Ballarat aims for Biennale of Australian Art to attract 100,000 visitors

Ballarat is set to follow in the footsteps of Hobart with the impact of its Museum of Old and New Art with the announcement of a new arts biennale to be held in 2018.

Public art consultant Julie Collins said it was expected the Biennale of Australian Art (BOAA) would draw in $10 million to Ballarat's economy from an anticipated 100,000 visitors.

The Biennale will be held over six weeks in September and October 2018 throughout more than 50 indoor and outdoor locations across Ballarat, showcasing the work of more than 150 Australian artists.

Collins is currently commissioning Australian artists to create original works for the event, and is also looking to source for the $2.5 million of funding required to stage the Biennale.

She said the festival would be unique in Australia – the only similar event was held in Adelaide, but only in two indoor venues.

Instead, BOAA will be held in Ballarat's historic buildings, its outdoor locations, including Victoria Park and Lake Wendouree, and there are also plans to activate disused, neglected and abandoned spaces.

Collins stepped down from her role as Curator of the Lorne Sculpture Biennale in the middle of this year to take on the Ballarat project full-time. She said not only would the Biennale cement Ballarat's position as the go-to location for the arts in Victoria, it would attract scores of artists to move to the city.

Collins explained “when I first moved here 10 years ago, I thought the physicality of Ballarat was perfect to hold an indoor and outdoor festival because of its heritage buildings and lakes and gardens.

"To do this in Melbourne, it would get lost. In a city like Ballarat, you can get that whole-of-town experience."

While two-and-a-half years seemed like a long lead time to start promoting the Biennale, she needed to start early to get the necessary support for such a huge project. The City of Ballarat and Ballarat Regional Tourism have offered in-principal support.

Collins added “it takes a village to put on these kind of events. As everyone is aware, the federal government has made some cutbacks in the arts. The community needs to step up and realise they can get these things off the ground."

Collins said the Biennale would feed off a trend already occurring in Ballarat, concluding “over the past five years or so, the arts in Ballarat has become more of a focus and a lot more galleries have opened.

"A lot of artists have moved into Ballarat and this has raised the cultural aspects of the city. This is just going to keep happening.

"This will cement Ballarat as a city of the arts."

Ballarat already hosts another biennial arts event – the Ballarat Fotobiennale – which will return in September 2017.

For more information go to www.australianculturalfund.org.au/projects/boaa-biennale-of-australian-art

Lower image shows the Annexe at the Art Gallery of Ballarat.

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