Fatima Halloum
A Wyndham artist is calling out council for its “frustrating” art selection process that she says brushes local artist aside.
Creative Angela Hickey believes artists who live outside of Wyndham are paid for works that could instead be produced by people living in the area.
“There’s an unfair process for Wyndham artists, for locals. We don’t know about the opportunities, they’re not advertised, there’s no EOI [Expression of Interest] process,” she said.
Hickey said the municipality had “so many great artists” who should be given the opportunity to submit proposals.
“I don’t mind if there’s a small percentage of non-locals, that’s just a given. It just happens too often, it needs to change,” she said.
“I’ve stood by and watched this over the years and it’s just reached a point … it needs to be shared with us.”
Hickey suggests several artists be commissioned for jobs, joining both local and non-local creatives.
“Wouldn’t it be better to actually get the community onboard? Artists that live here?” she said.
Wyndham council said many variables were contemplated when selecting a public art piece, “not just the artist’s physical principal place of residence”.
“When considering artists for specific areas or works, Wyndham city takes into account a range of considerations including timelines, cost, previous experience, the aesthetics of the space and avoiding disruptions to local business,” acting director of city design and liveability Peter McKinnon said.
Mr McKinnon said council had a public art allocation of $265,000 for 2021-22, and “many local artists participated in projects”.
“Wyndham City’s priority is to develop public art opportunities for local artists through a range of initiatives including Werribee Station Photographic Prints, Wyndham Vale Station, projects with Deakin University and many temporary works, events and programs,” he said.
