Public Art Sector Development - The City of Ballarat is committed to developing the skills of visual and multidisciplinary artists, offering a rare chance for creative practitioners to upskill into public art opportunities. This special program is competitive, with successful artists from across the region provided with in-depth education, training and mentoring over a series of months. The end result is a public facing event that you can share in. This cohort of talented creative artists are creating bold, experimental, and site-responsive works that activate public space.
This year the program is supporting 6 artists from the Ballarat region to develop their skills in site-responsive public art expressed through inflatable forms. The participants are taught through practical workshops, supported to test their ideas and taught new, experimental, and emerging methods of creative practice.
The Artists
THE mentors
the event
HIDDEN — a three-day micro festival transforming Civic Hall Ballarat into a dreamlike landscape of air, colour and imagination.
From 10–12 July, six local artists unveil large-scale inflatable works that invite you to wander, touch, listen and play. Guided by mentor Dr David Cross and brought to life by producers Mikael Abromowitch and Justin Weyers, HIDDEN is an immersive experience where the environment shifts and unfolds around you.
Soft forms rise and fall. Light filters through colour. Moments of surprise emerge as you move through the space.
Featuring installations by Jay Kulbardi, Annelìse Belladonna, Ben Pennell, Tom Bell, Kathy Holowko and Meaghan Shelton, this sensory experience celebrates curiosity, creativity and play.
There’s a quiet magic at the heart of HIDDEN – it will take your breath away.