What comes to mind when you think “Performance Space”?
PSpace is a space created by artists for artists in response to a need to explore and investigate new forms of art. For over 40 years, we have been dedicated to fostering creative voices and offering a place where new ideas can take shape.
To better understand and celebrate this legacy, we turned to the heart of our community: the artists we collaborate with, to reflect on the impact PSpace has had on their work. After all, who better to tell our story than the artists who help shape it?
Over the next month, we invite you to join us in listening to the inspiring stories of six amazing artists and their histories with PSpace.
You can already watch Tommy Misa, Samia Sayed, Lorcan Power, Betty Grumble and Marcus Whale reflect on their artistic practice, creative journey and everything PSpace.
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This campaign is a celebration of these talented practitioners and everything we create together, but it’s also a call to you, our wonderful community and audience members.
Your support helps us continue to provide a space where groundbreaking art can flourish, where new ideas can be explored, and where creativity has the freedom to grow. If you have the capacity, we ask you to please consider donating to PSpace for this end of year appeal.
Your donation is vital in helping us look toward the future, especially as we start laying the grounds for 2025. As we approach the new year, we are aware of the challenges and uncertainties that lie ahead. But we are also filled with hope and determination, driven by the belief that care, creativity, and connection are the guiding forces that will carry us through.
With your support, we can continue to nurture these values, strengthening the bonds within our community and helping artists connect with each other and with an ever growing audience.
But before we look ahead, let’s take a moment to reflect on what we've accomplished together this year thanks to the generosity and trust of our supporters.
In 2024, Performance Space has:
- Supported a total of 119 artists and arts practitioners through our diverse yearly program
- Delivered touchpoints and opportunities for artists throughout the year, including 7 residency programs and labs, helping to create more sustainable pathways for arts practitioners
- Launched the Experimental Performance Fellowship, the first of its kind in Australia
- Expanded our Queer Development Program, offering a longer development and mentoring period for emerging queer artists to present at our QDP Showcase
- Continued to grow and evolve our Experimental Choreographic Program, offering a new development stream in the program and included a public showcase of the work developed
- Delivered an dazzling and packed edition of Liveworks Festival, that featured 10 major works and 6 public programs, with nearly 90 artists involved in the making of these projects
None of this would have been possible without the continued support of our incredible community of donors, partners and friends.
We ask for your support today so we can continue doing this important work that is crucial in meeting the needs of arts practitioners and the independent sector.
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But don’t just take our word for it. Read some of the beautiful testimonials from our artists to hear first hand the impact of Performance Space on supporting cutting-edge and progressive art.
"When I think of Performance Space, I’m reminded of a collective of visionary artists and producers who have significantly shaped the landscape of contemporary performance art. PSpace's support goes beyond mere production; they nurture artists through experimentation, research, and development. Providing a platform for bold and boundary-pushing works, PSpace has created a space where new ideas thrive. PSpace’s commitment to showcasing diverse voices and perspectives has had a profound impact on both local and global performance ecologies, redefining the possibilities of performance."
“PSpace for me is about connection, community capacity building, a safe space to experience art’s dynamic edges and experimental thinking. As a queer documentary photographer of performance, it’s a place I feel deeply at home and with friends in.”
Emma Maye Gibson (AKA Betty Grumble)
“When I think about Performance Space, I think about us on a global stage. I think about what is possible in terms of showcasing the particular heart, humour and politics of the bodies that I’ve met through Performance Space. I think about rigour and I think about devotion. A devotion to culture and to listening to each other's bodies when we are in space together.
I think that Performance Space fulfils something very important in a society that craves ceremony (…). As a performance artist, I think that part of our duties is to become experts in aliveness and to try and transform energy - which is the very definition of magic. I truly believe and I know that my life has been changed by art, and I believe that Performance Space fulfils a very important part in society in giving people space to do this kind of magical work.”
“What comes to mind when I think about Performance Space is seeing and experiencing things that I couldn't imagine or haven't imagined before”.
“When I think of Performance Space I think instantly of the longevity of an organisation and the artists it cares for. How do we create sustainable practice that allows for artists to care for themselves as well as make/create/be in communion with each other and the world? Performance Space is one of the few organisations that I trust is invested in a long term relationship with me and my practice. It’s comforting knowing I can incubate and develop work over a longer period of time.”
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Our donors are an integral part of the history of PSpace, helping us continue identifying, nurturing and presenting visionary artists, while bringing groundbreaking and transformative work to our community and audiences to experience and enjoy.
We invite you to continue your support or join the incredibly important community of PSpace donors.
Any amount donated, no matter the size, makes a meaningful difference.
All donation over $2 are tax deductible
Or you can directly donate to our account:
Account name: Performance Space Ltd
BSB: 062231
Account number: 10244063
Bank: Commonwealth Bank