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LabNorth: The Arts in Northern Australia
"Creative Futures in the North", Zoom, 16 September 2025 LabNorth is a collaboration of Arts experts, practitioners and supporters in northern Australia – defined as the space to the north of a line drawn roughly from Broome to Mackay. It is based in the Roderick Centre for Australian Literature and Creative Writing at James Cook University. The LabNorth panel "Creative Futures in the North" was supported by the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences and conducted via Zoom on 16 September 2025. The objective was to establish a working consortium of researchers, practitioners and local government authorities and industry groups to develop both research and practical collaboration in the broad spectrum of arts activities among regional communities in Northern Australia. A special focus on the mid-sized cities of Darwin, Cairns, and Townsville drew attention to these as growing communities coming of age, which cannot be elided with rural and remote communities but which still have distinct regional identities in which arts and culture are a key part of infrastructure and wellbeing. Two big ideas emerged clearly: 1. Critical mass is difficult to finesse against distance. It is vital to find ways of neutralizing distance as much as possible. It is encouraging that collaboration is slowly replacing competition among local and regional arts initiatives. 2. As the tertiary sector reduces their offerings of creative arts programs (sometimes in response to falling enrolments due to the Jobs Ready Graduates policy), arts organisations (galleries, preforming arts companies, etc) struggle to find locally-trained staff. Below is a summary taken from the AI transcript. State of Arts in Northern Australia Lisa Law presented on the State of the Arts in Cairns (SOARTS) reports and LabNorth's work on cultural strategy across Cairns, Townsville, and Darwin. She highlighted how arts and culture are largely invisible in the Northern Australian development agenda, despite their importance to community well-being and economic benefits. Lisa and Victoria discussed the precarity of creative arts programs in universities and the need for cross-city collaboration. Victoria began explaining her work on regional higher education and its connection to sustaining creative arts programs in Northern Australia. Regional Arts Program Decline Research Victoria Kuttainen presented research on the decline of arts and creative arts programs in regional Australian universities, attributing the issue to reduced government funding and the privatization of higher education. She highlighted how larger universities have been able to grow while regional universities struggle, leading to a vicious cycle of decline in smaller places and virtuous circles of big-get-bigger at metro unis. Discussion turned to the unique value of arts education in regional Australia. Adelle Sefton-Rowston shared her experience running a creative arts program in Darwin Correctional Precinct and its positive impact on participants' well-being. The discussion emphasized the importance of regional universities as cultural engines and the potential consequences of their withdrawal, including brain drain and reduced local content. Cultural Value Measurement Insights The group discussed insights from Laboratory Adelaide, a project that explored ways to demonstrate the value of arts and culture in other mid-sized cities. Robert Phiddian highlighted Adelaide's evolution from a colonial-era city to a cultural hub, drawing parallels with emerging mid-sized Australian cities like Cairns and Townsville. Tully Barnett explained the challenges in measuring cultural value, including the limitations of quantitative methods and the need to move beyond a creative industries framework toward viewing arts and culture as a public good. Key recommendations included focusing on social foundations, exploring alternative economic theories, addressing artist precarity, and connecting arts to human flourishing beyond traditional metrics. Northern Australia Arts Ecosystem Discussion The meeting focused on discussing the arts ecosystem in Northern Australia, with representatives from Cairns, Townsville, and Darwin sharing their perspectives. Kim Jameson from Cairns Regional Council outlined efforts to position Cairns as a cultural hub in Northern Australia, while Holly Arden from Townsville Galleries highlighted challenges including reduced federal arts funding, burnout among staff, and a lack of educational opportunities for emerging artists. Kate Fell, Artistic Director of Darwin Festival, emphasized the power of arts to create connection and awe in Northern communities, noting the strong community engagement in regional arts organizations. The discussion also touched on workforce challenges, particularly for First Nations artists. Bianca Beetson (Director, First Nations Qld Museum) discussed challenges in building the arts pipeline in regional areas, particularly for First Nations people, highlighting the closure of university programs and difficulties in recruiting and upskilling staff. She emphasized the importance of developing a Black arts economy, strengthening partnerships with non-government organizations, and creating culturally immersive experiences. The discussion then shifted to the instrumentalization of arts and culture, with Tully Barnett and Chris Kohn, Executive Artistic Director of Jute Theatre, sharing their perspectives on balancing economic arguments with broader notions of value. The conversation ended with Victoria thanking participants for their engagement and announcing plans for a future symposium and ways to continue the conversation. People are invited to join the LabNorth Mailing List LabNorthArts@gmail.com as they hope to engage further via focus groups and surveys, with a view to building a network as time progresses. An initial website can be found at: https://www.jcu.edu.au/RCALC/current-research/labnorth-stories-of-culture,-arts-and-wellbeing-in-northern-australia Email enquiries to LabNorthArts@gmail.com The convenor is Associate Professor Victoria Kuttainen, Director of the Roderick Centre for Australian Literature and Creative Writing at JCU. LIST OF PARTICIPANTS: Panellist Bios Academic presenters and stakeholder respondents from arts/industry and government based in the tri-cities of northern Australia: Darwin, Cairns, and Townsville: Panel Cairns: Lisa Law is Associate Professor of Geography and Urban Planning at James Cook University, Cairns. She researches urban life in tropical Australia, exploring how place-based strategies that embrace nature, arts, culture, and community can foster more liveable and resilient towns and cities. Darwin: Adelle Sefton-Rowston, Associate Professor and Dean of Research at CDU, is a co-CI on the ARC project Re-Mapping the Lost Literary Capital: Darwin's Literary Life, and researches prison arts and the cultural contributions of system-impacted creatives. Townsville: Victoria Kuttainen, Associate Professor and Head of the Roderick Centre at JCU researches the arts and humanities in regional Australia—focusing on the academic–community nexus, the distinctiveness of regional perspectives, and how regional creatives can access sustainable mentorship and opportunities. Tully Barnett: Associate Professor in Creative Industries at Flinders University, researches the value of arts and culture—beyond financial metrics—in regional cities, focusing on intangible benefits, audiences, and cultural policy. Robert Phiddian: Professor of English at Flinders University, co-founded Laboratory Adelaide to develop new ways of articulating the value of the arts beyond economics, with a particular focus on mid-sized regional cities and cultural policy. Respondents/Interlocutors Cairns - Kim Jameson: Executive Manager Creative Life at Cairns Regional Council, oversees Cairns’ key cultural assets—CPAC, Tanks Arts Centre, gallery spaces and the regional libraries—leading strategy, creative pathways, heritage, grants, public art and major festivals with a 120+ team to strengthen partnerships and the region’s cultural vibrancy. Townsville - Holly Arden: Dr Arden is the current Director at Townsville City Galleries. She is passionate about the ‘education and opportunities’ pipeline for regional artists and arts workers. Darwin - Kate Fell: Artistic Director of Darwin Festival brings over 20 years’ leadership in major festivals, venues and arts companies; she programs for inclusion and local story-telling, expanding community access and amplifying Northern Territory artists in her creative vision First Nations -Bianca Beetson: Dr Beetson is Director, First Nations at Queensland Museum, is a Kabi Kabi/Wiradjuri artist-researcher whose work advances truth-telling, cultural representation and First Nations leadership in museums and heritage, while also mentoring emerging Indigenous creatives and serving on major arts boards..
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