Arts

​​​​​​​​Strategic objective: Vibrant arts and culture across the state

Enhance Queenslanders' access to arts and culture, through investment in the creation, development and presentation of arts product, cultural experiences and cultural infrastructure.

Cultural infrastructure

Cultural infrastructure increases access to arts and culture for Queenslanders.

Through Arts Queensland, the Queensland Government is investing in the delivery of Glasshouse Theatre, a new $184 million theatre at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). The 1,500-capacity venue, to be opened in 2025–26 will create a fifth theatre for QPAC making it the largest performing arts centre in Australia under one roof.

Arts Queensland is committed to preserving and revitalising the heritage listed Queensland Cultural Centre (QCC), with key projects at the QCC in 2024–25 focused on critical infrastructure works, including asset renewal, end-of-life replacements, upgrades and building fabric renewal.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland also commenced work on the $8.5 million modernisation of the Judith Wright Arts Centre to increase tenancy space, support sector collaboration and access to development and presentation spaces.

Growing sustainable arts businesses

Long-term investment and partnerships provide stability and support for the arts sector, enabling sustainable growth and new employment opportunities for artists.

Arts Queensland invests in and supports arts organisations to build strong businesses and provide exceptional arts and cultural experiences across the state. In 2024–25, we continued this support by:  

• investing over $8.7 million in core funding for 48 arts organisations through the Organisations Fund 2022–2025 to support sustainable arts business, grow employment opportunities for creatives and artists, and activate and engage communities
• investing $13 million in 7 major performing arts organisations as part of the National Performing Arts Framework partnership with Creative Australia
• investing $2.1 million to support the growth of creative businesses within the Queensland arts sector as part of the Strategic Partnerships Fund.

Cross-sector partnerships build opportunities for the arts sector and support wellbeing and social cohesion in communities. In 2024–25 partnerships included:

• delivering new social impact pilot programs in partnership with the Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support and Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service
• continuing our partnership with Children's Health Queensland and Health Infrastructure Queensland to achieve high quality integration of arts across Queensland health infrastructure projects
• developing an Arts in Health Framework to support implementation of consistent approaches across Queensland health infrastructure.

Queensland's creative economy

Arts Queensland delivers a range of funding initiatives to grow creative employment, support cultural tourism and develop new arts and cultural work that activates Queensland communities, showcases Queensland stories and contributes to the state's creative economy.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland invested $3.7 million in 100 new projects through the Queensland Arts Showcase Program and the First Nations Commissioning Fund. Projects announced included:

• $70,000 for A New Show for a New Stage, a new comedy work that recounts and reinterprets Australian knockabout narratives, sharing stories by storytellers of outback Queensland created and performed by The Crackup Sisters in Winton
• $25,200 to support the development of Imprinting Empathy, an art+tech research collaboration, led by visual artist Bianca Tainsh, which will use new technologies to explore interspecies entanglement and produce a body of multi-artform works
• $68,624 to Kevin Starkey for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music Producers Development Program and song-making workshop to build the skills and capacity of emerging Indigenous music producers.

Thirty-four projects received support through the Performing Arts and Visual Arts Market Development Fund. These funds enabled Queensland artists and artsworkers to enhance their exposure, drive their business and career development, and expand their market reach through interstate and international opportunities. 2024–25 projects included:

• $12,296 to Arc Circus to showcase 'A Bee Story' at Tini Tinou International Circus Festival in Cambodia
• $30,995 to Mast Furniture to present the Kurunpa Kunpu | Strong Spirit exhibitions at London Design Festival and Design Miami
• $5,832 to Mr Sebastian Moody to showcase new works at the Bark Berlin Gallery during Berlin Art Week.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland supported 14 recipients, including 8 from regional Queensland, through the new Grow Cultural Tourism Fund. Funding enabled the expansion of impactful arts and cultural events across the state and created employment opportunities for Queensland artists and artsworkers.

Arts Queensland recognises the challenges facing the state's music industry including increasing costs and changing audience behaviours and expectations.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland also launched 2 new funds to help address challenges facing the live music industry including:

• Live Music Venue Business Grants: supporting live music venues to grow and diversify business models through innovative approaches that improve efficiency and venue and equipment upgrades
• Growing Gigs Fund: supporting live music venues to offset performance fees and book more Queensland music artists and musicians.

