Collaborations

Aperture, a Renew Australia initiative, is a moving image program co-curated by Mish Eisen, Project Manager Renew Fitzroy Street and Richard Sowada, Director of St Kilda Film Festival, City of Port Phillip.

 

The development of the Renew Fitzroy Street (RFS) ‘hub’ at 77 Fitzroy Street inspired the use of a spare window expanding the idea of space activation for RFS.

The foundation ‘pilot’ program has included various iterations over a 6-month period, and was measured well as proof of concept for a low cost/large scope product enabling further development.

The programmed content is entirely flexible; edits may be added anytime, and the equipment is essentially operated remotely, demanding very little time post set up for any further intervention. QR codes allow links to extended program information via one’s mobile phone with both didactic and audio scope.

This allows the development of the Aperture program to remain in an unpressured, organic environment which in turn has motivated our collaborators who include:

• Jewish Museum of Australia
• M.33 Melbourne
• Peter Milne Photographer
• Richard Lowenstein Film Maker
• Globe International Ltd
• Prince of Wales Hotel.

The combination of Renew Australia and St Kilda Film Festival networks provides ongoing content collaborations with businesses and organisations, screen-based and otherwise. We would like to express our gratitude to the local property owners without which there would not be the opportunity for such spaces to convert ideas into reality.

Aperture is about discovery, the ‘Hey, what’s going on here?’ the notion of ‘insertion’ art in atypical locations – it sits quietly without fanfare, able to be viewed day and night; a program that allows moments of transportation from our everyday lives.

“I’m loving the idea of something like Aperture on Fitzroy St and the iterations are endless. The CoPP has a fabulous heritage and contemporary art collection in its own right including still and moving images, but the City also houses a range of the most dynamic screen industry businesses and producers in the country. To be able to work with them and provide even a small public creative outlet is a great pleasure and honour”

Richard Sowada, CoPP Film and Industry Lead and Director of the St Kilda Film Festival