- More than $2.7 million in Cook Government funding delivered to support new arts projects and cultural experiences
- The latest round of Arts Projects grants have supported 55 creative initiatives supported through the latest round of Arts Projects grants
- Investment to strengthen WA's creative workforce and support community engagement
The curtain has risen on a new wave of arts projects, musical performances and cultural experiences across Western Australia, thanks to a major funding boost from the Cook Government.
More than $2.7 million has been invested in the third round of grants from the Arts Projects program, designed to support artists, creative professionals and organisations to deliver one-off projects or programs that offer high-quality arts and cultural experiences.
As part of the latest round, 28 initiatives led by individual artists and groups will receive $956,000 in support through the Arts Projects for Individuals and Groups program. An additional 27 initiatives led by organisations will share in $1,745,000 funding through the Arts Projects for Organisations program.
This funding aims to grow the sector by supporting Western Australian artists and creative industry professionals and organisations to deliver outstanding and exceptional experiences that communities can actively participate and engage in.
The recipients of the Arts Projects for Individuals and Groups are:
Perth Metropolitan:
- Joseph James Cook - $10,998 for Artery Magazine, editions 2 and 3;
- Hiroshi Kobayashi - $7,162 for S(Es)graph/S(Es)gram;
- Prudence Sanders - $5,040 for Curtin Heritage Living Concert Series with Australian Baroque;
- Ken Meyer - $11,171 for the Where Light Rests exhibition;
- James Berlyn - $40,840 for Dragon I performance;
- Steven Aaron Hughes - $30,161 for Selfless Orchestra's 'Terra Nullius' album and dance collaboration;
- Laura Boynes - $47,464 for Persistence of Vision second stage development;
- Asha Cornelia Cluer - $75,384 for A Magical Guide to Fighting Fascism;
- Sarah Reuben - $11,280 for the creative script development of SUCCESS!;
- Sinead O'Hara - $44,338 for Live Takes 2026;
- Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes - $18,070 for Witness: Records from an unrecorded war;
- Kimberley Sarah Parkin - $73,153 for the development of The Genesis Project dance;
- G A King & M Storen - $33,344 for Home/Sanctuary; and
- Laurence Steed - $45,026 for Wandering and Dreaming: ADHD, Memory, and Creativity.
Mid West:
- Melanie McKee - $49,864 for Seven Forms - Geraldton 2026
Wheatbelt:
- Stephanie Nicholls - $38,619 for Empowering Women Through Music in the Wheatbelt
Great Southern:
- Bo Wong - $35,636 for Field Guide for Creatives: Supporting and connecting WA creatives
South West:
- Dawn Elena Pascoe - $68,248 for the development of a new vertical dance Wallflowers
Peel:
- Kathryn Louise Osborne - $54,590 for the adaption of Pygmalion;
- Nikhil Wanigaratne - $7,315 for the I Love Lucky album release; and
- Alan Fyfe - $42,300 for The Nine Angles.
State-wide, national and international:
- Rosemarie Sitorus - $59,021 for Piyalbajarri - Yarns with Nyitagura (State-wide);
- Stephen Pigram - $29,564 for an Australian tour (national);
- Eva Fernandez - $20,144 for A delicate act of remembering rendered in thread exhibition (Melbourne, Victoria);
- Rachel Coad - $5,176 to attend the Small Press Expo in Maryland, Washington D.C. (international);
- Timothy Meakins - $27,295 for the exhibition Recovery Mode (Melbourne, Victoria);
- Guy Ben-Ary - $22,489 for Music for Surrogate Performer in Zagreb, Croatia (international); and
- Shirley Mah - $43,259 for Surrounded by the Sleepless Sea - A Migration Story (international).
The recipients of the Arts Projects for Organisations are:
Perth Metropolitan:
- Lost and Found Opera - $80,000 for Lost and Found Opera's annual performance program;
- Pvi Collective - $80,000 for the final development of Booster;
- Same Drum - $79,943 for the multi arts project GALUP;
- City of Fremantle - $15,400 for Objet d'Art: Theo Koning and his Creative Self; and
- Perth International Jazz Festival - $79,800 for 2025-26 Perth International Jazz Festival program.
Gascoyne:
- Gascoyne in May - $80,000 for Blood Beats- Music for Life
Kimberley:
- Warmun Art Aboriginal Corporation - $80,000 for Forever Now: The living identity and legacy of Gija Art; and
- Mangkaja Arts Resource Agency Aboriginal Corporation - $76,058 for the Kimberley Aboriginal Art and Culture International Exhibition, Phase 3 (international).
Mid West:
- Northampton Old School Community Initiative - $63,950 for the Ku'arlu Mangga Aboriginal Art Centre
Wheatbelt:
- Shire of York - $54,064 for The York Aboriginal Reserve - a book of Truth Telling. Grant administered for Marion Kickett
Great Southern:
- Southern Edge Arts - $79,916 for its 2025/26 annual program; and
- Cloning Music - $20,870 for the creation and release of the Cloning EP (State-wide).
South West:
- Sarabande Early Music Ensemble - $12,110 for Denmark Summer Early Music Workshops;
- Balingup Progress Association - $7,218 for a new annual cultural tourism and music event;
- Country Music Club of Boyup Brook WA - $50,000 for 2026 Boyup Brook Country Music Muster; and
- Tone List - $79,930 for Tone List's ten year anniversary program.
State-wide, national and international:
- Encounter Theatre - $79,949 for Encounter Theatre 2026 program (national);
- Indigiverse - $79,200 for Western Australian First Nations super heroes comic development (national);
- Waringarri Arts Aboriginal Corporation - $78,743 for Gelengajbenga-Woorr (Next Generations) Project (national);
- The Artist's Foundation of Western Australia - $80,000 for Artsource's annual program of activities (State-wide and international);
- Biennale of Sydney - $58,750 for the commission of a new artwork by Walmajarri artist John Prince Siddon for the Biennale of Sydney (New South Wales);
- Spacey Jane - $65,676 for Spacey Jane's UK and EU international tour (international);
- Performing Lines WA - $72,201 for Baseline by Crystal Nguyen. Grant administered for Samuel Fox (Perth, Western Australia; Melbourne, Victoria);
- International Art Space - $79,981 for SPACED 2025-26 annual program (State-wide);
- Warlayirti Artists Aboriginal Corporation - $80,000 for Keeping Warlayirti strong and stable: Annual program of activities (Kimberley, Western Australia; New South Wales; Northern Territory; United States of America);
- John Curtin Gallery, Curtin University - $51,696 for Radical Futures (State-wide); and
- Sculpture at Bathers - $79,730 for the online resource Sculpture West (State-wide).
This investment supports the development and delivery of creative works that strengthen WA's creative workforce, deepen community engagement, and contribute to a vibrant and diverse cultural landscape.
As stated by Creative Industries Minister Simone McGurk:
"This investment will help Western Australian artists share our stories, music, languages and culture with audiences at home and abroad - enriching our communities and strengthening our identity.
"From opera to vertical dance, from Aboriginal truth-telling to multilingual theatre, these projects reflect the creativity and diversity of our State.
"I'm incredibly proud to see such an outstanding range of creative projects receiving support.
"Western Australian artists and organisations continue to inspire with their talent, passion and dedication, and this funding will help them share their work with communities across our State and beyond."
