Coast Arts

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 13 May 2012, on Coast FM 963.  To hear these interviews go to Listen to Interviews – May 2012 

• An interview with Carlie Hasell, who in her mid twenties has taken the plunge to work and train full-time as a self-employed silver jewellery maker, based at Forresters Beach on the Central Coast.
• On a trip to northern NSW recently I visited the Armidale Art Gallery run by the New England Art Society, who happened to have a new exhibition just opened.  I met some of the members of the art society and had my voice recorder with me, so took the chance to do an interview with Vice President Karl Robertson and Treasurer, Cecile Satori, about how the society is able to successfully run a gallery in the main commercial retail area of Armidale.  Great to hear about a co-operative model that’s working for artists in a regional city.  And also highly recommended to visit if you’re up that way, as the New England has an active community of high quality, local artists!  Armidale is also home to the New England Regional Art Museum  (known as Neram),  also well worth a visit. 
• An interview and two poems from Louise Berry, a Central Coast poet.

Till next time

best wishes
Meredith Gilmore
Coast Arts Presenter

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 6 May 2012, on Coast FM 963.  To hear interviews, go to Listen to Interviews – May 2012.

• An interview with Sarah Samild, Assistant Curator at the Gosford Regional Gallery.  I talked to Sarah about the Sculpture by the Bay exhibition which is located on the Caroline Bay Foreshore, adjacent to the Gallery at East Gosford,  till the 27^th of May.  We also talked about the Reconciliation Art Competition with entries open till the 12^th of May, and a call for proposals for the Gosford CBD Artist Residency open till the 18^th of May.  Lots worth hearing about for artists on the Coast.  For more info, phone the Sarah at the Gallery on 4325 0056, or email gallery@gosford.nsw.gov.au

• On the topic of the arts and Gosford CBD, I also had an interview with Simone Sheridan, project manager of the Creative Innovate Gosford City project run through GBID, the Gosford Business Improvement District.  I caught up with Simone last week at Coast FM studios, and we had a great chat about how the project is going, opportunities for creative projects to be part of Create Innovate Gosford, and other Empty Space arts projects Simone has had involvement with.  To contact Simone phone 0410 115 736 or email createinnovategosfordcity@gmail.com

• An interview with Lynn Treers and Claire Halon of the Central Coast Potters Society about their current exhibition, open every day till the 16^th of May, in the Studio Gallery at the Gosford Regional Gallery.  Cleverly called “Soiled Reputations”, the exhibition has works from 21 potters and a guest artist, and is a display and sale of ceramic delights to enliven your garden or outdoor area. A great place to visit with Mothers’ Day coming up!
  Potters featured in the exhibition are Judy Barrett, Rachel Bunney, Fay Capewell, Joan Cole, Sue Godwin, Dian hall, Claire Halon, Karin Krebs, Dean McColl, Kylie Rose McLean, Jean Miller, Lorraine O’Rourke, Annette Reid, Sharon Ridsdale, Beverley Rigg, Anniss Seymour, Barbara Stamos, Marienne Stollery, Lynn Treers, Michele Waddington and Lauralei Wethy.  The guest artist is Fran van Krieken.

 Till next week
Best wishes
Meredith Gilmore

Broadcast on Coast Arts, Sunday 29 April 2012 6-7pm on Coast FM 963.  To hear these interviews go to Listen to Interviews – April 2012.

An interview with Rod Milgate, who’s had a long, interesting and prominent career as an artist, poet, playwright, actor, writer and teacher, and has lived for the past 10 years on the Central Coast.  Rod Milgate’s exhibition, Allograph, is on at the Gosford Regional Gallery till 20th May 2012.

An interview with June Irene Williamson, visual artist from Summerland Point on the Central Coast.  June Williamson and her long-time friend June Howard are having an exhibition at the Shorethyme Restaurant at Norah Head for two weeks, from Tuesday 1st till Sunday 13th May 2012.

An interview and two poems from David Harrison, member of Central Coast Poets Inc.

Till next time, all the best
Meredith Gilmore

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 22 April 2012, 6-7pm on Coast FM 963, produced and presented by Meredith Gilmore. To hear interviews go to Listen To Interviews – April 2012.

