Art in action – Regional Arts Development Fund brings creative ideas to life in Ipswich
18 July 2025
Nine applications, ranging from short film, live music to First Nations art, have been selected to receive financial support under the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF) for major projects in Ipswich.
Ipswich City Council Economic and Cultural Development Committee Chairperson Councillor Pye Augustine said the projects selected through RADF are jointly funded by the Queensland Government and Ipswich City Council with additional contributions organised directly by the applicants.
“The well-deserved recipients represent a variety of arts, entertainment and culture in our city and will share almost $100,000 in funding to support, deliver, exhibit and perform their work,” Cr Augustine said.
Ipswich City Council received 27 applications in total across a range of artforms following the release of the updated 2025 RADF guidelines.
“RADF recognises the important role the arts play within our community. This valuable program allows council to invest and promote local arts and culture, which in turn fosters the vibrancy, creativity and inclusiveness of our whole community,” Cr Augustine said.
“Much of what makes Ipswich so vibrant and liveable is linked to our passionate artists, musicians, creators and performers. This fund allows us to help people take their passion to the next level and we are focussed on making people aware of this funding.”
Approved recipients include:
- Daylight Pictures: $14,500 to support production of a short film, The Stranger at the Door, currently in development.
- Matala Navigators: $15,000 to deliver a Pacific Islander cultural program teaching traditional art to children.
- Ipswich Live Music: $15,000 to deliver a new series of live music concerts in Ipswich.
- Nhuralama’s Shop: $13,960 to produce a marketing campaign to promote and sell First Nations art in Ipswich Central.
- Movable Type Studio: $14,500 for an artist-in-residence program during the Galvanized Festival at Ipswich Railway Workshop.
- Wooden Horse Pty Ltd: $14,613 to support production of The Switch, a drama series exploring Australia’s Pacific music community.
- Rachel North: $6,500 for the creation of a new artwork and its documentation for future opportunities.
- Donnalee Moriarty: $1,992 for materials to support an upcoming exhibition at the Ipswich Community Gallery.
- Vuong Pham: $1,700 to support a professional manuscript assessment exploring the resilience of Vietnamese refugees.
RADF is delivered as a partnership between the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland and Ipswich City Council.
The next round of the Regional Arts Development Fund opens on 1 September, with grant writing workshops scheduled for 28 and 30 August to support applicants in preparing their submissions.
RADF is open to individuals, businesses, collectives and not-for-profit community organisations who are artists, arts and cultural practitioners or can showcase how their project will be linked to the creative industries based in the Ipswich region.
Council seeks expressions of interest through two rounds of funding each year. Read here for further details.
Ipswich City Council respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners, the Jagera, Yuggera and Ugarapul people of the Yugara/Yagara Language Group, as custodians of the land and waters we share. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, as the keepers of the traditions, customs, cultures and stories of proud peoples.