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                    New Ideas Lab past projects

                    Babies playing in ball pool
                    ArtPlay New Ideas Lab supports artists to co-create new arts experiences with children and families.

                    Below are some of the past projects supported by ArtPlay.



                    ​​Earth Children​

                    Children holding up muddy handsArtists: Serene Lau, Laura Marini and Scarlet Cartwright

                    Earth Children is an interactive art installation that aims to challenge indoor play taboos through sustainable earth architecture, where children design, create and destroy their own indoor Earth World.

                    The Colour and Sound of My Totem​

                    Kids and adult playing instrumentsArtists: Bart Willoughby, Frances Loriente and Ravenna Keller

                    The Colour and Sound of My Totem explores the significance of totems in Aboriginal culture. Children design and create a story of their totem animal using everyday recycled materials, as well as create music to mimic the sounds of their animal.

                    In development workshops, children draw on the disciplines of visual art, music and creative writing, to build a large sculptural work and musical performance.

                    I Am Nature

                    Kids and adults with ukuleles in natureArtists: Gabriela Georges, Jennifer Tran and Jose-Pepe Inostroza Acqueveque

                    I Am Nature explores the life cycle of five animals through movement, song, and storytelling - within a sensory installation with a focus on natural materials. Delivered in partnership with City of Melbourne Family Services; to engage families from Carlton playgroups and young parents from St Joseph's Flexible Learning Centre.  

                    Currently adapted to online with an outcome delivery in the venue for Children's Week in October 2021.

                    Polite Mammals

                    People in colourful animal costumesArtists: The Wholesome Hour - Lily Fish, Kimberley Twiner, Ell Sachs and Sunanda Sachatrakul

                    Polite Mammals is a new sketch comedy show for young audiences, devised and designed in collaboration with 5 to 7 year olds. Using David Attenborough style nature documentaries as a jumping off point, it will explore animals of all kinds: real, imaginary, fantastical, disgusting, stinky, sparkly, intelligent, and completely silly.

                    ​Wood Wide Web

                    Children painting treeArtists: Barking Spider Visual Theatre

                    Wood Wide Web is a theatrical installation representing the secret world that lives beneath our feet. This underground, networked world will explore how the collaborative nature of trees is critical to their survival, referencing a parallel to our human collaborative effort to work together to create a cleaner, greener planet.

                    In Your Arms

                    Woman lying on floor with babyArtists: Vanessa Chapple, Rivka Worth and collaborators

                    In Your Arms is an immersive performance work for babies and their carers - providing a chance to explore our youngest generation's relationship to the natural world. Indigenous ways of knowing and being, and movement principles inspired by the somatic work of Body Mind Centering, will underpin the development of this new work.

                    The project will be created with families at ArtPlay using song, story and Biophilic design. Participants will be guided to follow their baby's developmental patterns of curiosity alongside nature's seasonal rhythms.​

                    Imagination Gamespaces

                    Young person gesturing in front of purple background

                    Artists: Brendan Ternus, Alia Syed, Shaun Wkyes

                    In Imagination Gamespaces children created interactive story-based ‘escape rooms’, drawing on the disciplines of game design, creative writing, visual art and performance.

                    In the immersive workshops children dreamt up new worlds, developed characters and stories, devised mysterious clues and tricky riddles, and designed fantastical costumes and sets. This resulted in ‘escape rooms’ designed by children for children.

                    The Wayfinders

                    Two children wearing headphones looking in bushes

                    Artists: Jessica Wilson, Ben Paul, Justin Marshall, Tom Burfadeci

                    The Wayfinders was a location triggered audio experience which theatricalised built and natural landscapes using the voices and imaginations of children.

                    Children became storytellers and protagonists voicing their experiences in outdoor spaces with myth-like imaginings. In the development process 9 to 12 year olds created audio material to animate the environment.  Later 3 to 6 year olds responded to these creations jumping in and out of invisible sound zones responding to the voices embedded in the environment.

                    Sound Capsule for Future Humans

                    Young people lying on green hill

                    Artists: Justin Marshall and Aviva Endean

                    A Sound Capsule for Future Humans is buried near ArtPlay and will be rediscovered by the kids of tomorrow. What will this place sound like in 100 years?

                    The capsule includes scores and charts based on our acoustic ecology co-created with children at ArtPlay and the surrounds of Birrarung Marr. When the sound capsule is opened, future generations will be able to hear the world from the perspective of children and understand how the sound of this place has changed.

                    Wood Wide Web

                    Children painting tree

                    Artists: Barking Spider Visual Theatre

                    Wood Wide Web was a theatrical installation representing the secret world that lives beneath our feet. This underground, networked world explored how the collaborative nature of trees is critical to their survival, referencing a parallel to our human collaborative effort to work together to create a cleaner, greener planet.

                    Polypropylene Dreams

                    Child lying on blanket

                    Artists: Briony Farrell, Christian Taylor and collaborators

                    Polypropylene Dreams was a theatrical performance exploring climate anxiety through the story of Jasper and May. The trash creature who lives under Jasper and May’s beds kept waking them up to take them on walks through their dreams; dreams about the future of the planet. What was  it trying to tell them? 

                    In development workshops, children drew on the disciplines of creative writing, collaborative design and puppet-making to help build this fantastical theatre journey. Whilst also learning how to recognise and manage feelings of anxiety.

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