Macleay dLab Program

The dLab National Program works within communities to move individuals from participants to collaborators. Just as art and science further knowledge and progress culture, the dLab program allows young people to re-imagine their future.  Macleay dLab is a partnership initiative between Kempsey Shire Council and dLux Media Arts. Supported by the Australia Council for the Arts, Regional Arts NSW and Charles Sturt University.

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Marvellous Melville, Kempsey

Image: Melville Highschool’s Marvellous Melville 

The Macleay dLab was on show at the very Marvellous Melville exhibition in Kempsey at Melville High School on 10 December 2015.

Marvellous Melville was a celebration of all the wonderful things the students had produced throughout the year. The students put on some amazing performances, music, art and MCing etc, which was supported by thunderous applause from students and staff.

The Macleay dLab film was shown at the beginning, showcasing the variety of workshops that had taken place in 2015 with the school students and staff- microscopic imaging, biomimicry, 3D design and printing and live synthesisers.

Also the Dunghutti Stories of Yesterday project was represented, which the pilot Peer Leader program had contributed to throughout the year, with support from the Macleay dLab through online storytelling and documentation, by blogging, collecting visual media and developing interviewing and writing skills.

Image: Yenny Huber from dLux Media Arts on the big screen

Words and images: Elizabeth Bond     

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Macleay dLab Exhibition

Today marks the final day of the Macleay dLab exhibition. ArtMakas Gallery in Kempsey has been filled with work produced by the program’s participants from the last two years of engagements in the region.

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Macleay dLab in the media

The local Macleay Argus publised Fri 23 Oct, showcasing our exhibition and workshops at the Art Makas gallery in Kempsey from 5-19 November. Exciting!

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The Elder’s Morning Tea

On 19 October The Elder’s Morning Tea was held at Odd Fellows Hall in Kempsey.  The event was organised by Emily King, as a chance for Elders who have involved in Dunghutti Stories of Yesterday to come together, watch interviews and videos of themselves and other elders, and enjoy a morning tea amongst the artwork which they helped to create.  

I set up a photography studio to photograph each of the elders, and Lizzie Bond interviewed them to gather information and quotes of the Artist Statements for upcoming and future exhibitions. 

Below is a selection of the portraits.  The full set of Elder’s Portraits will be on exhibition at the upcoming Macleay dLab Exhibition, which opens 5 November, for 2 weeks.  See the post about the exhibition below, for more information.

Some local students came along to help out on the day and had a good time getting their photo taken too.  

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Learning to think like an artist at Kempsey High School

Students from Kempsey High School who had participated in dLab workshops in 2015 came together for an Artists’ Statements workshop with Macleay dLab facilitators Elizabeth Bond and Alicia Fox.

They learned about artist statements, their purpose and were asked to see themselves as artists. Each student wrote their own artist statement to express their ideas and intentions around the works they had created.

Image: Inspired by nature

They had been in the Goori Books project and also created artworks using 3D printing, animation, microscopic imaging, lumen prints, cyanotypes, Televisionus Epilepticus and plant synthesisers and these works were to be displayed at the upcoming public Macleay dLab exhibition.

Words by Elizabeth Bond, image by Sam Taylor

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Macleay dLab exhibition

The Macleay dLab Program, run as a partnership with Kempsey Shire Council and dLux Media Arts, will be exhibiting a diverse range of digital and analogue media artworks produced by local students over the last 2 years. “The exhibition is comprised of projects that illustrate the experimental art and science-based creative practices that are utilised in the Macleay dLab Program” said Kempsey Shire Council Project Coordinator, Annabel Lines.

“Participants have learnt skills in animation, digital storytelling, filmmaking, photography, microscopic imaging, simple electronics, 3D printing and CAD design, all of which will be evident in projects throughout the gallery.” Since 2014, local artists and dLux facilitators have delivered a range of creative projects aimed at engaging young people that work at the intersection of art, science, and technology. Support from Charles Sturt University and a Regional Arts NSW grant has provided the project with digital equipment and allowed for professional development workshops to be held for educators and artists in the Shire. “Participants in the workshops have really benefitted from the experience of using the equipment as well as interacting with and learning from a wide range of artists bringing their particular skillsets to bear. Macleay dLab has opened up the worlds of technology, art and science in a spirit of exploration and invention and the resulting work is fun, beautiful, quirky and all the things one would like to see in an exhibition” said Ms Lines. A number of activities will take place throughout the exhibition run, including an animation workshop. The exhibition opening is from 6pm on the 5th November 2015.

