ARTIST and musician Aimee Volkofsky was one of two recipients of Open Cut Commission grants awarded by the Broken Hill City Art Gallery for her series We Were Women Before Our Time.
The series will be an exploration of the impact of the mining industry and environment on women in Broken Hill, now and throughout history.
“In my songwriting and art making, I found myself think a lot about women in Broken Hill, from history but also my own experience, and how all the different things that make Broken Hill like mining, environment, the heat and history, impact women’s views of their bodies and identities,” Volkofsky said.
“I’m wanting to collect stories from history, especially about women and their relationship to various movements around mining, but also I’d like to interview a bunch of people who’ve grown up here.”
Volkofksy said she’d like to hear from anyone who grew up in Broken Hill or had worked in the mines.
“I’m looking for people of whatever age, A-graders, B-graders, C-graders, D-graders,” she said.
“But mostly if they have an association with the mines, or if they’ve grown up here.”
She plans to have conversations with participants about their experience growing up here, their views about mining, and their relationship to the land.
“From those interviews I’ll be weaving together a multimedia exhibition,” Volkofsky said.
The exhibition will be showing at the Broken Hill City Art Gallery in August.
Volkofsky said she was thrilled to be awarded the $10,000 grant.
“I’m so excited to have received this commission,” she said.
“As a local, there’s not a lot of locals who’ve been given this commission before, so I’m excited to have the opportunity to look at our history and culture from the perspective of someone who has spent a fair bit of time here, though is also an outsider.”
The Open Cut Commission awards two artists $10,000 every second year to develop new work in Far West New South Wales, and is supported by CreateNSW.
Anyone interested in having a conversation with Volkofsky for her series is encouraged to reach out by email to aimee@bushwitchproductons.com.au.
