Background

CollaborART began with a partnership between the Youth Network of Tasmania (YNOT) and Tasmanian Regional Arts (TRA) and the idea that it would be valuable for young emerging artists and older established artists to collaborate together to exchange skills and experiences.  The project would be in a regional area and the Derwent Valley, Southern Midlands and Central Highlands was identified.  In February, information and expressions of interests were circulated  looking for artists - both established and emerging from the areas.

The project kicked off in March 2011 with a workshop in Hamilton, introducing the 10 artists and 12 young emerging artists to each other, with some activities around collaboration in artwork.   Since then artists have been working together - some in groups, some in pairs, some at studios and some at the high schools, where we received great support from the art departments.

As a large group, we had got together on 3 occasions -  at Glenora, and at New Norfolk when we had a guest graffitti artist, Nathan Gelston, take us through the finer points of spray paints and most recently at Oatlands when we met Caroline Amos, our curator to discuss and plan the exhibition.  
The focus of the project is to exhibit work made from the collaborations.   We are now working towards an exhibition in Kempton that will open on the 17th September.  The exhibition will also tour to Hobart and Bothwell in the following 2 weeks.