Please join us in congratulating our latest selection of Small Grant recipients for Round 2 of 2023. In our second round, we have awarded 11 LGBTQIA+ creatives, communities, businesses and organisations with a grant of up to $1000 towards a project that benefits their local LGBTQIA+ communities. Keep reading to learn about each of these projects and the communities behind them.
Feast Festival
Feast Festival is Adelaide’s Premier LGBTQIA+ Arts and Cultural Festival. Founded in 1997, Feast was created to provide a safe space and platform for the LGBTQIA+ community, where artists could freely express themselves, something that didn’t exist at that time. The festival is using their PFA Small Grant to fund 5 x 3 hour Drop In workshop sessions combining queer guest speakers and interactive craft led by LGBTQIA+ artists. This project will improve the mental health/wellbeing of LGBTIQ+ 15–25 year old youth by building confidence and connection in an affirming, safe space.
Gay and Lesbian Archive Western Australia
The Gay and Lesbian Archives Western Australia (GALAWA) Inc. was formed in the mid-1990’s to collect and protect various materials produced by and for the gay and lesbian community in Western Australia. The collection consists of street press, newsletters, magazines, organisational documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, manuscripts (published and unpublished), posters, costumes and various other items.
The PFA Small Grant will be used by GALAWA towards the process of providing a catalogue of the archive inventory to the National Library of Australia for national significance assessment.
Dreamlife Zine
DREAMLIFE is a community-made zine, which aims to provide young transgender, gender diverse and non-binary people with positive visions for the future, and access to their own and others’ ‘dream lives’, as well as showcasing the diversity and multiplicity of the trans community.
The production of DREAMLIFE is incredibly process-driven, centred around the creative guidance of a committee of young TGD people, alongside a young designer, who will be mentored by an older TGD designer. The PFA Small Grant awareded to DREAMLIFE helps towards funding its continued production over the next year.
Illawarra Shoalhaven Gender Alliance
Illawarra Shoalhaven Gender Alliance Inc (ISGA) is a health promotion charity that aims to support the health and wellbeing of the local trans and gender diverse (TGD) community. ISGA runs an annual community festival at the start of Trans Week of Remembrance in November, the Trans and Friends Festival (TAFFI). The 2022 TAFFI festival combined an academic program with 20 speakers, 40 community stalls and entertainment by 20 performers. The festival was entirely volunteer run with in kind support from the University of Wollongong, and approximately 1000 people attended.
ISGA have been awarded a PFA Small Grant towards supporting their 2023 Trans and Friends Festival occurring on November 12th 2023.
Mardi Gras-Burg Festival
Marburg’s inaugral Mardi Gras-Burg Festival will be a family-friendly, festival-style event that includes physical, mental health, legal and disability support services for LGBTQIA+ people and their families, inclusive and fun activities for all ages and live entertainment and music. It is anticipated that the Mardi Gras-Burg Festival will positively promote broader community views and acceptance of LGBTQIA+ families and individuals living in the semi-rural community of the Ipswitch region.
The funding from the PFA Small Grant goes towards providing an event that is safe and inclusive for the whole community, especially LGBTQIA+ people.
Marijke Bassani – Welcoming the Unwelcome: A Black Rainbow Homecoming
Marijke is a First Nations woman from Cape York who is an advocate for gender and ethnic equality. She is currently completing PhD research in that space, particularly focusing on the rights of LGBTQI+ Indigenous people.
Marijke’s awarded PFA Small Grant contributes to funding a combined academic and creative Cape York Peninsula based project that will inform a 2-3 year postdoc consisting of a twofold structure: 1) Academic; and 2) Creative. This project is scholarly and community building work that aims to cultivate space for First Nations LGBTQI+ Sistergirl, Brotherboy, 2Spirit & IndigiQueer peoples to challenge our position as the invisible, and hypervisible, Indigenous ‘Other’ by reclaiming, and taking up, space within our communities. The project will involve taking portraits and collecting contemporary narratives about community life for rainbow mob in Cape York which will be collated into a book to visually reinforce our cultural position and significance within our communities.
Nautanki Theatre
Nautanki Theatre are the artistic platform for South Asian talent, uniting creatives and offering them the opportunity to showcase unique creative skills. They are the voice of the South Asian diaspora, telling their stories in this amazing and diverse land.
Their latest project, “Tamanna” (desire) will be an open discussion on how it feels to be a gay Muslim. Nautanki aims to spend the next 2 years working with various artists and community members from Pakistani diaspora in Australia as a part of capacity building and harnessing creative opportunities to develop resources on the intergenerational conflicts around region, culture and sexuality, resulting in increased community resilience. Nautanki Theatre’s PFA Small Grant will be used towards efforts in this project.
United Ukrainians Inc
United Ukrainians WA was formed by a group of passionate Ukrainian Australians who felt the urgent need to rally together, to bring awareness, to raise funds, and to assist recently arrived Ukrainians, after the harrowing news that Russia had declared war on Ukraine.
In 2022, United Ukrainians WA had an entry in the Perth PrideFest Parade, made up of approx 40 individuals who banded together under the name ‘Ukrainian Refugees’, and consisted of recent arrivals, members of the established Ukrainian Community of Perth, and supporters. Their simple entry of Ukrainian and Pride flags, and a few simple banners landed them the ‘Crowd Favourite’ award. Their PFA Small Grant has been awarded to assist United Ukranians in their entry fee for the 2023 Perth PrideFest Parade.
Wesley Mission Queensland
Founded in the 1900s to provide meals to children and women in need, Wesley Mission Queensland now operates as a mission activity of the Albert Street Uniting Church. They work collaboratively with other Uniting Church congregations, community organisations and government bodies to provide accessible and flexible services to older people, those living with a disability or mental illness, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, refugees and vulnerable children and families. WMQ celebrates diversity and inclusion and provides a positive experience for the LGBTQIAP+ community in Logan.
Wesley Mission Queensland have been awarded a PFA Small Grant towards funding an LGBTQIAP+ youth art wellbeing session for up to 15 participants to celebrate Wear It Purple Day. The facilitated workshop will allow participants to explore and discover more about themselves and their LGBTQIAP+ identity in a safe and supported environment, while creating their own artwork.
Queer Family
Queer Family aims to create community for LGBTIA+ individuals living in the Northern Rivers of Northern NSW. Through community events, peer support and visibility, Queer Family creates family and belonging. Queer Family is soon to move into new premises after a long search post-flood damage.
The funding provided by this PFA Small Grant will assist Queer Family in creating free library of Queer-authored books available to the local community. A Queer library onsite will encourage visitors, create a talking-point for community, become a valuable community resource, and offer Queer-affirming, Queer-representing books to young people who may struggle to access such media otherwise.
Dae Knight – Playroom
Playroom is an upcoming week-long exhibition at Blindside ARI (Artist Run Initiative) in December 2023. It invites Trans and Gender-Diverse (TGD) artists to explore “Queer Childhood” through artwork and drag performances. A key element of the exhibition is that visitors can create dolls of themselves as an interactive component. Curated by TGD curators Dae Knight and Zoë Sydney, mentored by Zara Sully though Blindside’s emerging curator program, it promotes Queer art, claims Queer space in childhood, and supports Queer artists. The artist include Zeth Cameron (they/them – confirmed), Xanthe Dobbie (they/them – confirmed), Ivan Jeldres (they/them – confirmed) as well as two other artists to be confirmed with additional funding.
