Wesley Enoch is the new Chair of the Australia Council board of Creative Australia, serving for a four-year term.
Enoch has been Deputy Chair since August 2023, and has led the board as Acting Chair since Robert Morgan’s retirement in May.
Now it’s official, with a statement issued Tuesday by the federal government.
“Wesley has been instrumental during the transformation of Creative Australia and delivering on Creative Australia’s commitments under the National Cultural Policy – Revive,” comments Minister for the Arts Tony Burke.
The incoming Chair’s “wealth of experience as an industry leader and his knowledge of Australia’s creative sector will provide the board with valuable leadership,” adds Burke, who also pays tribute to Morgan for his years of service to the board and “dedication to championing the arts.”
Enoch, a proud Quandamooka man from Minjerribah, was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Australia Day Honours in 2020, for “significant service to the performing arts as an Indigenous director and playwright”.
He was Artistic Director of the Sydney Festival from 2017 to 2020 and was previously the Artistic Director at Kooemba Jdarra Indigenous Performing Arts and the Ilbijerri Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Theatre Co-operative.
Currently, he serves as Professor of Indigenous Practice at Creative Industries at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), and he leads the national conversation on the place of Indigenous Australia within the creative industries through his First Nations perspective on learning, teaching and research, fostering career pathways and opportunities for students and professionals.
The Australia Council board provides leadership to Creative Australia, the national government’s principal arts investment and advisory body, with the primary purpose to champion and invest in arts and creativity – including screen.
Creative Australia started operating on July 1, 2023 with the passage of the Creative Australia Bill, and is responsible for making decisions on grants funding “at arm’s length from government” through peer and industry assessment.
Also, Creative Australia funds a range of arts activities, including the creation of new work, collaborations, touring, productions, exhibitions, performances, publishing, recording, promotion, market development and more.