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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 6 Hansard (24 May) . . Page.. 1692 ..

MR SMYTH (continuing):

What the organisation does is pursue strategic partnerships. Through that they have been able to stage a number of bold proactive and celebratory projects and co-productions because they have secured funding over the three-year period. A perfect example of this is their recent production of the Youth's Eye View of the Millennium. They did that with Screensound Australia. It is very successful as a work of art and very successful as a partnership, especially as an example of showing the importance of giving youth the opportunity to put on their own performances. In that way it was also very successful.

Mr Speaker, art across this community is very important. As Mr Wood, Mr Hargreaves, Mr Osborne and Mr Kaine would testify, the art scene in Tuggeranong in particular is very strong. One of the great delights, of course, is the Tuggeranong Community Arts Centre. That centre performs a wonderful function down in the valley. It means that a wide range of different art forms have a venue in which they can show off their wares. They can challenge the community to think about what it is that we are and where we are going. As well, it provides opportunities to our young folk so that they can take up many different forms of the arts.

I was very pleased recently when the Tuggeranong Branch of the Liberal Party went to the Out of Mind Personal Reflections display. It is an exhibition of woodblock prints and etchings by emerging artists from the refugee community around the region. It was very interesting because it allowed them to express the emotions and the trauma that they had gone through as refugees. It looked at places as diverse as Ethiopia, Croatia, Bosnia and Burma. It was a credit to the community to put this together.

It is great that we have a venue in Tuggeranong where small exhibitions like this-there would not have been more than 20 or 30 pieces-can be viewed. It was a great night. Some of the members of my branch bought pieces of art, so they were able, in their own small way, to support the refugee community and support the print-making community in their endeavours. It is very important.

Mr Deputy Speaker, you would be well aware of the fact that Tuggeranong community arts recently had their annual general meeting because you are mentioned in the minutes. It is tremendous, when you look through the document that they put out, to see the wide range of activities that are carried on down there at the art centre and the opportunity it provides to hone up the skills of people in the valley.

The thing that really pleases me, in particular, is the shorelines project that they are currently working on. This is developing a sense of place about Tuggeranong. The invitation says, "Come and join us in creating a sense of place in Tuggeranong. You are invited along with others who live or work in Tuggeranong to contribute your ideas and thoughts about the environment of Tuggeranong in a special community art and design project beginning soon." There were two meetings. One was on 3 May during the day and the other was during that night. The fact that we all have an opportunity through our arts community to express ourselves is particularly important. You often see the Deputy Speaker at the feltmakers exhibition, for instance. I know of Bill's tremendous interest in this.

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