Tonight was a special edition of Coast Arts, to celebrate our first year on air.     Over that time I’ve had the privilege and enjoyment of attending many art exhibition openings and other cultural events, and travelling around the Coast to interview a wide range of artists, craftspeople and writers.  So far on the program we’ve broadcast over 130 interviews, over 20 poems plus 6 short stories or excerpts of stories.

One of my favourite interviews this year was with writer Kate Toon, a writer based in Umina Beach.  Tonight I played highlights of the interview with Kate which was broadcast on the 19^th of February, including one of her poems.

And my guest in the studio tonight was John Wright, a Central Coast poet and one of the people  interviewed in the first weeks of the program.   We had a chat with John about a range of things including his book, Cheshire Born, and heard one of the poems from the book.

Thanks to all for your support for Coast Arts over the past year!

Best wishes
Meredith Gilmore

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 15 April 2012, 6-7pm on Coast FM 963 

The program on 15 April was all about the great things that can happen in the arts when individuals, groups, and/or businesses get together, with benefits for all involved and for the wider community.  To hear these interviews and reports, go to Listen to Interviews – April 2012.

• First was an interview with Ken Smith, co-ordinator of the 3^rd annual Sculpture on the Greens exhibition at Kooindah Waters Resort in Wyong, which opened lastweekend and runs through till the end of May. Sculpture on the Greens is a high quality major arts event which has attracted sculptors locally and from around Australia.   Ken Smith is a member of the Rotary Club of Northlakes Toukley, which, in co-operation with Kooindah Waters Resort, organises and hosts the exhibition.  Ken gave me a tour of the outdoor exhibition, which features around fifty sculptures from artists on the Central Coast and other parts of Australia.   Open every day, entry and catalogues are free.  Cameras and children  welcome.  Well worth a visit.
• Next up was a report on the Macs Masters Art Show held over Easter, including highlights from the opening speech by the very popular HG Nelson, and an interview with John Biggart, one of the 12 locally-based artists who had works in the exhibition.  Macs Masters is a fantastic example of the  benefits for all involved when a group of artists combines with a local surf club – with support also from local businesses and a prominent guest speaker at the opening – to put on an interesting, diverse art show during a peak holiday time on the Coast.
• In the next couple of days I’ll also be uploading an extended version of HG Nelson’s opening speech, and introduction by Sherry McCourt, one of the 12 artists in the Macs Masters Easter Art Show.
• Art in cafes and restaurants is another growing example of local businesses supporting the arts, with benefits for all involved, and the local community.  One long-time example of this is the Shorethyme Restaurant at Norah Head, featured on Coast Arts in March this year.  Another local business which has had local art on its walls for many years is Gnostic Mana Café in Woy Woy.  Each month Gnostic Mana has a different  exhibition featuring one or two artists, giving established and emerging local artists a fantastic opportunity to display their works.  Tonight on Coast Arts was an interview with Rosalyn McMahon, an artist based in Woy Woy, who is the featured artist at Gnostic Mana Café, Woy Woy, during April.
• And last was a report on the Central Coast Youth Week Art Show currently being held in the Erina Library Foyer, on till 22nd April.  At the opening of the show last Friday I recorded an with interview Nina Angelo from Central Coast Fusion Arts, organisers of the Youth Week Exhibition.  I was also lucky enough to interview local high school students Brittany Mitchell and Tina Bell, members of the local Youth Council which sponsored a prize in the exhibition. 

All the best
Meredith Gilmore
Coast Arts Presenter

On Sunday 8 April Coast Arts will be taking a break due to a broadcast of the A-League Central Coast Mariners semi-final on Coast FM. 

If you’d like to contact me with any comments or suggestions, or to find out about being featured on Coast Arts, please send an email through the Contact page of the website.

Happy Easter!

best wishes
Meredith Gilmore
Coast Arts presenter

Broadcast on Coast Arts, Sunday 1 April 6-7pm on Coast FM 963.  To hear the interviews go to Listen to Interviews – April 2012:

• John Lowrie, Education and Public Programs Officer at the Gosford Regional Gallery.  John has been living and working on the Central Coast for several years, the other side of the world from his native Scotland where John started his career in the arts.
• Noeline Millar, well-known visual artist on the Central Coast.  I visited Noeline in  late March at her studio in Norah Head.

