Artistry On Wheels - A Journey Through Creativity

By centring community voice, embracing collaborative processes, building upon local cultural strengths, and integrating environmental sustainability, Artistry On Wheels exemplifies the transformative potential of community arts and cultural development to build social cohesion, celebrate diversity, and create platforms for collective expression and action that respect both cultural and ecological contexts.

Artistry On Wheels emerged directly from an extensive community consultation process with Central Coast artists and culturally diverse communities. This collaborative dialogue identified several community-defined needs:

• Central Coast CaLD artists expressed the need for local paid performance opportunities, cross-disciplinary collaboration spaces, and platforms to develop new multidisciplinary work and connect with diverse audiences
• CaLD communities articulated their desire for free arts and cultural programs that authentically represent the many cultures on the Central Coast
• Community members highlighted the importance of accessible arts programming to facilitate integration of new arrivals, promote cross-cultural understanding, and transform the Central Coast into a more inclusive place to live, work, and play
• Stakeholders identified gaps in arts access within public schools, community centres, aged care facilities, and juvenile centres, and recognised the need to address community issues through the co-design of multidisciplinary arts and cultural works that respond to local challenges such as racism, social isolation, mental health, and domestic violence

In response to these community-identified priorities, we co-designed Artistry On Wheels as a collective solution, ensuring that community voices remained central throughout the development process.

Artistry On Wheels is a community-driven initiative that brings arts and cultural experiences to unexpected locations and traditionally underserved areas across the Central Coast through a sustainable, mobile performance space. Co-created with My Dream Van Co in partnership with local artists and community organisations, this eco-friendly pop-up stage serves as a platform for culturally-centred, contemporary live performances and interactive workshops that respond to community-identified needs.

Rather than delivering pre-determined programming, Artistry On Wheels facilitates spaces where community members actively participate in shaping artistic experiences that reflect their own cultural expressions, stories, and aspirations. The program builds on existing community cultural assets and strengths, positioning local artists and cultural knowledge-holders as leaders in a process of collective creative exploration.

• Programs emerge from ongoing dialogue with communities, ensuring relevance to local contexts
• Decision-making power is shared with participating communities, who help determine performance content, workshop design, and locations
• Community members participate as co-creators, not just audiences
• Artists work alongside communities to facilitate expression of local stories and cultural heritage

• Breaking down geographical and economic barriers to artistic participation through mobile programming
• Creating platforms for intercultural dialogue that supports integration of new arrivals
• Activating under-utilised public spaces through community-defined cultural activities
• Building capacity within local communities to sustain their own cultural development

• Supporting a network of 22 local artists through collaborative mentorship structures
• Building reciprocal relationships with 14 community organisations that enhance existing community initiatives
• Creating spaces for knowledge exchange between established and emerging artists
• Facilitating cross-cultural artistic collaboration that respects cultural protocols and practices

• Co-designing an eco-friendly mobile stage equipped with solar panels and energy-efficient lighting to minimise environmental impact
• Promoting environmental sustainability as a core value identified by community stakeholders
• Modeling responsible environmental practices in alignment with community values and concerns
• Creating programming that explores connections between cultural sustainability and environmental stewardship
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• Prioritising First Nations and culturally diverse artists' leadership in program development
• Ensuring equitable access to cultural participation regardless of age, ability, or background
• Maintaining transparent evaluation processes led by participating communities
• Recognising the interconnection between cultural expression and community wellbeing

Artistry On Wheels doesn't simply deliver arts experiences to communities; it facilitates participatory processes through which communities strengthen their own capacity for cultural expression and social connection. The program measures success not just in audience numbers but in the depth of community engagement, the strengthening of local cultural networks, and the development of sustainable creative practices that remain within communities long after specific events.

The mobile nature of the program, using an eco-friendly vehicle equipped with solar panels and energy-efficient lighting, reflects our commitment to environmental sustainability alongside cultural sustainability. This approach emerged from community consultations where participants expressed the importance of responsible environmental practices in cultural programming. By integrating sustainability as a core value across all performances and workshops, Artistry On Wheels demonstrates how cultural expression and environmental stewardship can work hand in hand to create more resilient communities.