Academic Research

I am a visual artist, cultural worker and researcher focussed on working in public space and building creative communities and places. I have founded, built and run MAPA Art + Architecture together Hugo Moline since 2015. Prior to that I was part of The Lot collective. I have managed public art and cultural projects both temporary and permanent, for clients including: City of Sydney, Westmead Hospital, Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, Parramatta City Council, Powerhouse MAAS, Urban Art Projects, Defence Housing Australia, amongst others. Working on complex collaborative public art projects I have developed effective project & time management skills and successfully led teams of contractors, fabricators, engineers and installers. In our collaborative practice, Hugo and I have undertaken residencies and produce research outcomes in Japan at Australia House for the Echigo Tsumari Art Triennial, at NIDA Art Colony in Lithuania, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, The Museum of Loss and Renewal in Italy and others. Alongside my creative practice I have twelve years of professional experience working in the visual arts and local government sector. In 2005 I graduated from Macquarie University with a Bachelor of Creative Art majoring in Arts Management and in 2008 I graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the National Art School majoring in Sculpture. In my various roles as Creative Industries Project Officer at Blue Mountains City Council, Curator of Bankstown Biennale, Bankstown City Council, Cultural Development Officer at Fairfield City Council I have been responsible for producing and managing creative programmes, exhibitions and grant programs. I have also taught as sessional academic at in interdisciplinary design at the University of Technology Sydney, in architecture at the Sydney University and worked as a research co-ordinator at the University of Newcastle in the School of Humanities, Creative Industries and Social Sciences.

I am practice led cultural researcher, performance (auto)ethnographer, academic educator, as well as a specialist in producing Community Arts & Cultural Development (CACD) programs and interdisciplinary creative collaborations. I have 25 years experience spanning the arts, theatre, arts health & wellbeing and CACD practice. I have undertaken public sector roles in government, and arts and not for profit organisations.In April 2022, I graduated with a Doctorate in Cultural Research (DCR) at the Institute for Culture and Society (Western Sydney University). My thesis titled "Unmasking the 4th Space: Collaborative Creativity In Praxis at the Intersection of Artists, People with their Communities and Institutions" is applied research. With a focus on the linear and non-linear transformations between artists, people in their communities and institutions engaged in the collaborative creativity. My work further explores a space for narratives that are often not heard to be rewoven and performed at the centre.

I'm a performing musician and composer, graphic artist, videographer and educator and have lived in the upper Blue Mountains for the last two decades. I perform with the psychedelic soundscape ensemble PaperSun and am an original member of the Spooky Men’s Chorale, the infamous Mountains-based mens a cappella group. My music has been employed in a wide range of projects over the years, ranging from a soundtrack for the independent film 'The Last Babushka Doll' (2018), a promotional video for MTNS MADE and for the DiG digital arts project for Penrith City Council. My most recent release, Sounds Of In-Between (2015) brings together voice, instruments and field recordings in a timeless collage of music and sound. I'm currently working on composing and recording an album of new material with PaperSun at my studio in Abbey Street, Leura. I completed a first class honours degree at Western Sydney University in 2015 and has presented research at conferences in Spain, New Zealand and Australia. My doctoral investigation explored the spatio-temporal phenomenon of suspension as an aesthetic approach in popular music and imagery, which resulted in the audiovisual work States of Suspension, performed with PaperSun at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre in 2018 as part of my thesis submission. I'm a sessional lecturer at WSU and also teach instrumental students through my own music school, Abbey Street Music. I can be contacted at music@abbeystreet.one or call/text 0417 376 733.

Seed is a new generation of communications and PR consultancy. Ethical, socially sensitive and aware, we develop strategic communication and PR programs that support conscious leadership and help drive positive social and environmental impact. We are passionate about what we do which ensures our campaigns are creative and compelling, connect with audiences and create discussion. At Seed, we believe purposeful organisations deserve to get their message out there and be heard, to help this we work with realistic budgets, giving you the opportunity to gain exposure.

I'm an artist and designer working in the field of immersive and interactive media. I'm interested in the aesthetics of how people interact with virtual environments and what simulated realities can tell us about humanity. My research focuses on applications for immersive visualisation and experimental digital technologies to the preservation and interpretation of important cultural heritage sites, collections and museums. I'm interested in how we can use new media platforms to create new, embodied sensory experiences that allow us to understand heritage in innovative ways. I'm also interested in the mechanics of immersive design. My background is in art history and museums, and I work closely with the GLAM sector on digital conservation, exhibition design and interaction design projects.

Dr Katrina Sandbach is a Senior Lecturer in Design (Visual Communication) in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts at Western Sydney University. Katrina’s research draws from her experience as a designer and design educator, using visual and digital methods to study place, identity, and community, emphasizing practice-led approaches and non-traditional outcomes. She is interested in the social, cultural, and economic impacts of creative industries, and is driven by her concerns about the support given to current and future creative practitioners through education, policy, and community-based initiatives. As an award-winning educator, Katrina’s curriculum design and teaching approach centres on community engagement and strengths-based learning approaches that balance student well-being and outcomes with work readiness, ensuring that students graduate as skillful, resilient, and sought-after designers. She is the convenor of Burrow, a work-integrated learning studio that connects emerging designers with organisations that require creative insight. Since 2016 she has supervised more than 800 students. She has developed, managed, and delivered 100+ real-world design projects of varying scope and complexity, working with a range of partners spanning the education, arts and culture, tech innovation, health, and local government sectors.

I'm a visual artist, editor, researcher, project manager and teacher. I make exhibition work (installations), edit (academic articles, PhD and Master theses, exhibition catalogues) and produce neat layout (articles, catalogues). I’ve worked in digital humanities (visual arts, history, museums) and journal publishing (scientific, art history). I've taught at uni and TAFE (visual arts) as well as high school (visual arts, English). I am available for editing, layout, teaching/workshops, research and anything to do with managing projects, publications or collections data.