City of Ballarat to part fund new industry arts and heritage PhD program

The City of Ballarat will part fund a new industry arts and heritage PhD program through a partnership with Australian Catholic University.  
 
The PhD program is one of three the ACU will offer as part of a broader partnership with the City of Ballarat, the Art Gallery of Ballarat and Sovereign Hill as industry partners. 
 
The City of Ballarat and the Art Gallery of Ballarat will contribute $5,000 each year for three years towards the scholarships.    
 
PhD candidates will pursue research programs co-designed with industry partners in relation to Ballarat’s heritage and art history.  
 
The three PhD programs include:  

• ACU - The City of Ballarat Arts Industry PhD — this project will involve the PhD candidate pursuing research and working collaboratively with City of Ballarat staff in relation to the history and heritage of Ballarat.  
   
• ACU – Art Gallery of Ballarat Arts Industry PhD — this project will involve the PhD candidate working with staff at the Art Gallery of Ballarat to develop an exhibition relating to Ballarat’s art history, along with related public programs, education resources and gallery publications.  
   
• ACU – Sovereign Hill Museums Association (SHMA) Arts Industry PhD — this project will involve the PhD candidate working collaboratively with SMHA staff to further Sovereign Hill’s purpose to connect people through history to adapt to a better future.  

City of Ballarat Mayor, Cr Des Hudson, said The City of Ballarat was proud to partner with the Art Gallery of Ballarat, ACU and Sovereign Hill to fund these PhD projects.  
 
“These PhDs offer opportunities to explore how we preserve our links to the past in ways that foster innovation and new ways of engaging communities with their heritage,” he said.  
 
“Investing in this program is in line with The City of Ballarat’s Community Vision, in which the Ballarat community seeks to embraces its rich heritage.”  

Gallery Director Louise Tegart said that the Gallery was very excited to be partnering with ACU, the City and Sovereign Hill in sponsoring these research projects. 

“The Gallery is at the heart of and reflects our creative city. The PhD scholarships will help us to partner with art researchers and educators to offer new insights and to tell old stories in new and exciting ways,” she said.  

“It is vital that we respond to our dynamic and changing city by continuing to rewrite our stories, to remix and rethink and to generate new ways of looking and of thinking.” 
 
The Dean of ACU’s National School of Arts and Humanities, Professor Joy Damousi AM, said the program offered doctoral students a chance to undertake real-world research and make a positive contribution to Ballarat. 

"The new industry PhD program reflects ACU's ongoing commitment to fostering links in the local community and promoting research and training in the arts and humanities,” she said. 

"ACU is excited to partner with key regional stakeholders to give our doctoral students an opportunity to undertake industry-relevant research while earning their PhD." 
 
For more information about the PhD programs, visit the ACU and Ballarat Arts Industry PhD Scholarships information page.