Kamilé Burinskaité Launches Perth Art Weekend

Perth Follow +

Having frequented art events in Europe, Lithuanian-born Kamilé Burinskaité saw Perth—three to four hours from Australian arts hubs Sydney and Melbourne—as a ‘cultural desert’ by comparison.

‘Instead of running away to art events internationally, I thought if you want to make a change in the world, you have to be the change,’ she told Ocula.

Kamilé opened her own gallery, ​​KAMILÉ GALLERY, in Cathedral Square in 2021. She later established the nonprofit Perth Art Foundation, which will present the inaugural Perth Art Weekend from 9 to 11 August this year.

The three-day weekend will connect more than 25 partners including independent artists, commercial galleries such as Stala Contemporary and OFFMARKET Gallery, the Western Australian Museum, Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA), and Perth Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA).

Art tours are being provided by Oh Hey WA!, and a sound healing experience is being planned by En Coda Symphony Orchestra.

Perth Art Weekend has received some financial support from the Australian Cultural Fund. Australian Transit Group will provide shuttle buses allowing people to hop between galleries, museums, and two partner venues: the State Buildings in Cathedral Square, and Como the Treasury Hotel.

The weekend doesn’t yet connect to arts hub Fremantle, home to the Fremantle Biennale and Fremantle Arts Centre.

Notable galleries not taking part in the inaugural edition—mostly due to pre-existing commitments—include Sweet Pea, Art Collective WA, and Moore Contemporary.

Moore Contemporary’s Margaret Moore said she had been planning to participate in Perth Art Week but dropped out due to a postponed exhibition and other priorities.

Being in a city as remote as Perth, she said ‘it is imperative that significant local commercial galleries participate in art fairs yet the costs involved can be challenging in terms of distance, freight, etc.’

Getting collectors to come to Perth is also challenging, Moore added, as the city currently ‘lacks a major initiative to truly attract major collectors.’

She said Perth Art Weekend could help bring more traffic to galleries, but ‘from a commercial perspective, more footfall does not always translate to more commercial outcome or value to artists.’

Burinskaitė said she hopes Perth Art Weekend will grow organically.

‘Collaboration is the new competition,’ she said. ‘We’re a platform for cultural dialogue.’

She plans to make Perth Art Weekend an annual event, though she’s open to changing the month—August is mid-winter in the southern hemisphere—depending on the preferences of current and future partners, which could include Tourism Western Australia.

Through the event, she hopes to make Perth a more desirable destination than it already is.

‘We have amazing weather, wineries, and beaches,’ she said. ‘Perth would be one of the most liveable cities in the world if our arts and culture ranked higher.’ —[O]

Main image: Kamilé Burinskaité. Photo: Yebo photography.