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| Asialink Arts | |
|---|---|
| Name | Asialink Arts |
| Type | Arts organisation |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Australia |
| Region | Australia–Asia |
Asialink Arts is an Australian arts organisation fostering cultural exchange between Australia and Asia through residencies, commissions, exhibitions, and professional development. It operates within a network that includes universities, cultural institutions, funding bodies, and diplomatic missions to promote cross-cultural collaboration across Australia, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, South Korea, and Southeast Asia. The organisation engages with contemporary artists, curators, writers, and performing companies to create platforms that intersect visual arts, performance, literature, and digital media.
Asialink Arts emerged as part of a broader cultural diplomacy initiative associated with University of Melbourne and philanthropic support from figures connected to the Australia–Asia relations agenda in the late 20th century. Early collaborations drew on ties to institutions such as the Australia Council for the Arts, Australia-Japan Foundation, Australia-Indonesia Institute, and networks linked to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s it developed programs that intersected with major cultural events including the Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, the Sydney Festival, and the Melbourne Festival, while engaging artists who exhibited at venues like the National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of New South Wales, and National Gallery of Australia.
The organisation’s mission emphasizes cultural exchange, creative development, and sustained dialogue between Australian and Asian arts communities, aligning with strategic goals shared by bodies such as the Asia-Europe Foundation, the British Council in regional contexts, and the Japan Foundation. Core activities include artist residencies, curatorial exchanges, commissioning new work, professional development for arts managers, and forums linking institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, British Museum, and Tate Modern to Asia-Pacific practice. It supports practitioners who have links to festivals and showcases including the Perth Festival, Brisbane Festival, Adelaide Festival, and international platforms like the Venice Biennale and Documenta.
Programs have historically included residency exchanges with partner organisations across cities such as Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, Mumbai, Jakarta, Seoul, Bangkok, and Singapore. Initiatives often leverage partnership frameworks used by the Asia Pacific Producers Network and the International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies. Professional development series echo models from the Asia-Europe Meeting cultural streams and involve collaborations with tertiary providers including RMIT University, University of New South Wales, and Monash University. Grants and commissions have been supported alongside philanthropic entities such as the Myer Foundation, the Ian Potter Foundation, and corporate donors engaged in cultural sponsorship like Telstra and Qantas.
Collaborative networks encompass national and regional museums, galleries, and cultural centres including the National Museum of China, Tokyo Arts Theater, MUSEUM MACAN, the Hong Kong Arts Centre, and the Singapore Art Museum. Diplomatic partnerships have involved Australia’s diplomatic missions and foreign cultural centres including the Embassy of Japan in Australia and the Embassy of Indonesia in Canberra. Academic partnerships link to the Australian National University and international partners such as Tsinghua University, University of Tokyo, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and the National University of Singapore. Collaborative production partners include contemporary companies like Chunky Move, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Sydney Theatre Company, and international ensembles seen at venues like the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay and Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art.
Notable projects have included curated exhibitions and commissions that resonated with major events such as the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art and national gallery partnerships that placed artists in contexts alongside names seen at the Biennale of Sydney, Venice Biennale, and Triennale Milano. Featured practitioners have ranged from visual artists who have shown at the Tate Modern and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum to performing artists who toured via networks including the International Society for the Performing Arts and festivals like the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Projects have also engaged writers and critics associated with awards and institutions such as the Miles Franklin Award, the Man Asian Literary Prize, and the British Council’s Literature Across Frontiers initiatives.
The organisation’s work has been cited in discourse on cultural diplomacy, regional arts mobility, and the professionalisation of Asia–Australia arts relations, referenced alongside policy papers from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and research by think tanks like the Lowy Institute and the Grattan Institute. Reviews and commentary have appeared in major media outlets including the The Age, Sydney Morning Herald, and international coverage in the Japan Times and South China Morning Post. Its alumni and collaborators include artists, curators, and administrators who later took roles at institutions such as the National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of New South Wales, M+, UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, and leading universities across the region.
Category:Arts organisations based in Australia Category:Cultural exchange