Author: Esther Anatolitis
-
ARTS AND CULTURE
- Esther Anatolitis
- 20 August 2019
1 Comment
At stake here is who takes responsibility for sector development in the arts as both a cultural and an economic good. Because right now, there is no national organisation or government agency whose role it is to take a responsible, long-term, national view, making sure there are programs in place to address key priorities.
READ MORE 
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 24 May 2019
2 Comments
There's a lot of work to be done to ensure the Australian government has the best guidance it needs to prepare the policies and deliver the services Australians urgently need. To strengthen ourselves into making that contribution, let's begin by rejecting 'brutal retail politics' and instead champion generous community expertise.
READ MORE
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 03 April 2019
10 Comments
Budget 2019-2020 makes a lot more sense when interpreted in the light of Scott Morrison's first speech. Like most first speeches, it's about how his personal values manifest in his political actions. And what those values expose about the current prime minister's understanding of Australian history is quite telling.
READ MORE
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 09 May 2018
9 Comments
The flagship cultural measure in the budget is, strangely, a flagship: the Endeavour. The government announced '$48.7 million over four years to commemorate the 250th anniversary of James Cook's first voyage to Australia and the Pacific'. A permanent presence on the first site of local trauma is not a vision for a nation.
READ MORE
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 16 January 2017
3 Comments
2017 is set to be a momentous year for the arts in Australia. On 1 November we commemorate 50 years since Harold Holt announced the creation of an independent body to champion 'the free play of our cultural interests and enthusiasms at all levels' — an announcement that meant bringing together disparate focuses and isolated funds with a national vision. Yet today's Australia Council faces an uncertain future, and the free play of our cultural interests is jeopardised by that uncertainty.
READ MORE
-
INTERNATIONAL
- Esther Anatolitis
- 04 October 2016
10 Comments
Who owns a cultural object? Who has the right to determine cultural values? And how can public institutions exercise cultural responsibility? It's a timely set of questions as we consider the implications of the National Gallery of Australia's return of ancient Indian sculptures, the British Museum's refusal to return Indigenous objects, or Lionel Shriver's rejection of minority cultural identities. Each of these unleashes complex, painful consequences that can undermine cultural value or cultural safety.
READ MORE
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 24 May 2016
13 Comments
Universities and the CSIRO are attacked and funds cut while the government promotes an 'ideas boom'. Creative industries and the Australia Council are diminished and investment slashed while the government talks of an 'innovation agenda'. It takes confidence in your own skill as a decision-maker to recognise the expertise of others as something you don't share but can benefit from. Instead we see nervous leadership, too anxious to trust in those who can build that future.
READ MORE
-
AUSTRALIA
- Esther Anatolitis
- 26 November 2015
2 Comments
One of the few industries lacking a national advocacy platform, the arts, was stunned when a political move was made to undermine the key policy and investment body. The Australia Council is still reeling, and arts leaders from around the country are scrambling to save their organisations and support their colleagues following the Council's drastic cancellation of entire funding rounds. At stake here is the nature of Australian culture and the public experience of it, both now and into the future.
READ MORE