EXPANDED FIELDS
Gavin Park, Pascoe Vale 3044
Supported by Merri-bek’s Flourish: Arts Recovery Grant, Collide Public Art Initiative has engaged four local artists to translate their studio practice into temporary public artworks to be installed in the newly reinvigorated parklands in the North-west ward.
While certain pockets of Merri-bek are well known for being well-activated and rich in arts experiences, there are areas that are crying out for opportunities.
This project creates a grassroots art trail for the community, celebrating Merri-bek as a vibrant, exciting arts sector, all the while transforming fine arts into accessible public art, and connecting the spectrum of the artists in the Merri-bek community.
Expanded Fields Artists
Jody Haines
Jody Haines (tommeginne/palawa) is a contemporary artist based in Naarm/Melbourne. Her unique practice blends social practice, photo-media (photography/video/film), and public art, creating large scale public activations that include projections, paste-ups, and street-wide photographic installations. Rooted in Indigenous feminist (new) materialism, Jody's work explores themes of identity, representation, and the female gaze.
Photo: Leah Jing McIntosh
Bella Li
Bella Li is the author of three hybrid books of text and image – 'Argosy' (2017), 'Lost Lake' (2018), and 'Theory of Colours' (2021), published with Vagabond Press. Her work has won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Poetry, the NSW Premier’s Literary Award for Poetry, and the Australian Book Designers’ Association Award for Best Designed Independent Book; and has been shortlisted or commended in the Judith Wright Calanthe Award, the Anne Elder Award, and the Wesley Michel Wright Prize. Her work has been published widely, and has featured in exhibitions, catalogues, and public programs at the National Gallery of Victoria, Buxton Contemporary, and Heide Museum of Modern Art.
Lucy Allinson
Lucy Allinson is a Geelong-based multidisciplinary artist working across sound, installation, painting, sculpture and photography. Her practice stems from research on noise pollution and the detrimental effects it is having on soundscape ecology. Comparing and contrasting these parklands, she is investigating the levels of sonic damage we as humans are having on our landscapes. Lucy hopes to educate her listeners through her sound installations to become consciously aware of how much noise we are making and the harm this is producing towards wildlife but also just the simple awareness of how loud everything is becoming.
Jack Lee
Jack Lee is a Malaysian Chinese artist and architect based in Naarm/ Melbourne. Jack's practice spans across architectural projects, drawings, paintings, photography, mixed media & digital art. His works often examine preconceived social norms and interrogate the construction of ‘in-between‘ cultures, identity conflicts and diasporic values, and explore the close bonds between beings and their interactions with the surrounding environment. Jack was recently a winner of the 2022 Midsumma Bundoora Homestead Art Prizefinalist and a finalist in the 2022 Midsumma and Australia Post Art Award for his work ‘It’s Just a Preference’.