All the best
Meredith Gilmore
Coast Arts presenter

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 25 March 6-7pm on Coast FM 963.  To hear the interview and reports go to Listen to Interviews – March 2012:

• An interview with Clem Gorman who’s had a career since the 60s as a writer, as well as being an academic and songwriter. I first met Clem when I was a post graduate student in Canberra – he was one of my writing lecturers and tutors – so it was great to catch up and talk about his work and hear his thoughts on having a career in the arts. Clem Gorman has been living on the Central Coast for the past ten years.
•  A report on my visit to the NSW Art Gallery last week. I went to see the Picasso exhibition (before it closed on 25th March, after being on for several months), but my other reason for the visit was to see the Art Express Exhibition, on at the NSW Art Gallery till the 22nd of April. Art Express is an annual exhibition and currently presents a selection of artworks submitted by students from government and non-government schools for the 2011 HSC visual arts examinations. Well worth a visit.
• Highlights from speeches at the opening of two exhibitions at the Gosford Regional Gallery on 23rd March– the photography exhibition called Shadow Play by Barry Flakelar, and Allograph, the exhibition of paintings by artist and writer Rod Milgate, who has been a Central Coast resident for some years.  The highlights feature Tim Braham, Curator of the Regional Gallery, as well as photographer Barry Flakelar speaking about his exhibition, and Emeritus Professor Peter Pinson introducing Rod Milgate’s exhibition.

All the best
Meredith Gilmore

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 18 March 6-7pm on Coast FM 963 - to hear these interviews go to Listen To Interviews – March 2012:

• Chris Downes of the Shorethyme Restaurant in Norah Head.  The Shorethyme has had an art gallery as an integral part of the restaurant for the past nine years.  New exhibitions of work – mostly by Central Coast artists – change every two weeks, with a total of about 200 shows so far. 
• Amanda Anderson, one of the four artists involved in the Lakeside Art Gallery and Shopfront Space at The Entrance.  As part of the Lakeside Art project there are free workshops available, run in the workshop room next to The Entrance Gallery at The Entrance Community Centre.
• Denise Main , director of a two-person play being presented at the Gosford Regional Gallery on Sunday the 25^th of March at 5pm.  The short  play, called “A Little Something for the Ducks”, is a fundraiser for the Friends of the Regional  Gallery  and stars two well known Central Coast actors, Joan Dalgliesh and Lex Tonnet.
• Rachel Bunney, one of the seven female artists featuring in the exhibition “I See Change” on at the Somers McDonnell Gallery in Mann Street Gosford till the 24^th of March.    We met at Rachel’s place in Niagara Park last week, and had a great chat about how Rachel creates her artworks in both cloth and clay, and the role that art and creativity plays in her life.

Till next week!

all the best
Meredith Gilmore

Broadcast on Coast Arts Sunday 11 March 2012, 6-7pm on Coast FM 963.  To hear the interviews go to Listen to Interviews – March 2012:

• An interview with Gabrielle Somers, visual artist and director of the Somers McDonell Gallery in Mann Street Gosford.  Their current exhibition – I See Change - opened last week on International Women’s Day the 8^th of March.  It features seven female artists from the Central Coast, and runs through till the 24^th of March.  The featured artists are Lindsay Cameron (fibre – natural and recycled), Debra Meir (oil painting), Lisa McArthur Edwards (textiles, pastels and mixed media), Anne Porter (acrylic painting and collage), Elisabeth Ann (fabric, paint and threads), Sabine Parge (rug hooking and textile collage) and Rachel Bunney (ceramics).    Gabrielle is also co-ordinating a new community arts project with GBID (the Gosford Business Improvement District organisation)  to put art in the street on the front of the old Frogys building opposite the Council Chambers in Mann Street Gosford.
   
• An interview with Felicity O’Connor, one of the artists on the 5 Lands Art Trail held on the third weekend each month on the Coast – coming up this month on 17 and 18 March.  Felicity is a visual artist based at Avoca, and is also a practising psychologist and art therapist, so we had a good chat about art and how it intersects with her other work.

All the best
Meredith Gilmore
Coast Arts Presenter