The ABC will be awash with colour and culture as we celebrate art and artists across our platforms for our inaugural Arts Week.
From Saturday 6 August, audiences will be immersed in arts content that will uplift, inspire, educate, and entertain. Our Arts Week theme Art is Everywhere speaks to the presence of creativity in all our lives and the diversity of Australian arts and culture.
ABC Managing Editor, Arts Edwina Throsby said: “It has been a challenging couple of years for artists, and the whole arts sector continues to grapple with the impacts of lockdowns, illness and border closures. At the same time, the arts have never been more important: for making us all feel connected to each other, for reminding us of the extraordinary power of creativity, or simply for entertaining us.
Be it going to a concert or the theatre, picking up a paintbrush, or settling in at home with a movie or book, we believe the arts are for everyone to enjoy. This year’s Arts Week theme, “Art is Everywhere”, reminds us that art and creativity are easily accessible, wonderfully diverse, and integral to our society.”
Content highlights
The Big Weekend of Books
ABC RN’s on-air writers’ festival is back! The Big Weekend of Books is two jam-packed days of conversations with writers you love and others you’re going to love.
airs on August 6 and 7 on ABC RN and ABC listen, where you’ll also discover a range of audiobooks covering contemporary Australian fiction and non-fiction.
Arts & Minds
Leading arts figures, including Miles Franklin winner Melissa Lucashenko, director Wesley Enoch and comedian Lizzie Hoo deliver brilliant and thought-provoking short talks addressing the theme “Art is Everywhere”. is available on ABC iview and the ABC listen.
Great Southern Landscapes
Art lover Rachel Griffiths returns to ABC screens and heads off across Australia to discover the exact spot where some of our most famous artists captured their interpretation of our iconic landscapes. Along the way she meets people who will help unlock the hidden secrets of the works and the untold stories behind them.
airs Tuesday 9 August at 8pm on ABC TV and ABC iview.
Walking Man
The Walking Man was a prolific Perth artist, hidden in plain sight, who’s work shines a light on the concept of making art just for art’s sake. This is the story of Ross Seaton, the Walking Man, through the lens of Professor Ted Snell, as he sorts through thousands of artworks and collected items hoarded and stockpiled in every room of Ross’s home to bring together an eclectic exhibition set to stun the local Arts community and beyond.
airs Wednesday 10 August at 7.30pm on ABC TV Plus and ABC iview.
Art Works
Hosted by Namila Benson, Art Works is the ABC’s weekly half-hour arts show sharing the most inspiring, surprising, and formative ways that Australian creatives are telling our stories today. Celebrating the diversity of Australian creatives and bringing new voices and ideas into the conversation, the show redefines how we tell the stories of Australia today and tomorrow. Art Works invites audiences to look, debate, consider and reflect on what the arts bring to all our lives.
airs at a special time Tuesday 9 August at 9.25pm on ABC TV Plus and ABC iview
Jeffery Smart
The comprehensive story of one of Australia’s greatest 20th century painters. The documentary incorporates rich archive material including rare interviews with Smart and his long-term partner Ermes De Zan at their wonderful Tuscan farmhouse and vision of places around Arezzo that inspired the artist.
airs Wednesday 10 August at 8.30pm on ABC TV Plus and ABC iview.
Anatomy of a String Quartet
Guided by four musicians from the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Anatomy of String Quartet takes audiences on an intimate journey through the rehearsal and performance of an iconic piece of string music. As the players explore the story behind the music, they also share in their artistic process and the challenges of collaboration.
airs Wednesday 10 August at 9.30pm on ABC TV Plus and ABC iview.
will challenge audiences to roll up their sleeves and Start Drawing including tips on how to get started with sketching
will be discussing the state of play of Australia’s cultural policy with the federal Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke.
will be taking national talkback on arts access – inviting audience members to share their experiences of accessing “the arts” where they live. The conversation will explore why access to the arts is important for communities, what barriers exist, and examples of success stories.
ABC iview will have special over the week, drawing on their robust inventory of over 150 hours of arts content