Round 1 of each fund supported venues across the state to upgrade facilities and grow gigs for Queensland artists, revitalising Queensland's gig economy.

Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts

Aboriginal arts and cultures and Torres Strait Islander arts and cultures play an important role in expressing Queensland's identity.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland continued to deliver initiatives that support a strong and ethical Aboriginal arts industry and Torres Strait Islander arts industry that safeguards cultural property and provides social and economic outcomes for Indigenous peoples and communities. Initiatives include:

• investing $8.7 million through the Backing Indigenous Arts (BIA) initiative to support Aboriginal artists and Torres Strait Islander artists, arts workers, and organisations. Investment also includes funding for 16 Indigenous Arts Centres, Indigenous Festivals including Cairns Indigenous Arts Fair, First Nations Pathways—Performing Arts Emerging Organisations Fund 2022–2025 and core funding to the Aboriginal Centre for the Performing Arts
• delivering the Grow Strategic Development Project Fund to foster the continued growth and sustainability of the Backing Indigenous Arts—Indigenous Arts Centres network, contributing economic and social benefits to their communities. Funded projects include arts worker training, international marketing and new product design and development
• supporting recipients through the First Nations Fashion and Textiles Accelerator Fund. The new fund is assisting established Indigenous fashion and textile artists and businesses that produce wearable art, ready-to-wear fashion collections or fabrics to increase production, enter new collaborations and expand into national and international markets. The fund is an action of the First Nations Fashion and Textile Plan 2024–2026.

Activating Queensland communities 

Investing in regional arts and culture drives creativity, delivers important social and economic impacts, and supports culturally vibrant and resilient communities.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland invested in regional arts initiatives that include and support local councils, arts organisations, venues, and individuals. Initiatives included the Regional Arts Development Fund, a partnership with local councils and the Regional Arts Services Network, to assist the arts sector in Far North Queensland, North Queensland, Central Queensland, and the South West.

Arts Queensland also enhanced touring support to regional areas with a total investment of $3.7 million for the Touring Queensland Fund and the multi-year Touring support framework. This funding facilitated over 750 new and exceptional arts experiences, spanning locations from Cairns to Warwick, and supported initiatives such as Shake & Stir Co's schools touring program and Queensland touring services.

Creative workforce

Arts Queensland is committed to workforce development to ensure the expertise required for strong and sustainable arts, creative, and cultural industries.

In 2024–25, Arts Queensland continued to deliver a range of workforce initiatives, including:

• the Industry Placements program to place participants in paid industry roles and decrease critical worker shortages
• Melt Open Development Program to provide mentorship, funding, and presentation opportunities for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other sexually or gender diverse (LGBTQIA+) ​artists and arts workers. The program supported 62 creative professionals to develop and present 16 funded projects, including 15 First Nations people and 8 people with a disability
• Brisbane Festival Capacity Building Program offering 16 placements across 5 festival programs for First Nations artists and workers, artists with disability, neurodivergent artists and technical workers.

Service area performance

Objective: Enhance Queenslanders' access to arts and culture, through investment in the creation, development and presentation of arts product, cultural experiences and cultural infrastructure.

Description: ​The service area:

• leads the implementation of Creative Together 2020–2030: A 10-year roadmap for arts, culture and creativity in Queensland, along with its action plan Grow 2022–2026, across the Queensland Government in partnership with key stakeholders
• facilitates the delivery of the Queensland Government's arts and cultural priorities and administers government investment in funding programs and capital works programs
• manages the state's arts and cultural assets that provide public spaces for arts production and engagement, including the Queensland Cultural Centre at Brisbane's South Bank; Festival House at 381 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley; Judith Wright Arts Centre; and Bulmba-ja in Cairns
• supports the governance and compliance of arts companies (Aboriginal Centre for the Performing Arts; Queensland Music Festival; Major Brisbane Festivals; and Screen Queensland) and arts statutory bodies (Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees (Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art); Board of the Queensland Museum (Queensland Museum Network); Queensland Performing Arts Trust (Queensland Performing Arts Centre); Queensland Theatre Company (Queensland Theatre); and Library Board of Queensland (State Library of Queensland) in the arts portfolio
• provides arts and cultural policy and strategy advice to the Queensland Government.

Table 6: Arts performance measures