by Gabriella Vukman
Burrinja Cultural Arts Centre’s new CEO and Creative Director Melanie Burge is geared up to start on Tuesday August 6.
Residing in Kensington and having formerly been the Program Producer at the Australian Performing Arts Market, Ms Burge is keen to commit to the Burrinja and Hills communities and take on her new role.
Ms Burge said, “Burrinja is in such a fantastically beautiful spot. It feels like it’s such a privilege to be able to spend time there.”
“I live in Kensington so it is a bit of a commute for me to get to Burrinja but having said that, I’ve spent a bit of time there including attending an exhibition opening recently which was a real thrill because it was a great opportunity to meet some locals and some artists,” Ms Burge said.
“As I live on the other side of town, I’m really excited about getting to know the Burrinja and Hills community, geography and the country,” Ms Burge said.
Upon first becoming aware of Burrinja through her former workplace, Ms Burge’s interest was sparked immediately.
Ms Burge said, “I had heard of Burrinja through my previous work as a program producer at the Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM) which is a strategic project of Creative Australia which is Australia’s federal arts funding and policy agency.”
“The previous CEO of Burrinja, Gareth Hart attended some of our events and although I didn’t actually get an opportunity to chat with him, I remember thinking, ‘Burrinja Cultural Centre, -that sounds interesting. I need to look that up.’”
“I thought about it as a really community-rooted visual arts and performance space in the Yarra Ranges and I have to say, I didn’t think too much more about it until I noticed that they were recruiting a new Creative Director and Ceo,” Ms Burge said.
With her role at APAM coming to a close, Ms Burge thought seized the opportunity to transfer to Burrinja.
Ms Burge said, “With Gareth Hart having moved on to some other exciting new projects and as my role at APAM was coming to an end, I thought, ‘this is a really interesting change of direction for me and it is a significant leadership opportunity to go for this role at Burrinja,’ so I had a chat with the recruiter and put in my application and the rest is just history really.”
“There was a really supportive interview process with the chairperson Liz Jacks and a few other board members and it felt like things moved really quickly after that point,” Ms Burge said.
“While I am excited about taking the time to get to know them and understand their practice and get to know the creative community and ecology within which Burrinja works, I see myself primarily as existing to support their practice.”
Excited to work with First Nations artists and Elders living in the Yarra Ranges, Ms Burge sees her role as being primarily of service and support to the community of artists and creators who are already engaging with Burrinja.
Ms Burge said, “Something that I am personally really excited about is to connect with First Nations Elders and artists at Burrinja and chat to them about how they see Burrinja as a cultural connecting and meeting place.”
“I’m not really sure what form my movements in the First Nations space might take because it is important to have the conversations first and discover the role that Burrinja has in those communities,” Ms Burge said.
Having already met some of her team, Ms Burge is looking forward to working with her new staff and coworkers.
Ms Burge said, “I am so excited to work with the team members that I have met already. I am yet to meet the whole team but I look forward to doing that next week.”
“I’ve had several chats so far with the acting CEO and General Manager Samantha Dunn and I feel like we are going to get along like a house on fire,” Ms Burge said.
“My approach throughout my career has always been that I want to work with great people who I can learn from and I feel like Burrinja is a place where I can do that.”
Whilst Ms Burge’s background has been heavily involved with producing performing arts and visual arts events, her focus for Burrinja’s future lies in visual arts, performing arts and sustainability.
Ms Burge said, “In the visual arts realm, my aspiration is on a personal level. I guess in that space, I really want to take the time to get my head around what really fantastic work is happening.
“I am so excited about the prospect of meeting and getting to know visual artists who practise in the space or they are visual artists who are presenting their work as part of an exhibition,” Ms Burge said.
“I’m really looking forward to getting to know the curator Jan Dirk Mittman and understanding artists and communities that he is working with.”
In the performing arts space, Ms Burge intends to work with Burrinja’s already dynamic array of programs.
Ms Burge said, “I have noticed that Burrinja presents a really eclectic program of performing arts. There’s a bit of comedy, music, circus, and dance, which I think is really fantastic and I’m looking forward to refining that as much as I can.”
“I am resisting daydreaming about further diversifying the incredible work across the range of performing art forms that Burrinja is already facilitating from the circus to the really strong contemporary theatre, dance and experimental performances,” Ms Burge said.
“It is really important, first of all, to understand what Burrinja’s community is passionate and excited about and what they want to see.”
In terms of sustainability, Ms Burge wants to focus on ensuring that Burrinja along with its artists and creators can continue operating and growing.
Ms Burge said, “Regarding sustainability, right now is a really challenging time for a lot of arts organisations across the country.”
“Whether they are presenters, production companies or performing artists, it’s a really difficult time and finding the financial resources to continue to make and present work is an ongoing challenge.”
“Burrinja is in a really strong and supported place but it is not something that can be taken for granted,” Ms Burge said.
Financial sustainability is one of the items on top of Ms Burge’s ‘Very Important’ list.
Ms Burge said, “As incoming CEO, I am really passionate about cementing Burrinja’s future as a sustainable organisation that can take artistic risks where it needs to but also knowing that it can continue to support itself financially and invest resources into both up and coming and established artists.”
“This financial sustainability is something that I consider to be a really integral part of the role in safeguarding that going into the future,” Ms Burge said.
“Charmed and impressed” with the vibrancy of the Hills and Burrinja community, Ms Burge is keen to get the ball rolling with her role as CEO and Creative Director.
Ms Burge said, “I’m yet to have the pleasure of fully getting to know the local community but from the exhibitions that I have already attended I have experienced such a diverse group of people in the room.”
“They were all so warm and welcoming and excited to say hello and tell me about their practice,” Ms Burge said.
“I guess in a nutshell I would say, I can’t wait to be a part of this welcoming, vibrant community of artists and makers.”
