Mid 2012 I was an "artist in resident" at Tom Price Senior High School thanks to an Air Grant awarded to Robyn Wade (art teacher at TPSHS). I worked with the three primary schools; Paraburdoo, Tom Price North and Tom Price Central. The teachers worked alongside me with the students and also used me as a consultant in creating ceramic and puppetry based works that addressed local culture, stories, ecology etc.
I also worked with the high school students to create socially engaged and site specific installation art that addressed local content. The students were exposed to a variety of contemporary artists working across many genres of art. I delivered a number of presentations explaining how an artist can create work that is a response to the world around them. Some of the themes explored were cultural identity, mining and economics, remoteness and opportunity, local foklore, aboriginal history etc.
As well as facilitating these projects I made a number of works that were a direct response to my experience living in Tom Price for 7 weeks and from research and discussions with locals about the sociology and history of the area.
MATT MCVEIGH IS A CONTEMPORARY VISUAL ARTIST & DESIGNER.
