Australia Council for the Arts Logo black Australia Council for the Arts Logo black
Login
  • Advocacy
    & research

    Advocacy
    & research

    We increase awareness of the value of public investment in arts and creativity.

    • Diversity
      • First Nation arts
        • First Nations Arts Awards
      • Arts and disability
      • Cultural Engagement Framework
    • Research
      • Electorate profiles
      • Research partnerships
    • Events
      • National Arts and Disability Awards
      • Australia Council Awards
      • First Nations Arts Awards
      • Venice Biennale 2022
      • See more
    • Wellbeing
  • Investment
    & development

    Investment
    & development

    We support the best circumstances for a thriving arts sector.

    • Find a grant or opportunity
    • Individual artists, groups and organisations
    • Multi-year investment
      • National Performing Arts Partnership Framework (Partnership Framework)
      • Visual Arts and Craft Strategy (VACS)
      • Major Festivals Initiative
    • International engagement
      • International Engagement Strategy 2021-25
      • International Engagement Fund
      • Venice Biennale
    • Digital Culture Strategy
    • Sector Recovery Initiatives
    • Re-imagine: What Next?
    • Assessment at the Australia Council
    • Leadership Programs
    • Awarded grants
    • Protocols and resources
    • Online resources
    • Partner with us
  • First Nations
    arts & culture

    First Nations
    arts & culture

    We build on our long term commitment to First Nations arts and culture.

    • Opportunities
    • Purrumpa
    • First Nations Round Tables
    • Protocols for using First Nations Cultural and intellectual property in the arts
    • First Nations Arts Awards
  • News and media

    News and media

    We enable opportunities for Australia’s arts and culture to be shared with more Australians.

    • Speeches and opinion
    • Media Releases
    • Stories
    • Biographies
  • About us

    About us

    We are the Australian Government’s principal arts investment, development and advisory body.

    • Sector response to COVID-19
    • Strategy and corporate plan
    • Diversity
    • Our people
    • Meet our CEO
    • Corporate documents
      • Our annual reports
      • Our submissions
      • Our policies
      • Statement of intent
    • Procurement
    • Modern Slavery Statements
    • Accessibility
    • Careers
    • Partner with us
    • Contact us

Advocacy

  • First Nations arts and culture
    • Opportunities
    • First Nations roundtables
    • Protocols For Using First Nations Cultural And Intellectual Property In The Arts
  • Diversity
  • Events
    • Venice Biennale 2022
    • National Arts And Disability Awards
    • Australia Council Awards 2021
    • First Nations Arts Awards
    • Marketing Summit
  • Stories
  • Speeches and opinion

Research

  • Latest research
  • Research Partnerships
  • Electorate profiles
  • Topics
    • Artists and creative careers
    • Cultural and creative industries
    • Diversity and equity
    • Engagement
    • First Nations
    • Innovation
    • International
    • Value and impact

Investment

  • Individual artists, groups and organisations
  • Multi-year investment
    • NPAPF
    • VACS
    • Major Festivals Initiative
  • Assessment at the Australia Council
  • Successful applications
  • Investment FAQ's
  • Login
  • Awarded grants

Development

  • Digital Culture Strategy
  • Sector Recovery Initiatives
  • Leadership program
  • International
    • Venice Biennale 2022
  • Marketing Summit
  • Online resources
    • First Nations roundtables
    • Think Inside the Square
    • Creative Connections
    • Podcasts

First Nations Arts and Culture

  • Opportunities
  • First Nations roundtables

News

  • Media releases
  • Stories
  • Speeches

Events

  • Australia Council Awards
  • Venice Biennale
  • First Nations Arts Awards
  • National Arts and Disability Awards
  • Upcoming Events

About us

  • Our COVID-19 response
  • Strategy and corporate plan
  • Our people
  • Procurement
  • Partner with us
  • Corporate documents
    • Our compliance documents
    • Our statement of expectations
    • Our submissions
    • Our policies
    • Our annual reports
  • Careers
  • Accessibility
  • Contact us

Australia Council invests more than $9.5 million in culture that connects us

Strong First Nations and disability-led projects, and creative experiences for young people are among the highlights of the latest arts projects investment delivered by the Australia Council.

More information

Culture and the Gender Pay Gap for Australian artists

New research by Macquarie University and the Australia Council sheds light on ‘triple penalty’ for artists based on gender and cultural background, and builds on research showing the gender pay gap in the arts is higher than that of the overall workforce.

More information

2022 National Arts and Disability Awards

Three outstanding artists have been announced as recipients of the National Arts and Disability Awards, delivered by the Australia Council for the Arts and Arts Access Australia (AAA). Meet the recipients and join the celebration.

