Coober Pedy Art Camp 2021
19-25 September, 2021
For a week in September 2021, artists from two ARIs on the Stuart Highway - WTS in Mparntwe-Alice Springs, and FELTspace in Tarntanya-Adelaide, met in the middle in Umoona-Coober Pedy for a week of shared curriculum.
Coober Pedy occupies an imaginary in the minds of many in Mparntwe - much like Mparntwe does for many in the coastal centres of so-called Australia. Our urge to orientate ourselves away from the usual suspects of metropolitan cultural centres was was deepened by every time folks in Coober Pedy asked us where we were on our way to, and often their surprise when we replied that we were already at our destination.
Participating artists shared common sparks of interest in the town, particularly the absence of big-name corporations, even from its main industry: mining. Opal mining is described by John Whittiker of the local desalinsation plant as an “intensely individual pursuit”. It ties the vast majority of, and seemingly disparate nodes of the town together, with everyone from ceramacists to hydro engineers to residents of Umoona community having spent time in the opal fields. John, again, summed it up well: “You’ve got your hole, and I’ve got mine”.
The camp’s curriculum was co-designed by artists and WTS staff, evolving as with each local figure we met, all generous with their time and knowledge. Areas of inquiry included: local artists and art communities; First Nations histories, communities, and campaigns; architecture, design and sign-writing; ecology and geology; anti-nuclear activism; cameleer histories; energy and water politics and infrastructure; a remote town’s unique economies and capacities for self organisation and mutual aid.
2021 alumni:
Watch This Space:
Anna McCauley, Ace Goddard, Bryan Phillips, Sam Phillips
FELTspace:
Elyas Alavi, Chelsea Farquhar, Hen Vaughan
