The beauty of Newcastle's annual This is Not Art festival is that it not only brings creative performers of all shapes, sizes and practices out of the woodwork, but creative thinkers as well.
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That is where Critical Animals comes into play on the festival program.
For 16 years the Critical Animals creative research symposium has been a place for students, researchers, writers, artists, academics and thinkers that are involved in creative and experimental art practices to come together to present papers and research material with the aim of generating discussion and collaboration.
"Critical Animals is a place for big questions, strange and difficult conversations and artists who don't neatly fit in defined institutional categories," Molly McNeill, a co-director for Critical Animals, said.
"It's an informal-formalised get together of academics and creatives from all different walks of life, who come together in a humble attempt to expand critical discourse in the arts."
Critical Animals events will be staged at The Lock-Up on Hunter Street in Newcastle between October 4 and 6.
There are 20 artists involved with the program this year which features 17 events. Ms McNeill described the 2019 program as "compact but ambitious".
"Our artists for this year are incredibly diverse in their practises and engagements," she said.
"We have a performance lecture about dolphins and utopic mutation research, experimental dance performances, research paper presentations, a work of physical theatre, and a workshop on developing sound and effective artistic-political praxis, amongst other things.
"Binding our program together are four individual discussions that take as their focal points the challenging interplay of the personal and structural and that host artists and academics engaged in the respective topics; emotion, gender, social change, and indigeneity.
"Plus, in addition to inter-state artists, we're super excited to be showcasing a large number of local artists, academics, and cultural practitioners."
This year, running concurrently to the symposium, is Emma Fielden's solo exhibition An Immeasurable Distance, which explores the nature of infinity, the universe and the human race's place in it.
The artist, who is currently based at Parramatta Artists Studios, will also talk about 'Something/ Nothing/ Everything' at The Lock-Up on Sunday, October 6, from 4pm.
Another Critical Animals event will be a panel discussion about Indigenous voices and issues in art.
The panel will comprise of artists and cultural practitioners. They will be discussing the topic at The Lock-Up from 4pm on Saturday, October 5.
For the 2019 Critical Animals program head to criticalanimals.com.
For the full This is Not Art program, which also includes the Crack Festival and National Young Writers' Festival, go to thisisnotart.org.
Ellie-Marie Watts
A journalist with 10 years experience, Ellie-Marie connects readers to the stories that matter in their communities. A Port Stephens-based news, sport and event writer and photographer with a passion for human interest features.
A journalist with 10 years experience, Ellie-Marie connects readers to the stories that matter in their communities. A Port Stephens-based news, sport and event writer and photographer with a passion for human interest features.
