Artist Meissa Mason with curators Eren Maltby and Monisha Kumar set up Project Contemporary Artspace in Wollongong for the annual Pride month exhibition. Photo: Zoe Cartwright.
Beat the winter blues and celebrate Pride with vibrant creativity this June at the Wollongong Pride Art Festival.
Hosted by Project Contemporary Artspace on Keira Street, the exhibition features works from more than 20 local, queer artists and will run until 22 June.
Some of the works explore themes of transformation and metamorphosis and others are explicitly queer, while a number of works don’t explore gender or sexuality at all.
Curators Eren Maltby and Monisha Kumar said the decision not to impose a central theme on all the works was intentional.
“You can’t judge something as queer or not, it’s so ingrained into our sensibility,” Monisha said.
“You can’t separate being queer from being creative and being a person; all of our expressions come out as queer in one way or another.”
Eren said by keeping the exhibition open-ended they were able to invite diverse experiences and perspectives into the space.
“Even though it is a pride exhibition with queer artists, it’s not just about that,” they said.
“It’s about the whole person and whole community, from disability and race to gender and sexuality. It’s intersectional.”
Featured artists range in age from 15 to 70, and vary from first-time exhibitors to seasoned pros.
As part of their commitment to supporting creatives in the margins, thanks to support from Wollongong City Council Eren and Monisha were able to cover the cost of entry for three deserving artists.
One of those artists is Wiradjuri, Gomeroi and Awabakal woman Meissa Mason.
Meissa can’t remember a time when she didn’t paint, but finding the time and money to exhibit as an adult is a challenge.
She said the inclusive vibe at Project Contemporary Artspace took the pressure off, and the financial support removed the final obstacle for her.
“I’ve come to the Pride exhibition and events for the past two years, and I don’t know any other spaces like this in the Illawarra,” she said.
“It’s incredible to have the opportunity to experience being in an official exhibition in an accessible way.
“If you don’t do something, you never do it, and I already felt a part of the community here.”
Meissa has submitted two works. Gaawul, means ‘lagoon’ in Gamilaraay and features a blend of European and Aboriginal folklore with Country; Blue Moon is inspired by Billie Holiday.
Meissa encouraged aspiring artists to follow their interests and push through when the work gets difficult.
“I begin with an idea but try not to have expectations of the works or be a perfectionist about it,” she said.
“If something isn’t perfect I just keep going – it often looks great at the end even if you get halfway through and things aren’t going exactly the way you want them to.
“You have to trust the process.”
The Pride exhibition will also feature special events from the opening night on Friday 6 June, a life drawing session on Thursday 12 June, a Pride market day on Saturday 14 June, an amateur drag and open mic night on Saturday 21 June and a drag workshop on Sunday 22 June.
The drag workshop will be hosted by Lawrence of Australia and Roxee Horror.
Eren Maltby and Monisha said they wanted to make the celebration as accessible as possible to the community as well as to artists.
All of the associated events except the life drawing session are free.
They hope people of all ages, backgrounds and orientations will be able to take some joy, and some wisdom, from the experience.
“We can all learn from each other,” Monisha said.
“Queer people have always been here; we’re not something new.
“You can be 70 and non-binary and creating art and as long as you’re happy that’s what’s important.”
The Wollongong Art Pride Festival opens on Friday 6 June and runs until Sunday 22 June. Entry is free. For more information head to Art Events | Project Contemporary Artspace Wollongong