More information

Australia Council Awards 2022

The 2022 Australia Council Awards will be showcased on this page on 8-12 August 2022. We invite all Australians to celebrate and share the stories of these extraordinary artists with us and your families and friends. Each of these artists in their own way reflect the vibrancy of Australia’s diverse cultural life.

More information

Four Year Investment for Organisations

Four Year Investment provides multi-year investment for arts and cultural organisations. This will enable organisations to plan with longer-term certainty and increase their capacity to leverage other support and collaborations.

More information

First Nations Arts Awards 2022

The recipients of the 2022 First Nations Arts Awards were announced during a special event streamed here and on National Indigenous Television (NITV) on Friday 27 May at 9pm.

The First Nations Arts Awards are delivered by the Australia Council for the Arts each year on May 27, marking the anniversary of the 1967 referendum and the start of National Reconciliation Week.

The awards recognise and celebrate the outstanding work and achievements of First Nations artists.

More information

Find a grant or opportunity

Select the type of grant from the dropdown menu or enter the title.

Filter Search

Venice Biennale 2022

Marco Fusinato’s DESASTRES, curated by Alexie Glass-Kantor is an experimental noise project that synchronises sound with image and takes the form of a durational solo performance as installation.

Four Year Investment for Organisations

Four Year Investment provides multi-year investment for arts and cultural organisations. This will enable organisations to plan with longer-term certainty and increase their capacity to leverage other support and collaborations.

BR Whiting Studio, Rome

The BR Whiting Studio residency is an opportunity for writers to direct their own program of activity and expand their practice and networks. There are 3 residencies on offer of varying duration: 1-month (with $5,000 support), 3-months (with $10,000 support), and 6-months (with $20,000 support).

Image: Northern part of Trastevere in Rione XIII, Trastevere, Rome. Seen from Via Garibaldi below the monastery San Pietro in Montorio. Credit: Joadl.

Governance training courses

Australia Council for the Arts is delighted to offer world-class governance training with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) through multiple programs.

Image credit: Perth leadership exchange.

Arts & Minds

Arts & Minds is a new annual event produced in partnership between the Australia Council and the ABC as part of ABC Arts Week.

Arts & Minds showcases a series of talks from artists and creatives. The 2022 line-up included Wesley Enoch, Melissa Lucashenko, Debra Keenahan, Lizzy Hoo and Sisonke Msimang.

Venice Biennale 2024: Expressions of Interest for artistic proposals

Expressions of Interest (EOI) are now open for artistic proposals to represent Australia in the category of National Participation for the 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia (Venice Biennale 2024).

Image caption: Australia Pavilion.

Vivid Ideas: What the arts did next

This visionary session explores the changing conditions for arts and creativity, new social and community roles for the arts, and recent innovations in digital engagement. By telling stories from artists who are working in non-traditional ways and environments, What the Arts Did Next showcases the contributions that artists are making to social cohesion, innovation and healing.

More information
Blood on the Dance Floor by Jacob Boehme. Credit: Dorine Blaise.

CINARS 2022 Biennale

The Australia Council will support a delegation to attend this event. We also welcome any Australian artists and companies attending on a self-funded basis to join the delegation and any related networking activities.

Photo: Blood on the Dance Floor by Jacob Boehme. Credit: Dorine Blaise.

Fellowships

Australia Council Fellowships of $80,000 support outstanding, established artists’ or arts workers’ creative activity and professional development for a period of up to two years.

Image: Maree Clarke at Melbourne Now.

Space to Create

Space to Create is an intensive music residential program. The delivery of the program will be flexible to adapt to each of the participants’ requirements. The aim of the program is to create a dedicated space to take the time to enable participants to sustain and grow creative ideas, and to provide professional development for the future.

Photo: Yil Lull studio technician and leader Will Kepa. Credit: ANU Media..

UKARIA Residency

The Australia Council and UKARIA invite applications for a residency at UKARIA in 2022.

The successful applicant/s will be in residence at UKARIA for a maximum of ten days for the purpose of developing new creative projects led by musicians and composers.

Arts and Wellbeing Forum

Watch the recording of the Arts and Wellbeing Forum where we discussed the positive effects of arts and creativity for mental health and wellbeing, and the potential for the arts to help address a major policy challenge.

We know that arts and creativity are among our most powerful assets, playing essential roles in our health and wellbeing.

Arts Projects for Individuals and Groups

This program funds a range of activities that deliver benefits to the arts sector and wider public, including national and international audiences.

Image: We Live in Explosive Times 2020, promotional image for performance of the same title, image courtesy of the artists Emily Parsons-Lord & Sara Morawetz under collaborations name {the empty set}, produced by Tulleah Pearce.

