A UTS and Uni of Newcastle collaborative film set entitled “Southern Resilience” has won The Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) national Award of Excellence for Research, Policy and Communications.
The award recognises and congratulates the team ‘for their evocative research project, which culminated in audiovisual displays at the Venice Biennale.’
The scale of thinking and level of detail brought to bear within this project are admirable, and the highly skilled way in which research, policy and communications have been intertwined is commendable.
– AILA Awards jury
‘The jury was enthralled by the inventive use of video to help present complex information in a highly accessible way, and believes that this showcases on the international stage how diverse design and storytelling techniques can come together in a powerful way.’
About the entry
Landscape always has a compelling presence in southern lands where life and landscape are inextricably connected. And yet, despite the scale of our landscapes, industrial legacies have left deep scars. UTS researchers and academics Penny Allan, Martin Bryant and James Melsom joined with Sue Anne Ware (University of Newcastle) to produce and direct three short films collectively entitled ‘Southern Resilience’. These films examine the elemental nature of landscape, and the communities that live, love and work to renourish the intrinsic values of those landscapes. The films were exhibited in the Italian pavilion's 'Resilient Landscapes for Resilient Communities' exhibition at the Venice Biennale in 2021.
IMAGES: 1. Photographer Penny Allan; 2. Supplied by James Melsom