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The 3d printing workshops held by Three Farm in conjunction with dLux and the Macleay dLab where a total success. Students from both Melville and Kempsey high studied design principals inspired by nature also known as Bio-mimicry and then got into designing an object. First they used modelling clay post it notes and pipe cleaners to nut out an idea then proceeded to 3d model it in ‘tinkercad’ a free on-line 3d design program. The designs where then printed on one of Three Farms 3d printers as seen here in this time-lapse video. 

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Up the Macleay- Bellbrook and Millbank Public Schools

The Macleay dLab and the Dunghutti Stories from Yesterday (Wiriiyn Ngun Ngun Dunghutti) team travelled up into the hinterland of the Macleay Valley to Bellbrook Public School (9 and 10 September 2015). We were also joined by students from Millbank Public School and students from Melville High School in the ‘Peer Leader’ mentorship program.

The Elders shared stories from the past about the Bellbrook area and the primary school kids created colourful artworks of their own interpretations of the stories. The Peer Leader students helped the younger students over the two days and documented the whole artistic and cultural learning process.

IMAGE 1: The 30 board mural of Bellbrook stories is finished!  

The Melville High School students compiled images and wrote a story for a blog post to reflect on their role as a mentor and their experience at Bellbrook:

IMAGE 2: Claire Saul has fun getting messy with the kids

“I feel very good about what I have been doing because I am learning about my own culture and helping others learn about my culture.”- Claire Saul

IMAGE 3: Bella Walder blogging in costume!

“I think that this project has helped the kids understand what an Aboriginal painting can show, even if it is just one small creature, that it can tell a fantastic story.”- Bella Walder

Words and images: Elizabeth Bond

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Team building project with students from Kempsey High school. The students worked together to construct this geodesic dome. The connector parts are all printed on a 3d printer and can be downloaded free from the internet. During workshops students discussed open sourcing intellectual property vs copyright, and the pros and cons of each option. We also discussed how 3d printing will disrupt some industries and create new ones as printing houses and machines becomes more prevalent. The students where so engaged that most didn't leave the room at lunch time preferring to continue working on the 3d designs.

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Speech by students from Kempsey High School

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These videos where created by the Goorie Books class from Kempsey High School and presented at Dalaigur Pre School’s 50th year celebration. The stories about growing up in the Macleay where told to the students by local indigenous elders. Students then brainstormed on ways to depict the stories and set about animating and bringing the stories to life with a little artistic licence.  

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Kempsey High School recently presented their animations at Dalaigur Pre School. The compilation was presented at the Dalaigur Pre School 50th year celebration amid: songs, dance, speeches,and stories from teachers, community members, elders, and children who are and were students at Dalaigur. The stories depicted in the animations were told by elders and brought to life with a little creative licence by the students at Kempsey High as part of the Goorie Books Project.

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Melville art murals take shape

A couple of pictures from this week’s Macleay dLab visit to Melville High School. The Melville High peer leaders got to mentor kids from their own high school and did not one, but two murals depicting Dunghutti stories from Greenhill and Burnt Bridge in Kempsey NSW.

IMAGE: The Melville High School kids looking at their artwork laid out together for the first time with art teacher Emily

IMAGE: Uncle Bob helps create a Dhunghutti stories’ artwork

Words and images: Elizabeth Bond

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Mentoring the mentors at Kempsey South

The Macleay dLab visited the Dunghutti Stories from Yesterday (Wiriiyn Ngun Ngun Dunghutti) project at Kempsey South Public School in Kempsey, NSW to mentor Year 9 students from Melville High School in the pilot ‘Peer Leader’ program.

Their role was to in turn mentor the primary kids throughout the day to help them create their artworks and to interview and film them talking about the stories shown in the paintings.

IMAGE: Melville High School students interviewing Kempsey South students under Uncle Bob’s watchful eye! 

We were joined by renowned Gumbaynggirr artist Richard Campbell who shared knowledge about art history and culture as well as assisting the kids to complete their art works.

IMAGE: Uncle Richard touching up Ruby’s painting- lucky Ruby! 

The Melville High School boys reflected on their role as a mentors and how they felt about being a role model for primary-aged kids:

“To be a mentor you have to have a certain behaviour around them because they look up to you and they want to follow you, so you have to set an example.”- Baily McKay

“I think what I’m doing at this school is a good thing because it is helping the kids with their culture and teaching them respect.”- Harold Thompson

IMAGE: Kempsey South kids with mentors at the back (L-R) Rhuben, Uncle Bob, Uncle Richard, Baily and Harold  

Words and images by Elizabeth Bond

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This guy is a shocker.

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It’s what’s on the inside that counts.