Western Australia has featured highly in the Creative Partnerships Awards announced last night with FORM’s Lynda Dorrington taking out a major prize for exceptional leadership.
Ms Dorrington was awarded the Dame Elisabeth Murdoch Arts Leadership Award, which recognises the leadership and advocacy of an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to Australia’s cultural life.
Mr Dorrington has held the executive director role at FORM for 13 years and was recognised for her ‘‘vision, commercial acumen and strategic thinking in engaging with business’’.
Among the projects facilitated by Ms Dorrington are Shifting Foundations and Designing Futures, which ran in 2003 and 2005, Creative Capital in 2000, and the Canning Stock Route Project, which began in 2006.
Most recently, FORM has been involved in a project part-funded by Google Earth, which mapped Aboriginal heritage, experiences and artefacts - ‘Ngarluma Ngurra; Aboriginal Culture on the Map’.
Creative Partnerships is a body established to facilitate business partnerships, social investment and philanthropy for the cultural and creative sectors.
WA partnerships recognised in the awards include LWP Property Group and AWESOME Arts Australia for their community-focused program aimed at connecting people in built communities.
The rebrand of AWESOME Arts Australia’s by advertising agency 303Lowe and ZAC Creative was also recognised.
The main partnering award for WA projects went to a partnership between the Fremantle Arts Centre, BHP Billiton Iron Ore and Martumili Artists, Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa, which developed a major exhibition of Martu art integrated with representations of the Martu’s relationship to the Western Desert.