Timothy Cook

Recipient of the 2021 Australia Council National Arts and Disability Award for Established Artist.

Coming up through the Ngawa Mantawi (Our Friends) disability support program established at Jilamara Arts and Crafts in the 1990s, Timothy has fulfilled the ambitions of the original program in establishing a significant contemporary art career through working at the centre.

Georgia Scott

Recipient of the 2021 Australia Council National Arts and Disability Award for Young Artist

Georgia Scott is one of the most outstanding composers of her generation as attested to by numerous high-profile commissions and performances here and internationally.

Eliza Hull

Recipient of the 2021 Arts Access Australia’s National Leadership Award.

Eliza Hull is a contemporary musician, audio producer and disability activist based in regional Victoria. Her music has been described as ‘stirring, captivating and heartfelt.’

More information

A new vision: how a critical tech lab is pushing the limits of VR

At the time, Australian new media artist and academic Josh Harle had just returned from a residency in Austria, and decided to head along to the local VR and augmented reality (AR) meet-ups in Sydney. But for Harle, although the meeting was well attended, something felt a bit off.

Image credit: Nic Cassey and Josh Harle / Tactical Space Lab.

Leadership programs

The Australia Council Leadership Program is dedicated to transforming the cultural and creative industry’s knowledge, skills and capabilities by investing in emerging, mid-career and established leaders. Our program recognises the diverse nature of leadership and builds on the rich knowledge and experience across the industry.

Applications are now open.

Caption: Mandingalbay Yindinji Deadly Dinner, 2017 Arts Leaders Program. Credit: Australia Council.

Australia Council for the Arts Annual Report 2020-21

Annual reports

In a year of unprecedented challenges for Australian arts and creativity, the Australia Council has been resolutely focused on delivering against the objectives set out in our corporate plan.

Girl in blue and green sweater wearing eyeglasses

Emily Crockford

Recipient of the 2020 Australia Council National Arts and Disability Award for an Emerging Artist

Emily Crockford’s broad creative practice encompasses painting, textiles and soft sculpture. Her work can be seen in large scale across Sydney and in high profile institutions.

Don’t forget to watch this year’s awards!

Audience Accessibility in 2023

COVID-19 Audience Outlook Monitor 2022

An additional ‘pulse check’ short questionnaire was delivered between the fifth (July 2021) and sixth (November 2021) phases of the survey, designed to ‘take the temperature’ of audiences in light of rapid changes to outbreak conditions and planned lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in some states/territories.     

Between 28 September and 1 October 2021, over 2,000 audience members responded to the ‘pulse check’ (2,146), from all over Australia. Results for the three outbreak-affected states (NSW, ACT and VIC) were reported separately to the rest of the country. 

Murriland

International Curators Program: Asia Pacific Triennial x TarraWarra Biennial

Curators, creative and cultural producers who identify as First Nations and/or of the Asia Pacific diaspora based in Australia are invited to apply for funding support to participate in a series of online and in-person exchanges in partnership with the 10th Asia Pacific Triennial (APT10) in Brisbane in 2021-22 and TarraWarra Biennial in Healesville in 2023.

Image: Gordon Hookey, Waanyi people, Australia b. 1961, MURRILAND! (detail) 2017, oil on canvas, 200 x 1000cm. Click on the link to see full image caption.

Coronavirus ( COVID - 19 ), Current information

Sector response to COVID-19

Stay up to date with the latest COVID-19 sector and government updates.  New guide to Government COVID-19 Assistance for the Arts 2021 is available now.

Silhouette of woman standing on red and blue light

Private: Digital Business Model Innovation Lab – discontinued

An opportunity for arts organisations to transform and innovate digital business models in partnership with Tata Consulting Services.

Image credit: Soft Centre Festival 2018. Artist: Meagan Streader. Photo: Charl Anfield.

Australia Pavilion Invigilation Program participants – Venice Biennale 2022

For the Venice Biennale 2022, the Australia Council is inviting applications for invigilators of the exhibition in the Australian Pavilion. Marco Fusinato is the artist commissioned for Australia’s national representation at the Venice Biennale 2022. The exhibition is curated by Alexie Glass-Kantor.

Australia Pavilion Invigilation Program participants – Venice Biennale 2022

A diverse group 14 Australian creative and cultural workers living in Europe and the United Kingdom will oversee the day-to-day visitor experience of Marco Fusinato’s exhibition during the Venice Biennale, curated by Alexie Glass-Kantor.

