Testing grounds

Testing Grounds is a temporary space for creative practices encompassing art, performance and design. From October 2019- April 2020 a village of artists occupy the indoor spaces working on major creative projects.

The outdoor grounds are programmed through an open application process that supports interdisciplinary practice, experimentation and courage. Testing Grounds is a place where people at all levels can test, develop and share their work. We encourage both creative and education-related activities.

Submit an Expression of Interest

Archer Magazine’s First Nations issue launch party

All ages

3pm - 7pm

It’s party time! Join some of Melbourne’s finest queer and First Nations artists to celebrate this much-loved magazine’s latest issue!

Archer Magazine, the world’s most inclusive publication about sex, gender and identity, is a fiercely-loved Melbourne institution. We’re excited to launch our First Nations issue, guest-edited by Bridget Caldwell-Bright and Maddee Clark, and featuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists and writers sharing their perspectives and musings on sexuality, gender, identity and community.

Join us for performances, DJs, dancing, readings from the magazine, raffles and more. See you there!

Testing Grounds Studio Program

Ongoing

A village of artists occupy the indoor spaces working on major creative projects. Selected through a competitive application process this cohort of artists receive a free studio in the arts precinct for seven months. The studio artists are Dan Newell, Lichen Kelp, Roberta Rich, Ava Amedi, James Voller, Bridget Chappell, Aphids, Justin Balmain, Emilie Walsh and Susannah Langley.

Wilder

PUBLIC PROGRAM wilder is accompanied by a series of free events on the themes of urban design and nature management delivered by the artists in collaboration with other artists and industry experts.

Explores the potential of unsuppressed nature and land management in urban spaces.

The project presents a propositional space; a fissure in the blanket of bitumen and concrete where nature is given free license to grow wild without intervention or cognitive overlay.

Over the eight-month project period, audiences will have the opportunity to visit and re-visit the site to observe and reflect on nature’s response to the conditions of wilderness within the context of Melbourne’s urban environment.

Lichen Kelp studio

During her studio time, Lichen will also work on a project called ‘E skin’. It is an interactive electronic textile based on cuttlefish skin, which operates as a dazzling invisibility cloak and investigates the act of camouflage as a political practice. The textile will be developed into a wearable costume for performance.

Ava Amedi studio

During Ava's time on site, he will work on a project called 'Where Are You Now?'. It will address a problem that many artists face: the expectation to speak in grandiose terms about their practises when in public, a constant projection of excellence for those who consume their work.

James Voller studio

During his time at Testing Grounds, James will launch his new artist-run public art agency, focusing on increasing the diversity and scope of installations in and around Melbourne. The artworks generated will explore the space between temporary and permanent methodologies.

Dan Newell studio

Newell is the creator of performance hybrid DANDROGYNY and is currently working on queer, multi-modal performative critiques of Australian masculinities, its contradictions and toxicity, through their project NED KYLIE, which will be a focus of their studio with Testing Grounds.

Roberta Rich studio

During Roberta’s time with Testing Grounds, she will be undergoing research and creative development towards her collective, Her Africa Is Real (H.A.I.R) project, Afropodes; Reimagining African Archives.

Emilie Walsh studio

During Emilie’s time at Testing Grounds, she will focus on her special practice, particularly with viewing devices, investigating the impact on her work in public space. She will also work on producing a new body of work for a solo show programmed at Forty-five Downstairs Gallery in late January 2020.

Justin Balmain studio

Justin will be preparing an exhibition in Tromsø, Norway, and a seminar program at ERforS, drawing from cryptographic inscriptions created for spiritual, physical, and metaphorical protection against the suspected magical properties of a Black Mirror (held within the museum’s collections).

Bridget Chappell studio

Bridget is developing the project “To (Phase) Cancel The Cops”, encompassing the development of custom phase cancelling technology and its presentation as a performance-installation. The project explores the philosophy and acoustic science of phase cancellation, and its practical applications against urban politics of dis-appointment.

Susannah Langley studio

With her Testing Grounds studio, Susannah is working on innovative uses of virtual reality. Her project aims to set up virtual drawing experiments based on 360 sound, using Tilt Brush & AnimVR software, that audiences experience through a system of projection mapping and surround sound speakers.

