The NSW Government is continuing to deliver on its commitment to foster the next generation of artists, creative practitioners, and leaders.
Among the ten small to medium not-for-profit arts and culture organisations supported through a new $500,000 grant program are projects ranging from a multi-platform festival, an interactive futurist activation, to a multi-sensory dining experience. Each project showcases the exceptional strength, talent and entrepreneurial vision of NSW's arts and cultural sector.
The Creative Industries Connectivity Grants program was established to incentivise new collaborative opportunities and develop new partnerships between the traditional arts and cultural sector and creative industries.
The $500,000 program delivers on the Creative Communities commitment to align NSW Government investment to prioritise programs, services and advocacy that builds pathways to partnerships to enhance distribution opportunities for artists and creative practitioners.
Through grants of up to $50,000, the 10 not-for-profit arts and cultural organisations will each invest in a new venture and work in partnership with creative businesses including 3D imaging technology providers, landscape architects, e-learning platforms, fashion powerhouses, global radio broadcasters, and restaurants.
These projects pioneer new visionary concepts blending traditional artforms with new mediums and influences, that transform how artists connect with audiences and how stories are told.
The program promotes ongoing collaboration across the arts, cultural and creative industries ecosystem, driving further innovation, long-term sustainability, and successful product development.
The recipients of the inaugural Creative Industries Connectivity Grants program are:
- Arts & Cultural Exchange Inc - The Dharug Voices Digital Archive
- Asian Australian Artists Association Inc - Haymarket 2050
- Diversity Arts Australia - Creative Equity at Work Online Learning Program
- Erth Visual & Physical Incorporated - Dinner is the Show
- Marrugeku Inc - Ngurragabu [From the last night]
- NSW Aboriginal Culture Heritage and Arts Association Inc - NSW Aboriginal Cultural Centre Online
- Port Macquarie Historical Society Inc - Birrbay Barray Djuyal (Birpai Country Stories)
- Powerhouse Youth Theatre Inc - From Stage to Screen
- Soft Centre Pty Ltd - SOFT CENTRE 2025 x NTS | White Bay Power Station
- Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre - Mercury Rising
Minister for the Arts, John Graham said:
"Creative Communities outlined a shift in value, scale, focus and settings. We said at its release that the vision cannot be realised overnight or by government alone. Partnerships are crucial.
"These grants are built upon developing partnerships across the creative industries and into other larger creative industry organisations and businesses.
"The goal with this investment is to support collaborative projects that have potential for ongoing partnerships and develop sustainable outcomes for organisations across the creative industries."
Create NSW Executive Director Kerri Glasscock said:
"The NSW arts and cultural sector is renowned for innovating and pushing boundaries. This new program has delivered a strong line-up of inspiring ideas in its inaugural round.
"These projects have been selected to demonstrate possible future direction of arts and culture and creative industry partnerships.
"We are excited to see so many high-impact partnerships that will combine the vision and talent in the arts and creative industries and create some truly innovative projects."
Thea-Mai Baumann Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer, 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art said:
"Haymarket 2050 is a living time capsule - an immersive, cross-disciplinary collaboration that reimagines the future of one of Sydney's most iconic precincts.
"Through holograms, cult fashion shows, and augmented reality portals at sites like the Lion Gate, Paddy's Markets, at 4A and our incubator space 4A LAB, we're preserving Haymarket's cultural DNA while projecting its stories into the year 2050. This is about memory, imagination, and placemaking - activating community voices to shape a speculative archive we will unlock again in 25 years."
Creative Industries Connectivity Project Highlights include:
- Haymarket 2050 is a groundbreaking collaboration between 4A, INJURY x REAL PARENT, local community members and key cultural partners, reimagining Haymarket's cultural future through contemporary art, fashion, and technology. The bold project features immersive installations, AR activations, and a global virtual experience, bridging physical and digital realms to engage diverse audiences and shape Haymarket's cultural narrative.
- "Dinner is the Show" is an innovative collaboration between Erth Visual & Physical Inc. and Kitchen by Mike. This multi-sensory exploration examines the intricate relationship between food and art, providing an immersive dining experience throughout the performance.
- Dance company Marrugeku will partner with landscape architectural firm, REALMstudios to develop Ngurragabu [From the last night]. This partnership will imagine, research and map speculative environmental futures, expanding Marrugeku's ongoing commitment to creating immersive performances that highlight the interactions between human and non-human species, Country, and weather.
- Port Macquarie Museum and creative technology partner Studio ESEM will create an immersive interactive installation using Gathang voices and language to introduce and connect audiences to Country and stories. Birrbay Barray Djuyal (Birpai Country Stories) will weave narratives of kinship, culture and the environment into a multi-sensory artwork using historical, contemporary and virtual imagery and sounds.
