The Impact of the Creative Arts on Antarctic Knowledge, Interest and Care: Results from an Australian Survey
Tracks
Stanley Burbury Theatre
| Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
| 12:06 PM - 12:18 PM |
Overview
Prof Elizabeth Leane, UTAS
Speaker
Prof Elizabeth Leane
Professor of Antarctic Studies
University of Tasmania
The Impact of the Creative Arts on Antarctic Knowledge, Interest and Care: Results from an Australian Survey
Abstract Document
For three decades the Antarctic Treaty System has acknowledged the contribution of creative artists – including writers, visual artists and musicians – to promoting understanding, appreciation, and protection of Antarctica. A number of national programs and tourist operators support artists and writers residencies, either systematically or on an ad hoc basis. While the number and nature of these opportunities wax and wane, this history of support has produced a very large and rich body of artistic works.
However, we know very little about the impact of these artistic works on those who encounter them. In this paper, we report on the public impact of an exhibition held in Melbourne, Australia, from February to May 2026, as an output of the Australian Research Council-funded research project “Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South.” We provide an outline of the exhibition and a preliminary report on the results of our audience survey, which focused primarily on the degree (if any) to which the artworks changed their knowledge of, interest in or care for Antarctica.
Our findings are likely to be relevant to future arts-science collaborations as well as national programs interested in demonstrating impact from investment in residencies.
However, we know very little about the impact of these artistic works on those who encounter them. In this paper, we report on the public impact of an exhibition held in Melbourne, Australia, from February to May 2026, as an output of the Australian Research Council-funded research project “Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South.” We provide an outline of the exhibition and a preliminary report on the results of our audience survey, which focused primarily on the degree (if any) to which the artworks changed their knowledge of, interest in or care for Antarctica.
Our findings are likely to be relevant to future arts-science collaborations as well as national programs interested in demonstrating impact from investment in residencies.
Biography
Elizabeth Leane is Professor of Antarctic Studies in the School of Humanities, University of Tasmania. She has a career-long drive to understand how non-specialists can connect with remote or seemingly inaccessible places and ideas. With degrees in both science and literature, she uses the insights of the humanities to understand how humans relate to Antarctica, the 'continent for science'. She has visited Antarctica as a writer-in-resident, an educator and a researcher, with the Australian, New Zealand and Chilean national programs, and with tour operators. She is Arts and Literature Editor of The Polar Journal. Her books include Antarctica in Fiction and South Pole: Nature and Culture and the co-edited collections Anthropocene Antarctica and Performing Ice. She is currently leading several large projects focused on the Antarctic region, including partnered research with government agencies and tourism operators.
