Artist in Residence Program
As part of our Arts and Culture Strategy goal to create a visible and supported creative community, we are committed to offering artist residency programs in inspiring places, in support of emerging and established artists.
Artists in Residence 2024-25
We currently have three artists in residence.
Arina Apostolova
Visual Artist in Residence at Nillumbik Youth Hub
Arina is a highly skilled and versatile mural artist with a background in architecture. Originally from Ukraine, she has brought her passion for murals to Australia, where she has been creating captivating artworks.
Arina's expertise lies in producing vibrant, engaging, and high-quality hand-painted murals that captivate audiences and enhance the aesthetic appeal of any space. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for storytelling through art, Arina brings creativity, innovation, and professionalism to every project she undertakes.
Arina believes in the power of art to inspire and uplift. The residency presents a unique opportunity for Arina to collaborate with young people, to foster creativity and self-expression, and deliver a new mural at the Youth Hub.
Dylan Negri
Visual Artist in Residence at Edendale Community Environment Farm
Dylan is a South African immigrant and childhood brain cancer survivor. He is an emerging photographic artist.
Dylan’s highly experimental photographs create feelings of wonder and awe. His work explores the convergence of manmade and natural image-making techniques. He explores a wide variety of different photographic techniques to achieve abstract images. Dylan also uses images to communicate difficult issues to help create understanding.
Dylan has lived and worked in Melbourne Australia since 2006. He holds a Diploma in Photography (2023) and has participated in multiple solo and group exhibitions.
Dylan has a strong connection to Edendale Farm. He plans to further his explorations in natural and sustainable image-making processes. Edendale will give him ready access to the various materials and elements used in his work such as discarded leaves, flowers, feathers, insects, soil, and grasses, and he will use sustainable organic darkroom practices including natural chemical processes like caffenol, natural pigments from plants and the use of the sun for exposure.
Dylan plans to engage with community to encourage the exploration of the natural environment and find sustainable and alternative ways to capture and preserve it.
Annabelle Hale
Literary Artist (Writer) in Residence at Yarra Plenty Regional Library (YPRL) in partnership with YPRL.
Annabelle is an author/illustrator based in Eltham. She holds qualifications in both photography and visual arts. In 2023 Annabelle won the SCBWI Australian Picture Book Illustrator Awards in the Emerging Illustrator Category.
Annabelle is passionate about children's literature, and the positive effects of stories on children and parents. She loves creating fun characters and stories to which kids can relate and find humour. She creates digitally and through traditional media, mainly watercolour and colour pencils.
Annabelle is a published illustrator and is currently working with Affirm Press to publish her first book as an author/illustrator. The Bin Monster is due to be published in 2025.
As a separate project, Annabelle plans to develop a picture book based on Alistair Knox Park and other public spaces in Eltham and all of the different people who use it.