Designing a Capital: Crafting a City

» Sketching 2008 program details

In the lead up to Canberra's Centenary celebration in 2013, Craft ACT jumped upon the celebratory band wagon and threw our own ideas into the mix, developing Designing a Capital: Crafting a City. The inaugural program encouraged open dialogue through exhibitions and public events which were designed to reinvigorate community awareness and involvement in the culture-scape of the extraordinary phenomenon that is our National Capital.

In 2007 a week long event - Shifting Perspectives - kicked-off the program with Craft ACT Members and students from the Australian National University School of Art, University of Canberra and Canberra Institute of Technology invited to respond to the eternally pesky nature of Canberra's political identity. An evolving exhibition, Shifting Perspectives was where the art of politics was moulded by the hands of makers.

Designing a Capital: Crafting a City shone a light upon the treasures of our crafted city: the Craft ACT Accredited Professional Members. Two nights of conversation revealed the stories of prominent Craft ACT Accredited Professional Members focusing on the benefits and influences of having a practice based in Canberra.

Accredited Professional Member Janet DeBoos presented SET THEORY (CANBERRA) - an installation of ceramic tableware inviting members of the public to rearrange her work creating their own interpretation of the 'set'. Each newly created set was documented by the artist.

Pushing the debate envelope and challenging the perception that sport is more popular and the arts always runner up, Craft ACT hosted - The Art of Winning: does culture require a sexy sports marketing make over? As Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth cricket grounds have become the revamped mecca of this sporting nation, could Canberra whitewash the other capital cities and become the haven for Aussie arts? In the city that has the highest per capita rate attendance to both arts and sports events, audience members were treated to a robust debate as the world of sports hedged the arts, believing the future was in fast balls, celebrity status and outrageous fortunes, only to be contended by the arts who painted a sustainable cultural, rather than competitive future

Wrapping up the jam packed two weeks was the Craft ACT Bingo Extravaganza. Throwing high culture to the wind it was a night of Legs Eleven, 2 Little Ducks, 66 Clickety Clicks and where 1 Fat Lady tempted all stamping enthusiasts. An entertaining night of hard fought for prizes, the evening was the perfect crescendo to leave participants mulling over the future of our Nations Capital.