Announcing… Digital Culture Fund artists, 2010.

I’m delighted to be able to announce the artists & projects we are supporting through the inaugural Digital Culture Fund 2010. You will be hearing more about each of them, but for now here’s a quick overview…

*drumroll*

Lucas Abela (NSW) – $32,000
Production of an audio/video racing game installation where audiences compete against each other to race modified cars on a racecourse of recycled vinyl records.

Linda Dement (NSW) – $38,000 
Creative development of an audio-visual performance responding to live data capture from an all-girl roller derby game.

John Haag (QLD) – $24,584 
An interactive animated movie installation for children, blending real-time 3d motion capture with live performance.

David Kirkpatrick (NSW) – $21,000 
An interactive DJ/VJ dance floor interface at the Sydney Opera House, for a project engaging at-risk youth, in partnership with Shopfront Contemporary Arts and Heaps Decent.

Kelli McCluskey (WA) – $31,287 
A residency to develop a site-specific interactive augmented reality artwork for the Biennale of Sydney.

Sam Rodgers (SA) – $12,750 
Production of an iPhone application and flash mob project, where the Format festival zine community in Adelaide can create and self-publish electronic zines and photo comics.

Adriaan Stellingwerff (NSW) – $11,000 
An augmented reality travel service where your journey depends on a virtual balloon driven by the real-world affect of the wind.

I don’t want to make this an awards speech, but I would really like to name, and give a huge thanks to, all the people who have been involved in the Digital Culture Fund to date:

• Everyone who applied to both the Expressions of Interest and final application rounds. There are a lot of fantastic concepts and brilliant minds out there!
• The peers, who provided enthusiastic discussion around the concept of digital culture and a richly considered analysis across all the applications, were David Cranswick, Sherre de Lys, Tess Dryza, Brad Giblin, George Khut and Tanja Visosevic.
• The final peer assessment meeting was convened by Andrew Donovan, Inter-Arts Director with Kathryn Gray, Inter-Arts Program Officer; Ricardo Peach, Inter-Arts Manager, Laura Potts, Inter-Arts Section Coordinator; and Melissa Habjan, ArtStart Administration Officer and myself.
• The Australia Council team who reviewed the initial Expressions of Interest were Tony Grybowski, Cecelia Cmielewski, Ricardo Peach, Kathryn Gray, Jackie Bailey and myself.

A complete report is available via the Australia Council website.

(photo credit: fee’s rather dark snapshot of games-night-meets-cocktail-bar ‘Ultracade‘ in Adelaide).

UPDATE: Please note there is a new round of the Digital Culture Fund.