“I have a dream… to revive the vibrant cultural life that once flourished in St Kilda and Port Phillip.
Yes, I must admit that rising living costs might have driven many of our talented artists away, to other parts of Melbourne. But I believe that a city truly thrives when it embraces creativity, making art and culture accessible to all. My perspective is undoubtedly influenced by my roots: in France, 1% of the national budget is devoted to culture.
Port Phillip already has a strong foundation to build on. We are fortunate to have exceptional cultural organisations like Red Stitch, Theatre Works, Raucous and others. Our infrastructure is rich with iconic venues like the Palais Theatre, Memo Hall, Gasworks, the National and the Astor, to name just a few. We’re also home to institutions such as ANAM, the Australian Tapestry Workshop, and Linden New Art, as well as artists’ studios like Veg Out, Barkly106 and Vale Street. And we have an extraordinary opportunity ahead of us – the chance to create a new cultural hub on the St Kilda Triangle site. This is yet another dream, but I truly believe one we can make real.
During my time on Council, we championed the arts, but sadly, many of those programs have been cut or significantly underfunded. The Cultural Development Fund, which I chaired for seven years, provided critical seed funding for many fantastic productions and artists. It got cut in half.
I will never forget sitting beside Margaret Fulton on the opening night of ‘Margaret Fulton, Queen of the Desserts – The Musical’ at Theatre Works that we supported.
Revitalising arts and culture in our city requires a collaborative, creative, and community-driven approach. This means supporting artist collaborations, residencies, public art projects, festivals, and community arts initiatives. It means fostering our writers and building spaces where culture can thrive. I propose the creation of a Port Phillip Arts Council to serve as a hub for promoting cultural events and representing the interests of our arts community.
We all know how difficult it has become to secure funding through existing institutions. That’s why I’m also proposing a Port Phillip Cultural Foundation—a new body dedicated to growing financial support for the arts through donations, which can then be distributed via grants to local organisations, projects, and artists. And wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a passionate arts advocate like Rachel Griffiths leading this effort?
Together, we can make this vision a reality. Let’s work collectively to bring back the thriving cultural life that makes our city shine.”
Serge Thomann, People Empowering Port Phillip
