The Australia Council for the Arts is delighted to announce the first recipients of fellowships offered under a newly established International Arts Leaders Program.

The program is a joint initiative of the Australia Council and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and is designed to empower leaders in the arts and cultural industries of countries across the Indo-Pacific region.

DFAT is investing $330,000 to support nine fellowships for exceptional arts leaders, capitalising on the Australia Council’s expertise in the delivery of arts programs.

Australia Council CEO Tony Grybowski said the program would draw on the success of the Australia Council’s highly successful domestic arts leaders program, and expand it even further.

“The International Arts Leaders program will enable meaningful connections between cultural producers, arts managers and institutions in Australia and the Indo-Pacific region, in line with our strategic goal that Australia’s arts and cultural industries are without borders.” Mr Grybowski said.

The participants selected for the Arts Leaders program are:

– Mia Maria (Indonesia) – visual arts professional responsible for leading important projects in significant institutions in Indonesia and South East Asia.

– Vikram Iyengar (India) – a dancer, choreographer, theatre director, arts manager, researcher, writer and curator based in Calcutta.

– Menaka Rodriguez (India) marketing and business development professional involved in local and international initiatives.

– Ruchira Das (India) – festival manager organiser of arts events for children and young adults.

The participants selected for the Future Leaders Program are:

– Rhine Bernardino (Philippines) – independent visual artist and curator with an interest in rural areas and marginalised communities.

– Neha Jaiswar (India) – arts marketing professional working towards making arts and culture sustainable.

– Lin Fu (China) – Programmer of an International Theatre Festival

– Kartika Jahja (Indonesia) a singer-songwriter who advocates gender equality through music and the arts.

– Andrei Nikolai Pamintuan (Philippines) – Founder and Director of The Manila Fringe Festival and creative director of a contemporary arts space for local and international artists.

For more information visit: creative.gov.au