More information

Sync Australia Online Leadership Program

Sync Australia – Online is a new online leadership and coaching program exploring d/Deaf and disabled leadership in arts, culture, heritage and media. Founded over 10 years ago by Sarah Pickthall and Jo Verrent, two disabled leaders in the UK, this disability-led program combines leadership theory with one-on-one coaching and support for participants to reflect and progress their leadership potential. Sync Leadership programs have been successfully rolled out globally, including Australia in 2014 and 2015 and now in a new modular format, as an online program is 2021.

Load More

The Australia Council is the Australian Government’s principal arts investment, development and advisory body.

We champion and invest in arts and creativity to benefit all Australians through an integrated suite of activities.

We invest in artists and organisations through grants, fellowships and awards that enable art to be created and experienced.

We build capacity, skills, networks and digital mobility that increases markets and audiences for Australian creative work.

We advocate for the social, cultural and economic value of arts and creativity.

We advise government on matters connected with the arts.

We deliver government policy initiatives and frameworks in support of the arts.

We research and analyse data and insights that deepens the understanding of the role and value of arts and creativity.

We collaborate with state, territory and local governments to develop strategic responses that support our creative sector.

We partner with others to extend the public value of arts and culture for all Australians.


More about the Australia Council More about the Australia Council

Subscribe to
our mailing list

Stay in touch

Australia Council for the Arts © 2023

Partner with us
Opening hours

9am-5pm Monday to Friday

Phone number

02 9215 9000

Address

Level 5, 60 Union St
Pyrmont, Sydney

About us
  • Our people
  • Our COVID-19 response
  • Strategy and corporate plan
  • Procurement
  • Partner with us
  • Corporate documents
  • Careers
  • Accessibility
Useful links
  • Investment and development
  • Advocacy and research
  • First Nations arts and culture
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Feedback

Australia Council for the Arts © 2022

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the many Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and honour their Elders past and present.

We respect their deep enduring connection to their lands, waterways and surrounding clan groups since time immemorial. We cherish the richness of First Nations Peoples’ artistic and cultural expressions.

We recognise that our office is located on Gadigal Land.

We are privileged to gather on this Country and through this website to share knowledge, culture and art now, and with future generations.

 

First Nations Peoples should be aware that this website may contain images or names of people who have died.

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the many Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and honour their Elders past and present.

We respect their deep enduring connection to their lands, waterways and surrounding clan groups since time immemorial. We cherish the richness of First Nations Peoples’ artistic and cultural expressions.

We recognise that our office is located on Gadigal Land.

We are privileged to gather on this Country and through this website to share knowledge, culture and art now, and with future generations.

 

First Nations Peoples should be aware that this website may contain images or names of people who have died.

Australia Council for the Arts Logo white
  • Advocacy
    & research
    • Diversity
      • First Nation arts
        • First Nations Arts Awards
      • Arts and disability
      • Cultural Engagement Framework
    • Research
      • Electorate profiles
      • Research partnerships
    • Events
      • National Arts and Disability Awards
      • Australia Council Awards
      • First Nations Arts Awards
      • Venice Biennale 2022
      • See more
    • Wellbeing
  • Investment
    & development
    • Find a grant or opportunity
    • Individual artists, groups and organisations
    • Multi-year investment
      • National Performing Arts Partnership Framework (Partnership Framework)
      • Visual Arts and Craft Strategy (VACS)
      • Major Festivals Initiative
    • International engagement
      • International Engagement Strategy 2021-25
      • International Engagement Fund
      • Venice Biennale
    • Digital Culture Strategy
    • Sector Recovery Initiatives
    • Re-imagine: What Next?
    • Assessment at the Australia Council
    • Leadership Programs
    • Awarded grants
    • Protocols and resources
    • Online resources
    • Partner with us
  • First Nations
    arts & culture
    • Opportunities
    • Purrumpa
    • First Nations Round Tables
    • Protocols for using First Nations Cultural and intellectual property in the arts
    • First Nations Arts Awards
  • News and media
    • Speeches and opinion
    • Media Releases
    • Stories
    • Biographies
  • About us
    • Sector response to COVID-19
    • Strategy and corporate plan
    • Diversity
    • Our people
    • Meet our CEO
    • Corporate documents
      • Our annual reports
      • Our submissions
      • Our policies
      • Statement of intent
    • Procurement
    • Modern Slavery Statements
    • Accessibility
    • Careers
    • Partner with us
    • Contact us
Australia Council for the Arts Logo white

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the many Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and honour their Elders past and present.

We respect their deep enduring connection to their lands, waterways and surrounding clan groups since time immemorial. We cherish the richness of First Nations Peoples’ artistic and cultural expressions.

We recognise that our office is located on Gadigal Land.

We are privileged to gather on this Country and through this website to share knowledge, culture and art now, and with future generations.

 

First Nations Peoples should be aware that this website may contain images or names of people who have died.