Artist Opportunities
Sidney Myer Creative Fellowships 2021
Nine talented mid-career artists and cultural leaders from around Australia have been selected as recipients of the 2021 Sidney Myer Creative Fellowships. Recognised for excellence in the fields of dance, performance, visual arts, writing, theatre and music, each Fellow will be awarded an unrestricted tax-free grant of $160,000 to support the development of their practice over two years.
Ngiyampaa Wailwan woman, Alison Murphy-Oates, is a cultural leader dedicated to the development and empowerment of First Peoples artists and arts workers and a network of First Peoples practitioners globally. Ellen van Neerven (they/them) is an award-winning author, editor and educator of Mununjali (Yugambeh language group) and Dutch heritage. Ngiyampaa, Yuin, Bandjalang and Gumbangirr artist Eric Avery is a classically trained violinist, composer and dancer, who also works with Indigenous youth, and creates original compositions for various ensembles. Hoda Afshar is an Iranian-Australian artist using the modes of photography and moving image to bring focus to social and political issues related to marginality, visibility, and displacement. Choreographer, performer and teacher, Jo Lloyd explores unique movement vocabularies with humour, imagination and risk. Joel Ma challenges stereotypes in the Australian music industry through his work and forges new collaborations across his music and leadership roles.
Latai Taumoepeau addresses issues of race, class and the female body through durational performance work, and documents it in photographs. Asian-Australian writer Michele Lee works across theatre, live art, audio, and screen to explore themes of otherness, identity and found families, through contemporary narratives that privilege the experiences of women and people of colour. Tjungkara Ken is from the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in South Australia and is known as a master colourist for her use of deep colours, subtle colour shifts and meticulous illustrations of her Country, and the Tjukurpa (culture, dreaming, law), the Seven Sisters story.
‘I am delighted to make this year’s announcement and extend my
