Open Call: ‘My Time’ Local Residency 2017

January 19, 2017January 20, 2017Leave a comment

Fresh Milk is pleased to share, for the fourth year in a row, an open call for the ‘My Time’ Local Residency 2017.

Having again received generous support to make this residency possible, one Barbadian artist will be selected from this call to undertake a one-month residency at Fresh Milk, and will receive a stipend of $1,000.00 BBD towards their artistic practice. Visual artists working across a number of disciplines (sculpture, installation, painting, drawing, performance, photography, new media, interdisciplinary) are invited to apply.

We are open to a variety of projects and proposals, but are particularly interested this year in artists who wish to engage with the material in the Colleen Lewis Reading Room, using the residency as a space of research, production and expansion of references & knowledge.

Duration of Residency: 4 weeks

Fresh Milk will provide:

– A $1,000.00 BBD stipend to the artist
– Wireless internet
– A 15.5 x 14 ft studio space
– A wide expanse of rural land
– Access to the Colleen Lewis Reading Room on site
– A varied network of creatives to connect with
– Facilitation of community outreach initiatives
– The option to participate in a public event showcasing the outcome of the residency

Eligibility criteria:

– Artist must be Barbadian
– Artist must not have taken part in an on-site Fresh Milk Residency within the last 2 years

Expectations of the Artist:

– Artist must come out to the studio a minimum of four days per week between Monday and Friday. Studio access is between 8 am and 6 pm
– Artist must supply their own materials and equipment
– Artist must complete some form of public outreach in relation to the work created during the residency (artist talk/presentation, workshop, exhibition, etc.)
– Artist will be required to keep a weekly blog of their activities and processes, and submit a report to Fresh Milk at the conclusion of the residency
– Artist will be required to donate a piece of work to the donor who made this residency possible

Application Process:

To be considered, please submit the following to freshmilkbarbados@gmail.com with the subject line ‘My Time Local Residency 2017 Proposal’:

– The completed application form which can be downloaded here (includes applicant’s contact information, an artist statement, and full residency proposal)
– An up to date Curriculum Vitae (CV)
– A numbered portfolio of 5-10 images (or 2-3 short videos as the case may be) of recent work
– An index of the portfolio pieces in numerical order, with the title, medium and date listed

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

The deadline for submission is February 17, 2017. The residency will take place between March 6 – 31, 2017.

Anisah Wood’s Residency – Week 4 Blog Post

July 11, 2016Leave a comment

Barbadian artist Anisah Wood, recipient of the 2016 ‘My Time’ Local Residency at Fresh Milk, shares her final blog post. The last week was hectic, including public presentations, the conclusion of her Quid Pro Quo skills-exchange programme and interactions with fellow creatives on the platform, but the experience and the material sourced in the Colleen Lewis Reading Room during her residency is sure to have left a significant and ongoing impression on Anisah’s practice moving forward. Read more below:

Torika Bolatagici and Anisah Wood at FRESH MILK XIX

Monday – the FRESH MILK XIX public event.
Tuesday – the final Quid Pro Quo session hosted by Torika.
Wednesday – the presentation for participants in a UNESCO Workshop.
Thursday – positioned myself in front of Torika’s camera as part of her project in response to her time in Barbados

Yup, clearly the final week of this residency was eventful, hectic, yet enjoyable. These events allowed for an expansion in my network, an interchange of thoughts and ideas, and collaborations with a fellow artist.

During the in-between moments I decided to peruse the text Caribbean: Art at the Crossroads of the World. Within this comprehensive book I stumbled across a work by Dominic Serres entitled The Capture of Havana, 1762. The English Battery Before Morro Castle, c. 1775. This painting pays homage to the epic battle between Spain and Britain towards the end of the Seven Years’ War. In fact this was the last major episode of the Seven Years’ War, which so happened to be meted out in Caribbean waters and involved the capture of Havana.

The Islands as a battleground. The site of Euro-American conflicts and ambitions. Colonialism and territoriality.

Continually I am amazed at the fact that global contemporary issues involving borders, territory and migration are concerns that have affected the Caribbean for centuries, indelibly shaping the region’s identity. So then what are the effects of these events on the contemporary Caribbean? And how can this territorial history and the current manifestation of this history and concerns within the region add to the global debate regarding borders?

