1.15PM – 2.15PM SUNDAY 9 APRIL 2017

WHEELER PLACE MARQUEE – NEWCASTLE WRITERS FESTIVAL

A significant public program presented in partnership with the Newcastle Writers Festival and in conjunction with the exhibition KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOUR at The Lock-Up. ARRIVAL will explore the value of creative practices and creative spaces for newly arrived migrants at a moment in time where the movement of stateless peoples worldwide rivals that of the post WWII era.

PANEL: Mehwish Iqbal (Facilitator), Ravi Nagaveeran, Niz Jabour, John Sandy and Sister Betty Brown.

PLEASE NOTE: Location is the Wheeler Place Festival Marquee – NOT at The Lock-Up. This is a FREE event. No booking required. The event is a based on a ‘first in, first served basis.’

BIOGRAPHIES

MEHWISH IQBAL (Facilitator)
Artist Mehwish Iqbal’s work is a synthesis of eclectic concerns that generate from the realm of personal experiences of social, cultural and political landscapes in the country of her birth Pakastan, and her home Australia. These two variable ends of the spectrum inspire Mehwish to explore the shifts and disparaties that exist within these two cultures impacting society at large. Mehwish completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the National College of Arts, Pakistan in 2002 and later her Master of Fine Arts at the College of Fine Arts, University of Sydney in 2011.  She has exhibited nationally and internationally.

RAVI NAGAVEERAN
After travelling to Australia from Sri Lanka by boat, Ravi was detained in the Nauru Regional Processing Centre and Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation for over three years. He is now living in the community and has published a collection of his poems, entitled ‘From Hell to Hell’, written from within Australia’s detention centre system. Ravi’s poetry and drawings can be seen as forms of art – literature in and of themselves – however his work can too be perceived as an action of resistance. Ravi has launched his book in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. He has travelled across the country sharing his experiences and shedding some light on his journey.

NIZ JABOUR
Niz Jabour is an Iraqi born artist, playwright, director, performer and filmmaker. He completed a Masters of Creative art at Newcastle University and a Doctorate of Creative Art at Curtin University as practice based-research about memory, narrative and refugees in performance. Niz has written, directed and performed his creative works with people from all walks of life, in many Theatre Companies, including La Mama, MetroArts, Laboite and Full Throttle Theatre.  Some papers from his research have been published in “Refugee Performance”, Intellect Press, 2013.

JOHN SANDY
John Sandy fled conflict in his native Sierra Leone in 1999. He and his wife, already separated by the conflict, ended up in different refugee camps with no idea what had become of each other. Years later while in a refugee camp in Guinea, John heard from a friend that his wife was in Australia and had been looking for him. After a 12year process, he arrived in Australia in 2011 to be reunited with his wife. John’s background in teaching and migrant experience has propelled him to work with young people who carry a similar story. After studying Community Service at Hunter TAFE, he is now a community caseworker in Newcastle. He is currently doing his Honours in Social Work at the University of Newcastle.

SISTER BETTY BROWN
Sister Betty was professed as a Sister of St Joseph in 1953. She was involved in school ministry from 1953-2005 as teacher, principal and library consultant. From 1998 to the present she has served in the Refugee Ministry. In 2006 Sr Betty with the assistance of Sr Di Santleban established Penola House in Newcastle as part of the Josephite Refugee Support Network, where until 2015 they created a place of welcome, housing, education and legal support as well as new skills development for refugees and their families.  In 2015 Sr Betty and Sr Di started Refugees & Partners and the associated Zaras House in Jesmond. As Cultural Services Mentor she supports volunteers and refugees through R&P and the Hunter Refugee Support Network.

This project is supported through an Artist or Curator Residency grant. The Artist or Curator Residency program is supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund and is managed by Museums & Galleries of NSW.

PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY: The NSW Government through NSW Crown Lands and Arts NSW, Headjam, The Herald, City of Newcastle, University of Newcastle and Hunter TAFE.

PROJECT PARTNERS: Copyright Agency Cultural Fund, Museums & Galleries of NSW, Refugees & Partners, Northern Settlement Services, Newcastle Community Youth Development Project and CatholicCare.