A Celebration of Living Artists
When private gallerist Paul Greenaway OAM set out to redress the balance of what he saw as a disproportionate focus on venerating artists long deceased, rather than those currently practising, there emerged a week-long festival of exhibitions in 21 metropolitan and 20 regional galleries. Bringing to the public eye the work of artists still breathing life into new works of art, the South Australian Living Artists Festival (SALA) was and remains, 20 years on, a thoroughly inclusive open framework on which artists at any level, in any visual format and in any willing venue, can build new audiences for their work.
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For SALA Festival 2006 people across the Riverland and Mallee ‘popped the kettle’ on to symbolise home, family, culture and hospitality. The Kettle Drive saw kettles pop up all over, plus installations at the Chaffey Theatre and the Berri Arts Centre. -
In 2008 Cindi Drennan produced a projection/film event celebrating local artists for Port Augusta Re-Imagines. Image: Andy Killkross performing at the closing event for Port Augusta Re-imagines -
I’m Still Here Parts I-V was a collaborative ‘lab style’ project where Murray Bridge-based artist, Peter Smith worked with artists Julian Crotti, Amelia Walker, Emma Northey. Remounted for SALA’s Moving Image in the Queens Theatre alongside some of Adelaide’s high profile artists, it gave Peter an opportunity to display his collaboration to a wider audience. The video works, involving notions of performance, along with interactive pieces that required a sense of play and discovery from the audience, were a richly prismatic response to Murray Bridge during its time as the Regional Centre of Culture throughout 2010. -
I’m Still Here Parts I-V was a collaborative ‘lab style’ project where Murray Bridge-based artist, Peter Smith worked with artists Julian Crotti, Amelia Walker, Emma Northey. Remounted for SALA’s Moving Image in the Queens Theatre alongside some of Adelaide’s high profile artists, it gave Peter an opportunity to display his collaboration to a wider audience. The video works, involving notions of performance, along with interactive pieces that required a sense of play and discovery from the audience, were a richly prismatic response to Murray Bridge during its time as the Regional Centre of Culture throughout 2010. -
NEBULA brings together emerging, mid-career or established visual artists currently working in regional SA who are ready to take the next professional step in their career to build a professional network, learn about new opportunities for funding and exhibitions, and share their knowledge and practice with the other artists during the visual arts hotbed that is SALA Festival. -
FLOW was the first major sculptural work in the Riverland’s McCormick Centre and first grand-scale partnership with Country Arts SA. Presented for SALA Festival 2014, with concept by Olivia Allen and design by Kathryn Sproul & Christopher Bartle, it was produced by Country Arts SA as part of “This is a River”, through the Creative Communities Partnership Key Producer Program, celebrating the stories of people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (CALD) and their connection to water. The stories gathered manifested in a site specific woven metal sculpture set in the wetlands at the McCormick Centre accompanied by a soundscape of their voices. 558 individuals took part in weaving and storytelling workshops and more than 2500 people saw the work in situ, where they could listen to the local stories through headphones while walking around the wetlands artwork. Image: Robert Hogarth -
Morgan Allender, Winner of the 2015 Breaking Ground Award, opens her exhibition -
Installation view - 2016 Breaking Ground winner Cindy Durant's 'Layers' at Artspace Gallery, AFC. Photo Lara Merrington -
Installation view - She Collects The Beautiful Things, Chris De Rosa at Light Square Gallery, 2017 -
The Hahndorf Academy, 68 Main Rd, Hahndorf 157 Intimate Topographies Photography, mixed media, drawing, painting and found material: Ian Hamilton, Ed Douglas, Pamela Kouwenhoven, Ken Orchard -
An impressive number of Kangaroo Island SALA exhibitions, special events and studios exhibited some outstanding work to celebrate this 2005's state focus region, kicking off with the KI Gallery (Kingscote) celebration of Founder’s day on the 27th July, and rolling on to the end of the festival on August 14th with the official opening of KI Artworks Gallery at Baudin Beach. Image: Deb Sleeman, Blue Dress -
An impressive number of Kangaroo Island SALA exhibitions, special events and studios exhibited some outstanding work to celebrate 2005's state focus region, kicking off with the KI Gallery (Kingscote) celebration of Founder’s day on the 27th July, and rolling on to the end of the festival on August 14th with the official opening of KI Artworks Gallery at Baudin Beach. Image: Deb Sleeman, Paul Greenaway Blue Dress -
Winged Victory from Burning Issues catalogue front cover by Vicki Bosisto
We were at the table at the humble but buoyant beginnings, guaranteeing artists could have their time in the sun no matter how distant they lived from Adelaide, drawing people into the galleries, cafés, wineries, indeed public buildings and spaces of every kind, as well as the artist’s private studios, with focus regions, bus tours and driving maps in the early years building support for the fledgling Festival.
Now a South Australian institution, SALA Festival has grown exponentially to well over 600 exhibitions and events, 32% of them in 2017 outside metro boundaries, the Fleurieu Peninsula having the largest representation of any region outside the Adelaide city mile. Thousands take advantage of regional bus and self-drive tours and regional areas initiate their own celebrations of cross-generational art-making of the visual variety.
Our Breaking Ground Award is presented in partnership with SALA and our artists’ Professional Development Road Trip, NEBULA, brings regional artists ready to take their next career steps to Adelaide for a three day SALA immersion.
