Over 200 craft artists, designer-makers and artisans are making work for the first IOTA21, due to take place in Western Australia from September to November.
News
Key artists and program of events to be announced 20 May 2021
Over 250 craft artists, designer-makers and artisans are making work for the first IOTA21, due to take place in Western Australia from September to November.
Support an Indian Ocean artisan by adopting a handcrafted cow!
Uday Singh makes beautifully handcrafted ceramic cows. He is planning to make 50 for the IOTA21 exhibition at John Curtin Gallery, opening in September. He needs support to make, package and freight the cows from Art Ichol in India.
A Season of Craft is coming to WA, thanks to Lotterywest
The inaugural ‘IOTA21: Indian Ocean Craft Triennial’ is expanding to a state-wide festival thanks to the support of Lotterywest. In celebration of contemporary craft and our place on the coast of the Indian Ocean, a program of exhibitions and events in Perth and across Western Australia will generate a spring season of craft.
‘Futuring Craft’: Call Out for Submissions to the IOTA21 Conference
Across five overlapping key themes or topics, the ‘Futuring Craft’ conference will map contemporary crafts and define the scope of craft making in the Indian Ocean region. The dynamic exchange of knowledge and ideas will critically analyse and challenge notions that crafts are embedded in the past and address the concept of, ‘Craft … as elemental to a future economy and culture.’ (Fry, 2011, p.139)
Update: September 2020
The Triennial team continues to develop the Triennial main exhibitions and a festival is brewing of over 25 supporting exhibitions across Western Australia – aligning with the curatorial themes of the first Indian Ocean Triennial, with a focus on craft in the region.
Research & Travel
Our desk research has been complemented by travel to local, regional and international art centres. We have connected with artists in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Malaysia, Singapore and South Africa.
Seed funding support from the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries made it possible to better acquaint with craft practices across Australia through physical visits to the Cairns Indigenous Art Fair, Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair, Desert Mob and Tarnanthi in Adelaide.
Craft Triennial Update
The past year has been exceptionally busy following the announcement in late 2018 of the intended Triennial 2021. We are pleased that the concept has been well received, both here in Australia and around the Ocean’s rim. Our team of independent curators has been researching, planning, meeting artists and organisations, and discussing the production of the exhibition and auxiliary projects in the community.
Craft Sector Briefing
When we held an introductory briefing for the local craft sector in WA – over 50 individuals and representatives from organisations attended the session at Artsource in Fremantle. Documented by West TV, the session enabled our group to present our thinking and invite participation and engagement.