it wasn’t like that scene in Fargo or anything’.

Growing Up in Country Australia is a fresh, modern look at country Australia. There are stories of joy, adventure, nostalgia, connection to nature and freedom, but also more grim tales – of drought, fires, mouse plagues and isolation.

Of Marsupials and Men recounts the fascinating and often hilarious history of the men and women who dedicated their lives to understanding Australia’s native animals.

The stories of Kerang’s fauna, flora and people will be celebrated during four nights of activities this July. Using digital projection technology, many of Kerang’s landmarks will be lit up by works created by residents during the Kerang’s Living World light festival, occurring on 4-5 July and 15-16 July.

The Midnight Rangers, a five piece group of ragtag misfits finally living the dream of playing their own take on country music in the utopia town of Tennant Creek for one night only at the Memo next Wednesdsay, before crawling up the Stuart highway to perform at the Darwin Fringe Festival ... The band formed with the sole purpose of bringing their own take of country music to a new audience.

The inaugural Art Festival on Ford held over three days from June 24-26 in Ganmain was a resounding success. Several local artists and community groups such as the Art Society and Craft Cottage exhibited their creative works in the Ganmain Hall ... Lush Creative Galleries threw open their doors with artists Linda Nolan and Jody Graham welcoming visitors to view their paintings.

Geoff Helisma. Everyone loves a success story, especially if it’s someone they’ve known or with whom they’ve brushed elbows - the Lower Clarence’s Ry X, who is on the cover of the June 17 French Rolling Stone magazine, is one of those success stories and, potentially, he might soon become a global name on the lips of music lovers, as well as makers and shakers clamouring for a piece of the action.

The Gallery is very excited to be participating in the national tour of Patricia Piccinini’s  Skywhales  by hosting a Ballarat launch of these enormous floating sculptures on Saturday 9 July at sunrise. We recently announced that the venue for the launch will be Ballarat’s historic Eastern Oval.

In episodes 5  and 6  from the second season of the award winning short radio and podcast series  From the Embers,  we check in with two different communities on their resilience journeys. Episode 5, 'Right Fire Wrong Fire'  goes to the  South Coast of NSW where  the mega fires of 2019/20 destroyed 1.5m hectares of Yuin Country, killing countless animals, plants, and insect species.

Alice Springs Beanie Festival Screenshot: Alice Springs Beanie Festival Related story: The art of beanie crafting comes to Tennant Creek

Clare Jager. This year’s Realise The Possible celebrates the connection between filmmakers, films and audiences and the lure of documentary storytelling with a diverse line-up of eight outstanding documentaries, stimulating panel discussions and parties.

Ford Street in Ganmain will be transformed into a collection of art galleries over three days between June 24 to 26. The inaugural Ganmain Art Festival on Ford event has been organised by Myfanwy Collette and her stepdaughter Rosemary Ashton.

Tickets for the iconic Woodford Folk Festival go on sale Wednesday 22 June at 12 midday ... Woodford Folk Festival is known for its diverse programme which includes music, circus, cabaret, comedy, talks, workshops, ceremonies, yoga, dance, street theatre, installations and a dedicated children’s festival. With over 2,000 performers, Woodford Folk Festival is the largest gathering of artists and musicians in Australia.

Emma Pritchard. The local man lovingly referred to as “Swainy”, recently won the John P Toomey Song Writing Award at the Dusty Boots Music Festival in Narromine for Guitar Pick’n Man, an original song which tells the true story of his marriage break down, love of beer, especially Tooheys, and his passion for country music.

“The Spirit of the Bush competition attracts photos from every corner of the country and reflects every part of life on the land. It’s mesmerizing to see the highs and lows of farm life reflected in action shots, sweeping horizons and moments of quiet reflection” : John Warlters, Rural Aid CEO.

The world’s most remote music festival – the Birdsville Big Red Bash – is set to return in just over two weeks (July 5-7), drawing more than 9,000 festivalgoers to the remote red sands of Queensland’s Simpson Desert for an epic line-up of outback entertainment and live Australian music acts including Jimmy Barnes, Missy Higgins, Kasey Chambers, Kate Ceberano, Shannon Noll and many more.

The City partnered with the Kwinana Social Club and the Medina Residents Group to celebrate the life of one of Kwinana’s historic figures, Margaret Feilman, with a unique artwork designed specifically for the area and installed on the external wall at the Club on Pace Road, Medina. At sixteen, Margaret became the state’s first female architectural cadet.

Gothic and romantic aesthetics and ideas have been a longstanding influence on how I think and work. I often think of my sculptures as giving form to spirits, whether ghosts from ‘the other side’ or denizens of a parallel world or, less literally, from the world of the psychological unconscious that ‘haunts’ reality: Kirsten Bishop.