Geelong Arts Centre's professional development program expands for their 2025 grant round.
Following yet another year of successful artistic development and performance delivery, Geelong Arts Centre have announced the latest recipients of their Creative Engine Grants and Launchpad initiative, with their professional development program expanding for the new year with the newly introduced Associate Artists arm.
The grants lean into Geelong Arts Centre’s continuous championing of the region’s arts and creative sector with Creative Engine and Launchpad introduced to assist local artists in devising new original works through professional development, mentorship, access to state-of-the-art facilities, presentation opportunities and monetary support.
Stay up to date with what’s happening within the region’s art scene here.
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Benefiting from access to mentorship, state-of-the-art facilities, technical support, marketing and content creation, the Launchpad stream provides artists with the invaluable opportunity to rehearse, test and present new work to audiences in a professional theatre setting. Geelong Arts Centre is proud to reveal the two new local creative projects recently developed and presented as part of the Launchpad initiative are Kath Dolheguy with work Parasail, and Connor Morel for performative piece Good Man.
Alongside Launchpad, a new round of Creative Engine Grants has been awarded to nine exceptional projects, each bringing fresh perspectives and creativity to their fields. Offering $71,000 of cash and in-kind studio space, these grants assist individuals and groups who are looking to create, workshop and develop new and exciting work. Divided into four categories, the grants will support a lively cohort of artists for the next grant period including Ignition recipients Jessica Lesosky for the development of work Permission Granted and Libby Brockman for Lights, Camera, Séance.
The Jump Start grant has been awarded to Zoee Marsh, contributing to the development of the work Playground, whilst Place to Make recipients include Samantha Lester for Milk, Melinda Chapman for SWARM, Xavier McGettigan for Swing Lake and Josh Mitchell for Fosterville. Two additional grants have been awarded to Creative Occupation Collection to support the development of their work Shiprite and Cultura to contribute to their new initiative, The Multicultural Youth Council Working Group.
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In addition Geelong Arts Centre introduce the inaugural Associate Artists. This sees the engagement of Joel Bray and Dan Giovannoni as the first-ever Associate Artists of Creative Engine. Proudly supported by The Ian Potter Foundation and Creative Victoria, this milestone marks a significant step in the Centre’s mission to cultivate and support artistic development within the region through innovative artistic residencies with Bray and Giovannoni dedicating time and resources to the development of new work. They will engage in an intensive period of research and creative exploration to extend their own personal projects and assist in the development of works by Creative Engine and Launchpad participants through mentorship and hands-on expert engagement.
Joel Bray is known for his ability to transform everyday spaces into immersive performances, weaving his Wiradjuri heritage into bold, dance-theatre experiences, whilst Dan Giovannoni is recognised for his talent in crafting stories that move effortlessly between the magical and the real, captivating audiences from circus tents to theatres worldwide.
The artist development programs and their extended Associate Artists arm continues Geelong Arts Centres commitment to supporting, celebrating and extending the thriving local arts scene, positioning Geelong arts makers in the world-class tier.
Find out more about each individual Geelong Arts Centre Creative Engine and Launchpad grant recipient and their works here.
