What happens when young South Australians meet the stories, images and ideas held in the State Library’s collections?
That’s the inspiration behind South Australia ‘React’, the project by South Australian creative Matthew Russell, recipient of the inaugural Friends of the State Library of South Australia Deane Miller Fellowship.
The project will invite young South Australians to encounter stories, images and ideas from the State Library’s collections and capture their curiosity, humour and spontaneous responses. Through short-form digital content, it will offer a fresh perspective on South Australia’s stories and introduce a new generation to the treasures held in the collections.
The State Library will also document and share the creative experience, demonstrating the potential of the Library’s collections as a rich source of inspiration for contemporary creative practice.
The judging panel described Russell’s concept as “playful and inventive”, recognising its potential to connect young audiences with the State Library in new and unexpected ways. Its connection with the Library’s 'Little Library' will create a playful point of discovery, while its short-form digital format will help share these stories with audiences well beyond the Library’s walls.
“Contemporary, accessible and imaginative, the project reveals the collections as a rich source for creative interpretation and offers an enduring platform for young people to encounter, respond to and reimagine South Australia’s stories.” ~ Award Judges
Bringing collections to life
The Deane Miller Fellowship is a new initiative supported by the Friends of the State Library of South Australia to support original creative and research work inspired by the State Library’s collections.
Honouring the legacy and generosity of Deane Miller, the Fellowship invited artists, writers, researchers and creatives working across disciplines to submit project proposals exploring the depth and diversity of the collections and finding new ways to share South Australian stories.
Proposals were considered for their meaningful engagement with the collections, original creative perspectives and clear plans for sharing the resulting work with the public.
State Library of South Australia Director Megan Berghuis welcomed the opportunity to support Russell’s project.
“Matthew Russell’s project brings together young people, creativity and the State Library’s collections in a fresh and engaging way. We look forward to supporting its development and seeing how a new generation responds to South Australia’s stories.” ~ Megan Berghuis, Director, State Library of South Australia
Through initiatives such as the Deane Miller Fellowship, the State Library continues to connect its collections with new ideas, creative voices and audiences, ensuring South Australia’s stories can be discovered, explored and reimagined for generations to come.
Matt Russell's Biography
Matt Russell is an Australian artist who graduated as an actor from the Centre for Performing Arts. He has since completed a PhD examining how Renaissance rhetoric can be used to understand temporal effects in narrative.
Matt has enjoyed a diverse career spanning radio, theatre, television and film. As a creative practitioner, writer, dramaturg, researcher and performance educator, he holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Creative Writing from Flinders University and has extensive experience across theatre, creative writing, performance, screen, dramaturgy, arts research and education.
He is currently a Teaching Artist at Actors Ink in South Australia, where he draws on his considerable experience working with young people and emerging performers. His first novel was selected for the Varuna Publisher Introduction Program by Pan Macmillan.