Radio Yak Yak

Radio Yak Yak is one element of an international exhibition called Yak Yak, being hosted by the Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery in northern Victoria. The exhibition is co-curated by Irish artist Fiona Woods and gallery director Ian Tully. The show features artists from Ireland, Sweden, the USA, Argentina and Australia, and it highlights the myriad global conversations that are starting to forge powerful new networks that will support the idea of rural arts into a future full of change.

Radio Yak Yak is a sound installation, created by Michael Shirrefs, allowing visitors to listen to a number of interviews and radio programs that look at the distinctive nature of rural artists, their work, and what they have in common with rural artists around the globe. The conversations range from an artist in Ireland, to a group of artists on an island off the coast of Sweden, to an arts collective in rural Colorado, to an artist/farmer on a mountain in New South Wales.

Remotely Connected

Radio Yak Yak—Remotely Connected

This is a story about a farmer who’s also an artist. Or maybe he’s an artist who’s also a farmed. His name is Neil Berecry Brown … and he’s remotely connected.

This radio feature was produced by Michael Shirrefs and was first broadcast
on ABC Radio National’s 360Documentaries program Sunday 30th June 2013

Art On A Twig

Radio Yak Yak—Art on a Twig

There’s an old tradition in parts of Australia called a Twiggy—stopping by the side of the road, lighting a fire and settling in for a chat. The idea was recently revived to create collaborations between a Victorian artist, Trevor Flinn, and a series of farming families. The result is The Twig Project.

This radio feature was produced by Michael Shirrefs and was first broadcast
on ABC Radio National’s Creative Instinct program Saturday 14th July 2012

Rural Artists With A Wide Orbit

Radio Yak Yak—Rural Artists with a Wide Orbit

Do rural artists need to kowtow to their city counterparts? Do they even speak the same language? In 2011, a group of Australian and international artists and arts organisations, under the banner of ACRE 2, gathered to discuss the role of rural culture in modern times. And the results were quite surprising.

This radio feature was produced by Michael Shirrefs and was first broadcast
on ABC Radio National’s Artworks program Sunday 12th June 2011)

Irish Artist Fiona Woods

Radio Yak Yak—Fiona Woods

A conversation with Irish artist and co-curator of Yak Yak, Fiona Woods—speaking to Michael Shirrefs from her home in County Clare.

A Conversation With Kultivator

Radio Yak Yak—Kultivator

An interview with Mathieu Vrijman—co-founder of the Swedish art and farming collective called Kultivar. He’s speaking to Michael Shirrefs from the Kultivator farm on the island of Öland, off the east coast of Sweden.

Colorado’s M12 and Ian Tully

Radio Yak Yak—M12 + Ian Tully

An interview with Kirsten Stolz, co-founder of the Colorado-based art and architecture collective M12, and Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery Director Ian Tully. They’re speaking to Michael Shirrefs from a studio in Denver in the US.