Creative Arts Collective: ‘We believe in the value of artists’

Before Alice Fraser jets off to the UK to work with folk label Communion Music, she has one last thing to do, and that’s to reinvent The Jam Room as the Creative Arts Collective. The change has been a long time coming, with Fraser saying it’s been two years’ research – learning event management skills – and two years’ hard work – putting skills into practice and building a reputation for excellent folk festivals and beach-themed good times. From her time scheduling Sunday sessions at Glenelg Surf Life Saving Club, Fraser has always had a golden heart and good eye for events that satisfy punters and players alike. The Creative Arts Collective is the evolution and culmination of all these ideas. “Essentially, the Jam Room just operated because it’s a somewhat of a glorified hobby that got a bit of momentum,” Fraser tells The Adelaide Review, laughing. “Lo and behold, suddenly I was building structures around a business that was already happening. Now I feel like I’ve consolidated the direction of where we’re going to go now, which is, of course, going to have an international spin, is always going to involve some festivals, but is going to encroach on doing bigger and bigger shows, so that’s where I’m rolling from now.” Fraser’s next big show – once she returns from Woodford Folk Festival, and before Laneway kicks off – is the Mollusc Jamboree, the first event presented under the Creative Arts Collective banner. The jamboree is a folk/roots celebration to sing in the new era, and it’s the first in Fraser’s three-step plan. As the Creative Arts Collective will stretch its wings over more than just music, the style and structure of CAC events will be inclusive of visual and performing arts as well. “The next progression is going to be giving a coastal arts market a whole new life down in the Glenelg area. Admittedly, that won’t be happening this summer, but it’s well and truly underway – all the approvals have been given for the end of 2015. It’s definitely something that’s going to progress over the next 12 months.” The third and final stage is the most exciting. “We’re actually going to create a cafe and venue run by artists,” she says. The plan is to start a space that allows and encourages creatives to create, while providing financial support in return for their work. “The actual living space will be created for artists, and I’ll be employing artists to actually work there,” Fraser explains. “The whole idea behind everything that we do is that we pay artists to create. Whether or not that’s a part-time job that helps them create over time, or whether we’re paying for a performance or we’re paying to use their artwork in an installation or on a poster – we believe in the value of artists, and placing a dollar figure and a cultural value on what they actually create.” As Fraser will be overseas for most of 2015, learning trade secrets from the Communion crew, her “partner in crime” Luke Hancock (The Bakers Digest) will be holding the reins and keeping the Collective running smoothly. Creative Arts Collective Mollusc Jamboree  

MOLLUSC JAMBOREE

To salute the future successes of the Creative Arts Collective, they’ve planned a beachside party bash in January 2015. On Sunday, January 11, Willunga will welcome tropical vibes and coastal punters to a pizza party and roots concert. Sarah Howells (triple j), Bobby Alu (drummer with Xavier Rudd) and Nick Saxon will bring the tunes. To kick start the visual arts side of the program, Lahni Rose Tomlinson will be presenting a photography exhibition. As the Jamboree will be held at Russell’s Pizza (13 High Street, Willunga), platters of the wood-oven delights will be wandering through the crowd. Tickets are available now through Moshtix for $30+bf (includes pizza).