You may have heard of the Bankstown Poetry Slam, the Ramadan Nights Lakemba markets, and even the upcoming Powerhouse Parramatta Museum. It is becoming increasingly clear that with the creative industries, Greater Western Sydney is a force to be reckoned with.
So why is Blacktown yet to join other thriving creative hubs?
‘Western Sydney receives a disproportionately small share of arts investment relative to population,” says Blacktown Council Mayor Brad Bunting. Blacktown boasts the largest population of any Local Government Area (LGA) in NSW, yet there’s a scarcity of qualified creatives. Bunting attributes this to the minimal affordable creative spaces, limited venue capacities, and Blacktown’s underdeveloped night-time ecosystem. This has visibly impacted the declining local arts and culture.
With the recently announced plan for Western Sydney Arts, Culture, and Creative industries 2025-2028, this gap may finally be addressed.
In an interview with Blacktown Arts, local artist Peter Rush talks about his creative practice and how Blacktown has shaped it:
‘[It] has been the people I have met at Blacktown who take hold. It’s also the lovely community at Blacktown Arts, they keep me connected…’ Rush says.
With a large population of First Nations communities, Mayor Bunting says improvements in local arts and culture could create opportunities for First Nations driven initiatives, including volunteering, intergenerational exchange, cultural spaces, custodianship, and leadership. Organisations such as Solid Ground continue to enrich and educate First Nations students, opening culturally rich creative industries and a strong sense of community.
Recently, major funding was secured for The Leo Kelly Blacktown Arts Centre. This connects to projects such as ‘Our Creative City’ and the planned renovation of Blacktown’s Arts Centre and the Blacktown City Arts and Cultural Centre Project. These plans indicate foreseeable improvement in Blacktown’s creative industries. Writers can take a peek into WestWords, and artists may wish to apply for the 2025 Blacktown City Creative Arts Fund. The Blacktown City Art Prize is currently open for submissions, as well as artist residency applications, and Main Street Studios continues to hold space for local creatives.
Whether or not you are an artist, the local arts centre, library, park, shopping centre, even schools can become creative hubs. It may be time to highlight the creative talent Blacktown has to offer.
