March 31, 2023
A new Footscray photographic and film series celebrates western suburbs locals
Media Release
An exhibition celebrating locals and their contribution to the community has been unveiled on the new Footscray Hospital site’s expansive hoarding along Geelong Road.
Member for Footscray Katie Hall MP launched the Faces of Footscray, an installation featuring eight large-scale portraits of hospital staff, volunteers and community members with accompanying short films detailing each participant’s connection to place, culture, and community on the Faces of Footscray website.
Faces of Footscray is the first art commission for the New Footscray Hospital Project and is a collaboration between Plenary Health – the consortium delivering the hospital – and Footscray Community Arts who are the official arts partner for the new hospital.
Plenary Health’s New Footscray Hospital Project Chair, Kelvyn Lavelle, said Faces of Footscray celebrates the stories and people who make the west a healthy and vibrant community to be a part of.
“We are working hard to make sure the New Footscray Hospital will be a welcoming and safe precinct for everyone,”Mr Lavelle said.
“By sharing their individual stories, our Faces of Footscray are helping connect the western suburbs community to their new hospital.”
Faces of Footscray features the work of visual artists from the West – director and producer Mika Tran and photographer Thuy Vy – who together highlight the people that genuinely embody what makes the West special.
Public art is a core part of the hospital’s overall design approach to help deliver an improvement in health and wellness. When complete, the new hospital will include various standalone works and immersive art forms throughout the hospital.
“As one of Australia’s leading community arts centres, we are excited to play such an important role in connecting the community to art and creativity through Faces of Footscray and integrated art throughout the new hospital,” Footscray Community Arts Artistic Director, Daniel Santangeli said.
The new Footscray Hospital, on the corner of Ballarat and Geelong Roads, is set to open in 2025. It is being delivered by the Plenary Health consortium, in partnership with the Victorian Health Building Authority and Western Health.
View the Faces of Footscray portrait exhibition on the new Footscray Hospital hoarding on the corner of Geelong Road (Federal Street corner), Footscray. Visit footscrayarts.com/event/faces-of-footscray.
About the artists:
Mika Tran is a filmmaker and visual storyteller of Japanese-Vietnamese heritage. Mika’s storytelling is grounded in relationality, weaving together interior and exterior narrative threads to craft intimate and nuanced stories that reflect our complex, interconnected world. Mika is particularly dedicated to telling intersectional stories that explore the themes of culture, identity, and belonging.
Thuy Vy is a director and photographer with an eye for crafting distinct images that reflect emotions and moods. His work has an affinity for the real social documentaries, and the composure of visual poetry. Thuy’s work reflects a perpetual curiosity that explores the human condition and seeks to tell stories with sensitivity and empathy.
For further media information contact:
Brooke Giacomin
Engagement and Marketing Manager Footscray Community Arts brooke@footscrayarts.com
Chris Whitefield
Executive Director, Communications, Plenary
chris.whitefield@plenary.com
plenarygroup.com/ footscrayarts.com/
@plenarygroup @footscrayarts