On a lighter note, I crocheted a small bag as a parting gift to the Bolatagici family. I also got a chance to observe Renelde take charge as she directed the actors for the play she had taken on board for her residency. It was actually quite riveting to observe the methods of production within another artistic field. I also commenced on a small project in response to the thoughts I have been reading, and enjoyed small eats with fellow Quid Pro Quo participants.

Now My Time at Fresh Milk as a resident is up. It is a bitter sweet moment knowing that those who were residents with me, along with those who willingly volunteered to be part of the Quid Pro Quo programme, will be parting ways. But how wonderful it was to have been able to make the acquaintance of such interesting and passionate people. And as I pack my Georgie bundle and contemplate on my time spent here, I feel satisfied and grateful for this experience. Now it’s time for my next step towards the deep end of the art world.

Thank you to the Fresh Milk team, Torika Bolatagici and her family, Sheena Weekes, Akhaji Zakiya, all those who came out and supported the FRESH MILK XIX public event, and all others who consistently demonstrated their support during my time at Fresh Milk.

Anisah Wood’s Residency – Week 3 Blog Post

July 4, 2016July 4, 2016Leave a comment

Resident artist in the 2016 ‘My Time’ Local Residency Programme, Anisah Wood, writes about her third week on the Fresh Milk platform. While questioning her future as a working artist and being faced with professional decisions, Anisah was able to gain inspiration from a session of her Quid Pro Quo skills exchange programme led by Akhaji Zakiya about creative business practices, as well as observing the current resident in the collaborative National Cultural Foundation & Fresh Milk Emerging Directors Residency programme, Renelde Headley. Read more below:

Week 3 flew by leaving only fragments for contemplation. Much of these scattered pieces revolved around the possibilities for my next step. It could be that it finally dawned upon me that I have only one week remaining in this residency, or maybe it was the looming deadline to apply for a teaching position. But then again, do I really want to teach within the governmental system? Furthermore, how will I balance a productive artistic career while working any 9-5 job? Or will my young artistic career fall onto the back-burner and be reduced to a thing of the past? Nah, I don’t think so. I’m determined to continue. And if I don’t, I humbly ask you, reader, to kindly remind me of this testimonial.

Sheena Weekes, Akhaji Zakiya, Anisah Wood and Torika Bolatagici (and baby Kamasi!), participants in the Quid Pro Quo Skills Exchange Programme

Launch of the NCF and Fresh Milk collaborative Emerging Directors Residency

Moreover Akhaji provided some timely suggestions during her Quid Pro Quo session. She kindly gave us the opportunity to list our concerns and potential challenges and provided ways in which these can be countered. It was definitely the encouragement that I needed to go forth and conquer. I also received further encouragement observing Renelde, a recent addition to the residents, take on the 2 week Emerging Directors Residency. It was so great being able to converse with someone within another aspect of the artistic sector and to observe their process.

Renelde Headley, Katherine Kennedy and Anisah Wood

Now I’m about to enter my final week. I can already tell its going to be hectic with a public presentation in addition to the final Quid Pro Quo experience back to back. Nevertheless I will savor these last days at Fresh Milk.

FRESH MILK XIX

June 22, 2016Leave a comment

The Fresh Milk Art Platform is pleased to present FRESH MILK XIX, taking place on Monday, June 27, 2016 from 6-8 pm. The event will feature Fijian-Australian artist Torika Bolatagici and Barbadian artist Anisah Wood, who are in residence at Fresh Milk for the month of June.

Torika will be speaking about both her own work and that of a selection of Pacific artists in a talk titled ‘Seeing the Black Pacific’. Anisah – the winner of the 2016 ‘My Time’ Local Artist Residency – will make a presentation about her practice and residency experience so far, as well as have an open discussion with Torika about her work.

This event is free and open to the public. Directions to Fresh Milk can be found on the ‘About Page’ of our website here.

Seeing the Black Pacific

During her residency in Barbados, Fijian-Australian artist Torika Bolatagici has been exploring the historical, cultural and biotic similarities of the island cultures of Fiji and Barbados. With shared histories of British colonization, cannibal mythology, indentured labour, tourism and a declining sugar industry, there are as many parallels between the two countries as there are differences. Torika is interested in how contemporary artists from these respective regions respond to, reflect and represent the island cultures of Melanesia and the Caribbean.

In this presentation, Torika will give an overview of the diverse practices emerging from Australian-based artists of Melanesian and Indian-Fijian heritage.

