Rockhampton – Australia’s beef capital is cooking with creativity

Jul 29 2014

Rockhampton – Australia’s beef capital is cooking with creativity

Rockhampton is at a cultural crossroads. And that’s no bull. The large Central Queensland town that has been best known as the beef capital of Australia is in its final six months of a three-year pilot program, Creative Capricorn. Funded by Federal, State and Local government, Creative Capricorn is designed to use arts and culture […]

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Dec 2 2013

Music links regional and rural communities in central Queensland

Kate Leahy is a dynamic, articulate and talented local Rockhampton musician.  When she was 17 she felt she had to leave the area if she wanted to pursue a career in music, as there were few opportunities to work as a local artist.  A few years ago Kate returned to Rockhampton but found it challenging […]

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Oct 31 2013

Creative Capricorn – Peering into Rockhampton’s creative future

In 2012, Rockhampton was chosen as one of two regions in Australia (the other being Goolwa, South Australia) to trial a new model of cultural development. The model is a partnership between the three tiers of government and local communities, aimed to demonstrate that arts and cultural projects can increase social cohesion and improve quality […]

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Aug 30 2013

From moo to mime- Rockhampton’s artistic transition

Have you been to Rockhampton lately? The beef capital of Australia is going through a period of artistic and cultural change. And that’s no bull. But don’t get me wrong. When you arrive at the airport don’t expect to have your portrait painted as you wait at the luggage carousel. You are unlikely to be […]

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Aug 27 2013

ABC radio interview – my work evaluating the role of the arts in disaster recovery

Whilst in Rockhampton last week at the Articulate:Queensland Regional Arts and Culture Conference 2013, I was interviewed on local ABC Radio.  Jacqui Mackay, Breakfast Presenter on ABC  Capricornia, spoke with me about my work evaluating arts-led initiatives to help rebuilding communities after natural disasters.  You can listen to the audio file here. http://blogs.abc.net.au/queensland/2013/08/can-the-arts-help-after-a-disaster.html?site=capricornia&program=capricornia_breakfast  

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Aug 26 2013

Rockhampton Regional Arts Rundown

For three days last week a few hundred delegates descended on Rockhampton for Articulate: Queensland Regional Arts and Culture Conference.  It was no coincidence the conference was held in Rockhampton; this region is experiencing a burst of creative activity and energy, with the Creative Capricorn initiative in full swing. The presentation topics were interesting and […]

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Jun 23 2013

Social media monitoring in evaluation projects

To conduct a program evaluation is fundamentally about exploring the extent to which the initiative meets its intended objectives. We are currently evaluating an arts-based program Creative Capricorn being rolled out in Rockhampton over a period of three years.  It involves the integration of artistic and cultural programs to help diversify the local economy and […]

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