Araluen Arts Centre marks 40th anniversary

Central Australia’s premier arts venue, the Araluen Arts Centre - a creative arts hub established by community members in Alice Springs - is today celebrating its 40th anniversary, and the Northern Territory Government is marking the occasion with a gift worth around $110,000.

The Araluen Arts Centre will use the birthday grant for theatre equipment including a new communications system and lighting upgrades.

The Araluen Arts Centre features galleries and performance spaces, and an annual program of exhibitions, theatre, and film.

The hallmark of the Centre is a prized collection of more than 1100 art works from across the region, including historically and culturally significant paintings by famed artist Albert Namatjira, and early works from Aboriginal artists who initiated the Western Desert Art Movement in the 1970s.

Developed by a group of Alice Springs residents who were keen to promote, preserve and showcase creative arts, the Friends of Araluen (as the founding entity is now known) continue to guide the direction of the arts centre.

Managed by the NT Government since 1996, Araluen Arts Centre is now part of a broader cultural precinct which includes the Strehlow Research Centre and Museum of Central Australia, as well as seven registered sites and several trees of significance that belong to the Two Women dreaming track.

Set on the site of the town’s first aerodrome, the original Connellan Airways hangar, family homestead and associated buildings remain within the Araluen Cultural Precinct.

The community has been invited to a day-long event today featuring live music, activities, food and fun; as well as the official opening of two exhibitions – Kim Mahood’s Forcefield and Ground Swell – Araluen at 40. The National Gallery in Canberra is loaning nine artworks to Araluen for the celebratory exhibition as part of its Sharing the National Collection program.

NT Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Chansey Paech noted “The 40th anniversary celebrations of Araluen Arts Centre marks a significant milestone for the Northern Territory’s arts scene and put a spotlight on the incredible contribution it has made to the arts community and the Alice Springs region.

“Over the past 40 years, Araluen Arts Centre has provided a rich experience to many thousands of arts and theatre buffs in the Alice Springs community and from further afield; and has also promoted and supported talented artists from across Central Australia.

“The arts bring people together, creating communities with shared passions and interests, and as people look back on their experiences during the past four decades, I have been fortunate to hear some wonderful stories about the joy that Araluen has brought over the years.”

Chair of Friends of Araluen Kalikamurti Suich added “Araluen Arts Centre is a unique hub for Alice Springs and the wider community of the Central Desert and showcases some of our nation’s most inspiring, provocative and transformative art, created by a pool of talented artists.

“It has enjoyed a fantastic journey over the past 40 years, strongly supported by the community and the Friends of Araluen, and we’re proud of the contribution it has made to the cultural fabric of the Northern Territory as well as the broader Australian arts community.

“We’re delighted to be bringing the GROUND SWELL: Araluen at 40 exhibition to the Centre as part of these celebrations and look forward to sharing it with visitors as we create a new legacy for Araluen.”

Images credit: Araluen Arts Centre