From the series ‘Kikau Street’ © Mohini Chandra, 2015

‘Tabu (sacred)’ © Torika Bolatagici, 2014

From the series ‘The Blood Generation’ © Taloi Havini and Stuart Miller. 2009

Cultural Heritage, Revival and Redress
Julia Mage’au Gray (Papua New Guinea)
Lisa Hilli (Papua New Guinea)
Dulcie Stewart (Fiji)

Performing Contemporary Oceanic Identities
Salote Tawale (Fiji)
Eric Bridgeman (Papua New Guinea)

Positioning the (Geo)political Pacific
Taloi Havini (Autonomous Region of Bougainville);
Mohini Chandra (Fiji)
Torika Bolatagici (Fiji)

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About the featured speakers:

Torika Bolatagici

Torika Bolatagici was born in Tasmania and spent the early years of her life living between Hobart, Sydney and her father’s village – Suvavou, Fiji.

Torika works across a range of media, including photography, video and mixed media site-specific installation. Her interdisciplinary practice investigates the relationship between visual culture, human ecology, postcolonial counter narrative and visual historiography of the Black Pacific. She is interested in exploring the tensions and intersections between gender, embodied knowledge, commodification, migration and globalization.

Torika’s work has been exhibited in New York, San Francisco, Mexico City, Yogyakarta and throughout Aotearoa, New Zealand and Australia. She has published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at local and international conferences and symposia about the representation of mixed-race identity; Pacific arts practice in Australia and Fiji; representations of teachers and teaching in cinema; and gender and militarism in the Pacific.

In her role as Symposium coordinator for the Contemporary Pacific Arts Festival in 2013 and 2014, Torika curated multiple panels to extend the discourse around contemporary Pacific arts practice in Australia and invited speakers to reflect on themes such as art and activism, museums, collecting and curating, cultural appropriation and contemporary practice. She also produced the symposium publication Mana Motu.

As well as 11 years experience teaching at tertiary level, Torika also has experience facilitating youth arts workshops for the local Pacific community, most recently the Pacific Photobook Project in Melbourne and Sydney.

Torika also presents the Community Reading Room – a pop-up destination for research, community discussion and engagement around international visual arts and culture, with a particular focus on contemporary art and theory from Oceania, Africa and the Americas. The Community Reading Room has appeared at Colour Box Studio (2013) and the Footscray Community Arts Centre (2014).

Torika is a photography lecturer in the School of Communication and Creative Arts at Deakin University, Melbourne where she teaches contemporary theory and practice. She is currently undertaking a PhD at the School of Art and Design, University of New South Wales.

Anisah Wood

Anisah Wood is a visual artist based in Barbados. She is in the process of completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Barbados Community College with a major in Studio Art. Her practice involves video art, digital photography, and installation. She has had the privilege of exhibiting the results of her practice at the Punch Creative Arena, The National Arts Council Barbados and at various national arts competitions.

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Torika Bolatagici’s project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.

Anisah Wood’s Residency – Week 2 Blog Post

June 22, 2016June 21, 2016Leave a comment

Barbadian artist Anisah Wood writes about the second week of her Fresh Milk ‘My Time’ Local Residency. The community outreach component of her residency, the Quid Pro Quo skills exchange programme, continues to be a highlight of her experience, as well as interacting and sharing knowledge with fellow resident Torika Bolatagici and reconsidering perceptions of the Caribbean space. Read more below.

Quid Pro Quo was indeed one of the highlights of the week. This particular session was hosted by Sheena Weekes, who enlightened us on the process of a medical examination. As we in the audience keenly listened and participated in the session, we also witnessed Sheena’s visible eagerness to extend her knowledge of the medical field to us. It was that enthusiasm shown by both parties coupled with the feeling of satisfaction having learned something new and practical, that convinced me that Quid Pro Quo was indeed a great idea that will benefit all involved.

I also had my first Hasselblad experience thanks to Torika Bolatagici. That was a heavy piece of equipment, but the experience of peering into the view finder at a flipped frame dwarfs the digital live view any day. However, I eventually returned to the digital world as my means of production. I’ve started editing another video to add to my body of work. As I engaged in this process, I found myself frequently contemplating on how my work can better address the peculiarities of the Caribbean space, and the various relationships as well as tensions that exist within it. What really is the Caribbean space? How is it on one hand interconnected and on the other hand fragmented? Inviting yet hostile? And how can my observations of these enquiries be represented? … I am still turning these thoughts over in my head and with each turn I unearth a new possibility.