Aphids studio program

During their time at Testing Grounds, Aphids will collaborate with workers of the gig economy to create a new live artwork called Easy Riders, which asks: how much of our daily lives should be lived by others? What are the moral and social implications of outsourcing? And who do we become once we become fully outsourced?

Project History

In 1925 the YMCA opened its headquarters on this site, on the banks of the Yarra River. In 1983, structural damage caused by the construction of the Roy Grounds designed Arts Centre and Concert Hall meant that the building needed to be demolished. The land was acquired by the State of Victoria as Crown Land and is reserved for arts purposes.

Since October 2013, Testing Grounds has provided Melbourne with an alternative arts space within the arts precinct. It has seen hundreds of artists show their work and has provided a space for experimental and emerging ideas to find a voice.
Testing Grounds has provided a backdrop for education and ideas-generation across a range of subjects — ideas around architecture, urban planning and community development have all been tried and tested on this strange triangle of land. It has allowed artists, students, producers and directors, painters and poets a space to take a chance, to extend their ideas and craft and make significant connections with new audiences. It has also provided the local Southbank community an open space to explore and enjoy, to walk a dog or let children play, or to just sit in a patch of sunlight for a minute and witness the beginning of a new art form.

In November 2016, Testing Grounds re-opened with upgraded infrastructure including 4 dedicated indoor spaces, and a large multipurpose outdoor area.

While the site’s long term future is still currently undetermined, Testing Grounds continues to occupy the site for the short term, providing an alternative place for creative activities, alongside more traditional venues in the precinct.

Project Team

Testing Grounds is operated by These Are The Projects We Do Together, a studio with a focus on public projects and programming within the fields of art, design and architecture; with support from the Victorian Government, through Creative Victoria.

Millie Cattlin

Design Director

Millie has been directly involved with setting up Testing Grounds and shaping the intention and direction of the project. Millie and Joe run The Projects, a design studio with a focus on public projects and programming within the fields of art, design and architecture. Millie has a background in architecture and design and is a registered architect in Victoria.

millie@theprojects.com.au

Joseph Norster

General Manager

Joe has been directly involved with setting up Testing Grounds and shaping the intention and direction of the project. Joe and Millie run The Projects, a design studio with a focus on public projects and programming within the fields of art, design and architecture. Joe has a background in theatre, lighting and production design and public art.

joseph@theprojects.com.au

Arie Rain Glorie

Program Director and Curator

Arie has been involved directly in shaping the program structure at Testing Grounds, and is your main point of contact for all creative projects. Arie is an artist and a curator with a focus on experimental and emerging models of creative practice. He has a background in producing large-scale contemporary art events, festivals and exhibitions.

arie@theprojects.com.au

Advisory Group

A group that discusses issues or areas of interest around the Testing Grounds project with the creative practitioner always at the forefront of the conversation.

Testing Grounds would like to thank the following people for their ongoing and valuable contribution: Gemma Gordon, Eugene Howard, Matthew Jones, Eugenia Lim, Mark Pritchard, Lynda Roberts, Kimba Thompson, Bree Trevena, and Michael Trudgeon.

Location and Access

Testing Grounds is located at 1 City Road, Southbank, just behind the Arts Centre, in Melbourne's arts precinct.

Testing Grounds is nestled between the Arts Centre and Australian Ballet Centre. On foot, the site is most easily accessed via the stairs behind the Arts Centre from St Kilda Road (past Inge King’s ‘Forward Surge’ sculpture). There are many spots to lock a bicycle on site and car parking located very close at the Arts Centre or Australian Ballet Centre.

Testing Grounds from Flinders Street Station via ramp (video link)Testing Grounds from Flinders Street Station via stairs (video link)

Contact and Open Hours

1 City Road, Southbank, VIC 3006 Australia

Community Precinct coffee open the site Mondays- Fridays (8am-4pm)

Testing Grounds is open for creative projects and special events – check the upcoming calendar for details.

testing-grounds@theprojects.com.au

@testinggrounds
#testinggrounds

Testing Grounds

Testing Grounds

Testing Grounds

Testing grounds

Testing Grounds

Testing grounds