Popular Perth arts exhibition has been cancelled for 2025 after the federal government's peak arts body Creative Australia confirmed it would not renew funding.
Popular Perth arts exhibition has been cancelled for 2025 after the federal government's peak arts body Creative Australia confirmed it would not renew funding.
Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe attracts about 230,000 visitors to Cottesloe Beach each year, but the event has fallen short $700,000 for next year's installation following the end of funding through the federal Catalyst Fund and RISE Fund in 2023.
Sculpture by the Sea founder David Handley said it was not possible for the large-scale arts exhibition to be delivered without investment from Creative Australia.
“We have really enjoyed staging the exhibition despite the financial challenges and hope the federal government will support the exhibition to enable it to return in 2026,” Mr Handley said.
“As Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe grew in response to the large number of visitors, the interest from artists around the world and the scale of the sculptures, so did the costs to stage each exhibition.
“Sadly, Creative Australia, as the only source of federal arts funding, does not want to support the exhibition and it is simply not possible to stage an exhibition of this scale without federal funding.”
Speaking at a press conference this morning, Premier Roger Cook said the state government would work closely with Sculpture by the Sea to find solutions.
“We discussed with them corporate support, and I was actually instrumental in getting further corporate support for Sculpture by the Sea,” Mr Cook said.
“We also suggested to them that they could consider staging it in another location where they would be able to attract more funding again, particularly from the local government authority.
“Now, Sculpture by the Sea has made a decision, [and] they blame that on the federal government. There's been some accusations made today by the CEO of Sculpture by the Sea that they haven't received the funding available.
“I don't have line of sight as to who's to blame in relation to this, but we'll continue to work with Sculpture by the Sea because it's an event that everyone loves.”
Mr Cook said the state government had helped increase funding for the well-known arts exhibition.
“We've doubled the funding over recent years to Sculpture by the Sea to try to continue to make it viable in Western Australia, including asking them to consider different locations where they would therefore be able to get more assistance from the local government authority,” Mr Cook said.
“Now they've got a particular model that they're working to. They've got a particular relationship with Creative Australia.
“I don't have access to that conversation, but ... my government has doubled the assistance to Sculpture by the Sea over recent years, and we'll continue to work with them.”
Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King said the federal government supported Sculpture by the Sea post-pandemic and that funding had come to an end.
“Can I just say I know Sculpture by the Sea is an iconic WA event. It is why the Albanese government invested $2 million post-COVID as part of the RISE program to help them recover post-COVID, as we know community events were struggling,” Ms King said.
“We then created Creative Australia to keep those decisions at arm's length. What you don't want is politicians like me, I can tell you now, making decisions about what funding should go to arts events or not.
"And unfortunately, they've not been successful under that program.
“I understand that's disappointing, and I hope there is a pathway forward for them to continue to hold that iconic event, but that is the investment we made - $2 million already, to help them come back on their feet – and they were not successful [in securing further funding].”
WA artist Jon Tarry said the cancellation of Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe for 2025 felt like “a funeral”.
“We can’t believe it’s happening and how anyone responsible for the public arts in Australia could let this happen,” Dr Tarry said.
“Sculpture by the Sea is what every city in the world would love to have.”
Over its 20-year history, Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe has displayed 1,298 sculptures created by 592 artists from 44 countries.
