Writers, comedians, artists, dancers and theatre makers are among the 16 recipients of the 2024 State Library Fellowships, which support Victorians to reimagine the State Collection and generate new, career-defining work.
This year’s recipients, including creatives, experts, educators and academics, will share in $195,000 to undertake the year-long program.
Fellowships include funding and in-kind arrangements to the value of $10,000 to $15,000, as well as a dedicated office space at the library and a personal librarian to help with research and to unearth treasures in the collection.
Fellowships are funded through the State Library and individual philanthropic streams, and cover focus areas such as climate, visual arts, performance, print-making, story-telling for children and beyond.
Accessing the collection – which comprises more than 5 million objects, books, manuscripts, maps, music, artwork and newspapers – recipients will develop projects spanning literature, performance, First Peoples knowledge sharing, digital projects and more.
Professor N’arwee’t Carolyn Briggs AM will lead a project on rising sea levels in coastal communities and Boonwurrung knowledge, and author Michael Dulaney will research his upcoming book on climate impacts on animals and humans.
Writer Christie Nieman will craft a new work of fiction about female convicts, while writer and comedian Lawrence Leung will develop a performance on Melbourne’s nineteenth century obsession with spiritualism and the afterlife.
Dancer and researcher Amaara Raheem will research the origins of Melbourne’s artist-in-residence programs, and theatre-maker Anthony Crowley will work on an animated digital graphic novel that teaches teenagers about AI.
State Library Victoria is Australia’s oldest public library, and one of the first free public libraries in the world. For more information and the full list of fellows visit slv.vic.gov.au