Artist Denise N. Rall with some her creations featured in the ‘Fibre, Feast and Fantasy’ exhibition in the former café attached to the Lismore Regional Galley. Photograph: NATSKY
How did Art in the Heart Lismore come about? What is its current role?
Art in the Heart Lismore began in 2010 to place creative workers and artistic activity of every kind in empty shops and other vacant premises in the Lismore CBD in order to help revitalise the city’s centre and contribute to increased commercial activity and local tourism.
Art in the Heart finds short and medium term uses for buildings in the Lismore CBD that are currently vacant, disused, or awaiting redevelopment.
It is part of Lismore City Council and its partners include Arts NSW, Arts Northern Rivers, Lismore Business Promotion Panel, Lismore Chamber of Commerce, and Southern Cross University School of Visual Arts and Social Sciences. It has a co-ordinator and a city centre manager.
What are your current projects?
- Lismore Arts Collective
- Cultural exchange with similar project in (sister city) Yamato-Takada, Nara Prefecture, Japan
- Lismore Camera Club – an exhibition and similar exchange with artists/photographers in Waterford, Ireland
- Assisting artists’ co-op to secure three-story building to serve as multi-function arts complex –‘PLATFORM’.
What have been your main achievements to date?
There is a diversity and quality of projects with nine projects in five spaces involving 62 artists (in formal groups or loose collectives). There have been around 5,000 visitors over seven months.
We have achieved sustained positive media coverage and widespread support for Art in the Heart.
The individual projects are achieving their aims, such as sales of work, heightened awareness, workshop attendances and social inclusion.
What makes Art in the Heart Lismore special?
Art in the Heart is able to draw on the largest number of creative workers in a regional NSW, who are encouraged to submit project proposals for inclusion in the scheme. The initiative is strategically positioned within the city centre’s revitalisation process being carried out by the City Centre Manager on behalf of the Lismore Business Promotion Program and Council.
We work closely with other local organisations such as Tourism, the Lismore Regional Gallery as well as the City Centre Manager. We combine our staffing and resources to boost cultural tourism and add to destination marketing and CBD revitalisation efforts.
Lismore has a wonderful system of small arcades and laneways bisecting the CBD that are well patronised. ‘Art in the arcades’ is a logical aim of the project.
The scale of Art in the Heart to date is modest: there are more artist project proposals than secured (temporary) spaces. However, conservative property owners are becoming more receptive to providing empty shops for the Art in the Heart project. .
What are your plans for the future?
Securing more spaces in order to achieve a critical mass of shops in the arcades, in particular, an easily-adapted ‘walking tour’ map of the CBD., assisting with a laneways ‘public art’ project, a Wi fii trial in an arcade, and then throughout the CBD.
We are also working towards making the Art in the Heart program a reason in itself to visit Lismore and for it to be a strong component in both the city centre revitalisation and our overall and niche destination marketing.
Future plans include helping artists and creatives to become self-sufficient financially and to encourage the transition from ‘token’ rentals to either part or full commercial rents where possible.
What are your main challenges?
Securing more vacant spaces and placing the project on a sustainable footing and convincing initially reluctant property owners of the merits of the Art in the Heart project and the benefits they can gain through recent successful examples.
Would you like to contact Art in the Heart Lismore?
Email: stephen.nelson@lismore.nsw.gov.au
Art in the Heart website is coming soon. It will be linked to the Lismore City Centre and Tourism sections of the Lismore City Council website.
