Presenter Information

THE CAD FACTORY

The Cad Factory is an artist led organisation creating an international program of new, immersive and experimental work guided by authentic exchange, ethical principles, people and place.

A multi-disciplinary organisation that engages with the real world to extract poetry from lived experience, the Cad Factory places people at the centre of its practice, believing that if the arts is about an exploration of the human condition, then engagement with human beings is the best way to make meaningful work.

The Cad Factory embraces opportunities to expand contemporary arts practice by working with diverse sectors such as health, business, education, community and the environment. They work independently and in collaboration to create new contemporary art and performance.

Our programming is based on breaking down hierarchies and binaries that exist within our contemporary world; such as the division of regional and urban, man and woman or human and non-human. We understand these realities as being in complex, intra-connected relationships, rather than in opposition. The Cad Factory believes some of the best, most original, innovative and exciting ideas exist just beyond the things we know, where real and imagined borders are porous.

Vic McEwan

Vic McEwan is the Artistic Director of The Cad Factory, an innovative arts organisation based in regional NSW. He explores experimental and contemporary arts practice in partnership with diverse sectors. Vic was the 2015 Artist in Residence at the National Museum of Australia and the recipient of the Inaugural Arts NSW Regional Fellowship 2014/16. Vic’s practice involves working with sound, video, installation and performance, with a particular interest in site-specific work. He is interested in creating new dynamics by working with diverse partners and exploring difficult themes within the lived experience of communities and localities. Vic aims to use his work to contribute to and enrich broader conversations about the role that the arts sector can play within our communities. He sits on the Inaugural NSW/ACT Arts/Health State Leadership Group and is a board member of Music NSW.

OPEN SPACE CONTEMPORARY ARTS

OSCA is an annually funded artist-led organisation based in South Australia and a leader of contemporary arts projects and programs in the public domain. Over the last 4 years, the company has created an impressive track record of innovation across city, suburban, outer urban and regional locations in Australia and internationally at the intersection of interdisciplinary practice and socially engaged art. OSCA provides opportunities for artists, non-artists and communities to dream, develop and take part in the creation of contemporary artworks that explore new ideas and collaborative models of participation. OSCA’s visibility in the greater Australian arts ecology is fast becoming known for its broad scope of innovative projects that find new audiences in unexpected places. www.open-space.org.au/

Paul Gazzola

OSCA Artistic Director Paul Gazzola is an artist and curator whose practice is known for its innovative approach within the expanded fields of participatory/ site-based art, performance and scenography. Over the last 20 years he has generated an innovative array of projects that have been commissioned and presented in Australia, and Internationally. He originally trained as a carpenter, has a B.A. in Performance (Dance), is a qualified Feldenkrais practitioner and in 2004, commenced studies in architecture. The culmination of these varied inquiries provide a unique platform of knowledge in his working life. He has held lead curator roles at Campbelltown Arts Centre, Critical Path, Performance Space, Salamanca Arts Centre & Vitalstatistix. www.paulgazzola.org/

Janine Peacock

As OSCA’s General Manager/Creative Producer/Co-CEO Janine has worked in the area of contemporary performance, site specific, spectacle, circus and physical theatre for over 30 years. Janine began her practice in technical roles and has worked with some of the best of Australian contemporary performance, community, dance companies and independent artists involving extensive touring nationally and internationally. After relocating to Adelaide Janine moved into administrative roles, firstly as General Manager of Kurruru Indigenous Youth Arts where she was responsible for seeing the organisation rise to a prominent position in SA youth arts with award winning festival projects, regional partnerships and a national profile. Janine is credited with the original concept, project management, community liaison and partnership development for ‘Second to None – An Aboriginal and Maritime Journey’ a large-scale community project involving 144 performers that still resonates within the community today.

ACTNOW THEATRE

ActNow is a South Australian theatre company that tailors socially conscious performance projects. They work with professional artists to engage diverse communities in conversations around challenging, contemporary issues with work that is innovative, informed, inspiring, and often confronting but never conventional. ActNow projects have been critically acclaimed, commended in South Australian Parliament, and highly praised by audiences, participants and community organisations.

Edwin Kemp Attrill

Edwin Kemp Attrill is a South Australian theatre maker. He is the founder and Artistic Director of ActNow Theatre and the former Artistic Director of the University of Adelaide Theatre Guild.

Edwin’s work focuses on interactive theatre and participatory storytelling exploring social justice themes. As a community arts practitioner, Edwin has worked with people with disabilities, prisoners, LGBTIQ communities, young people, refugees and migrants. He holds a Diploma in Theatre Arts through Victoria University and a Graduate Certificate in Art and Community Engagement through Victorian College for the Arts, and is an alumni of the Salzburg Global Forum’s global ‘Young Cultural Entrepreneurs’ program.

Edwin was the recipient of the 2013 Channel 9 Young Achievers Award for Career Leadership and 2015 Geoff Crowhurst Memorial Award at the South Australian Ruby Awards. He received the 2018 Australia Council Kirk Robson Award for outstanding leadership in Community Art and Cultural Development.