Past Events › Talks and Seminars

Are you a researcher, writer, creative practitioner, or community worker aligned with the field of Asian Australian studies? We're having an informal Melbourne meeting of AASRN members and friends to discuss our projects, issues of the moment, and opportunities to build greater inclusiveness in Australia. We also just like to get together with wonderful colleagues and catch up on each other's news! This particular AA Meetup is sort of a farewell (again!) to Caitlin Nunn, who will be leaving for the UK again at the end of July to continue her fellowship at Durham University. PLEASE RSVP ONLY IF YOU ARE ATTENDING. Tseen has zero tolerance for Facebook's "Interested" feature and thinks it's the stupidest thing in the world. The restaurant doesn't take bookings but we still need to know how many might come along.

In conjunction with the National Arts Election Debate we are organising a National Arts Sector Meeting in Melbourne on 7th June – the day before the Debate.We are hoping that sector reps from across the country will be able to make it Melbourne for the meeting (and the Debate the following day). An agenda will be developed closer to the day. Space is limited – please book early. https://www.trybooking.com/LGNW more info: [email protected] or [email protected]

ArtsPeak is organising a National Arts Election Debate in Melbourne on the 8th June. The debate will bring the arts leaders of each of the major parties together to share their big ideas and respond to the burning questions of industry leaders and commentators from across the industry. Patricia Karvelas (ABC and Sky news) will moderate a three cornered contest. Arts Minister Senator Mitch Fifield has been invited, and Shadow Arts Minister Mark Dreyfus and Greens Arts Spokesperson, Adam Bandt are already confirmed. Space is limited so book early. https://www.trybooking.com/LGBQ  The debate will be live streamed – details soon.

For the first time, students of colour across Australia will have the chance to come together, network and collaborate at the University of Melbourne Student Union's People of Colour Conference. Held on 23-24 July at the University of Melbourne, the conference encourages attendance from all students identifying as people of colour due to their African, Asian, Pacific Islander, Aboriginal, Indigenous, Lantinx, Arab, multiracial or other relevant non-white background. Attendees will have the chance to participate in workshops, panels and keynote addresses with prominent people of colour in professional fields. This is a fantastic opportunity to meet likeminded people and learn skills to increase representation for people of colour on a university level. Founding Editor, Hoa Pham and current, Editor in Chief, Eleanor Jackson will be speaking on Sunday at the conference. Students enrolled at ANY tertiary institution in Australia are able to attend. Tickets can be booked here. If you…

Peril Magazine, Australia’s leading online platform for Asian Australian writing, arts and culture, takes its name from Yellow Peril, a term coined in the 19th century to describe the perceived menace of Asian migration. But are Asians still dangerous in Australia? Or are Asians in Australia the “happy migrant effect” writ large? Writers, activists and academics, Hoa Pham, Eugenia Flynn, Dominic Golding, Nadia Rhook lead a panel discussion about the past, present and future constructions of race in Australian writing – hosted by Lian Low, get ready for #DangerAsians. WHEN: Saturday 30 July, 12pm – 1pm VENUE: FCAC Performance Space  West Writers Forum: Our Stories — Conversations  Day 2 COST: $20 full forum pass, Booking Essential* BOOK NOW *Please note that although it is a full forum pass, you need to specify the events you wish to attend when you book.  

The six Wednesday Lectures of 2016 will explore what sustains and what erodes the idea of a common humanity and, more radically, whether it is a useful idea with which to think about the moral, legal and political relations between people and peoples.   Wednesday, August 3: Ghassan Hage White Concepts   Wednesday, August 10: Raimond Gaita The Fragility of the Idea of A Common Humanity   Wednesday, August 17: Karen Hitchcock Seeing the Old, the Weak and the Afflicted   Wednesday, August 24: Dianne Otto Gender and Sexual Diversity: a Question of Humanity?   Wednesday, August 31: Philomena P Murray The European Union – Beacon of Hope or a Values Community in Crisis?   Wednesday, September 7: Maria Tumarkin Svetlana Alexievich Didn't Make it to the Royal Commission. (The Dramas of Non-Witnessing).

'Table Talk' a solo exhibition of new work by Melbourne-based artist Liang Luscombe.   The exhibition derives its name from Table Talk, the weekly magazine published in Melbourne from the 1885 until 1939, which covered politics, arts and social gossip of the time. She presents a series of paintings that speak to the historical narrative that looms over the Heidelberg School artists of the 1890s and the nostalgic figure of the male painter in the landscape more generally. Collaging and contrasting newspaper cartoons, exhibition invitations and photographs of the Melbourne that these artists inhabited, Luscombe contemplates the lineage and myth-making surrounding painters such as Arthur Streeton, Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin in relation to complex and problematic conceptions of the figure conducting en plein air painting. In this way, Luscombe questions the construction of cultural histories in Melbourne; and in Australian painting more broadly.

A low-cost professional development and networking day for diverse women writers, allies and industry. Featuring Maxine Beneba Clarke, Jax-Jacki Brown, Fiona Tuomy, Jacinta di Mase (ALAA), Aviva Tuffield (Black Inc), Robert Watkins (Hachette) and more. We welcome trans women, genderqueer women, and non-binary people who identify as writers with disability, ATSI writers, writers of colour, LGBTI writers or those from diverse cultural backgrounds. Full program details coming soon. Supported by the Write-ability program.

On the 20th Anniversary of Pauline Hanson’s maiden speech to Parliament on 10 September 1996, we reflect on the formation of the One Nation Party in 1997 and the renewal of racism and anti-racist action in Australian society. Since Hanson was re-elected to the Australian Senate in July 2016, this event is also an opportunity to discuss her turn to Islamophobia and the current racial dividing lines in Australian society.   Cost: $15 waged $10 unwaged

The Symposium provides an opportunity for artists and poets to use avant-garde arts and poetry to explore critical feminist perspectives on social justice and human rights. The value of transnationalism will be highlighted. The meaning and the consequences of colonizing human rights will be explored.

This panel talk will bring together Melbourne-based artists and writers from diverse backgrounds to share stories about what might be lost and gained through translation.  

Exploring Social Change Through the Performing Arts Rani Pramesti left Indonesia at the age of twelve following race and gender-based violence targeted at people of her ethnic Chinese background. Being exposed to humanity’s capacity for violence at such an early age motivated her to become a social worker and activist in Sydney, Australia. Her activism eventually introduced her to the performing arts, where she saw its potential to inspire conversation, self-reflection and ultimately, social change. This presentation explores the main ethical frameworks of Rani’s Feminist, intercultural and intergenerational performance practice. Part of the Diverse Practice talk series: a talk series that explores the work of local creatives whose practice address themes of immigration, identity, belonging and diversity. Rani Pramesti is the Founder of RANI P COLLABORATIONS. Rani is a performance maker, an arts producer and an advocate for the arts. In all three roles, she builds bridges across cultures, generations…