Love arts, culture, and all things creative in Hobsons Bay?

Help shape the next Hobsons Bay Creative City Arts and Culture strategy.

A key action of the Hobsons Bay Council Plan 2025-2029 is to develop the Creative City Arts and Culture Strategy this year.

We first heard from the community in 2023, with more than 250 comments that highlighted values, beliefs and priorities relating to arts and culture in Hobsons Bay, which can be viewed here. Further community consultation was undertaken in 2025 while developing the Council Plan and the Health, Wellbeing and Safety Plan.

Local government plays a vital role in shaping creative experiences for communities through leadership, strategic planning and investment in arts and culture. Through creative programs, public art and cultural initiatives, an arts and culture strategy enables councils to foster connection, identity and participation, contributing to community health and wellbeing. The creative sector also supports the visitor economy, activates public spaces and contributes to broader economic growth, helping build vibrant, connected and liveable cities.

Based on what we have heard so far, four principles and five program areas are proposed to guide the development of the Creative City Strategy. We encourage feedback from artists, arts organisations and interested residents.

Proposed principles

  • Creativity for all

    Contribute to the vitality of Hobsons Bay through the development and promotion of a dynamic creative community. Ensure all programs are well promoted for maximum community benefit.

  • Sustainability and growth

    Recognise the importance of sustainability as the most critical need for the sector as well as long-term growth and economic benefits, for artists and arts organisations, aligning with government strategies for future partnerships and investment.

  • Innovation and excellence

    Support and develop diverse initiatives that respond to the unique qualities of Hobsons Bay, through its people, place and culture and that enhance the cultural reputation of the city.

  • Participation, social and cultural inclusion

    Promote a sense of well-being through participation in and access to the arts and creative industries.

Proposed program areas

The proposed program areas would deliver outcomes that align with the principles. Projects might fall into more than one program area, for example: a public art exhibition might fall under ‘Art in Public Places’ as well as ‘Cultural Festivals and Events’.

  • Art in public places

    Provide a high-quality public art program that enhances public places, cultivates creative communities, and celebrates the unique cultural, social, and environmental characteristics of Hobsons Bay. This program area includes permanent public art, street art, temporary art activations, including lighting and other digital and tech platforms, and socially engaged practice that occurs within the public realm.

  • Creative spaces and activations

    Maximise the use of spaces, places and infrastructure, by recognising their potential to add cultural and economic value to the city. This program area covers arts infrastructure, venue operations, and programming, such as the performing arts program, music events, visual arts exhibitions, artist residencies, artists' talks and creative workshops.

  • Cultural festivals and events

    Support a cultural events and festivals calendar that attracts visitors to the city while celebrating and connecting our local creative and cultural ecology. This program area would include cultural events produced in the city as well as a focus on leveraging significant major arts events into Hobsons Bay, like Midsumma, Melbourne Fringe Festival, National Trust Heritage, and Open House Melbourne.

  • Telling our stories

    Ensure First Nations communities are engaged in cultural storytelling through creative programs. In addition, continue to deliver cultural heritage talks and programs that recognise Hobsons Bay’s unique maritime, industrial, migrant, and settler histories.

  • Advocacy, partnerships, and capacity building

    Maintain a strong creative community that enriches and promotes professional development, learning, connection, resilience, sustainability and economic opportunities. This program area covers grants and funding, the Council’s Creative Exchange Lab, and other professional development and networking opportunities plus advocacy to attract external investment from developers and government agencies as well as cultural partnerships.

Top image: 'Newport Lakes Birdlife' street art mural by Sarah Allen (2024). Located at Vernon Street, South Kingsville.