Archive - Cr8Studios

Cr8Studios - Community Arts Hub

Gallery Community & Cultural Programs 

Overview

Cr8Studios was an independent gallery, creative workspace, and community arts hub founded and operated by Raymond Mather in Coffs Harbour between 2011 and 2012. Established following the renovation of a dedicated gallery space, Cr8Studios functioned as an artist-led cultural platform delivering a sustained public program of exhibitions, education, and community engagement.

Operating within a professionally curated framework, Cr8Studios supported local, emerging, youth, and established practitioners while fostering inclusive participation and public access to the visual arts. The studio combined curatorial direction, education, professional presentation, and community leadership, contributing to the cultural life of the region and informing later creative and curatorial practice.

Cr8Studios Annual Program Summary 2011–2012

Cr8Studios officially opened on 14 October 2011 after five months of renovations to the Seccombe Close premises. From its opening through to May 2012, the studio established a continuous calendar of monthly exhibitions, workshops, life drawing sessions, youth arts initiatives, and community events.

Exhibitions featured local, emerging, youth, and established artists, with opening nights regularly attracting between 65 and 185 guests. Programs ranged from open-call group exhibitions to curated themed shows celebrating professional educators, emerging youth voices, and regional creative practice.

Alongside the gallery program, Cr8Studios facilitated an extensive education and participation offering. This included ongoing life drawing sessions, specialist artist workshops, children’s holiday art programs, youth-focused initiatives, and public talks. Following the success of the Coffs Youth Avant-Garde exhibition, the studio space was also made available free of charge to support youth arts development.

A significant milestone during this period was Cr8Studios’ role in inaugurating and coordinating the CoastOut Conference, Gender and Sexuality in Rural and Regional Australia, delivered in partnership with Southern Cross University at the Coffs Harbour campus. Cr8Studios also hosted the associated CoastOut exhibition as part of the broader CoastOut community event program. CoastOut was later awarded the Australia Day Award 2012 for Best Community Event.

In October 2011, Cr8Studios established and presented the Inaugural CoastOut Exhibition, Sensual, which served as the official public launch platform for CoastOut. The exhibition formed part of the opening program at Cr8Studios and marked the first public presentation of CoastOut as a community initiative. The launch was formally opened by the Mayor of Coffs Harbour, Denise Knight, and Deputy Mayor Kerry Hines, confirming CoastOut’s civic recognition and community significance from its inception.

Cr8Studios maintained a professional communications and promotional strategy throughout this period. The venue operated an official website, maintained a database of over 600 members, produced monthly newsletters, issued press releases for each event, and was regularly featured across regional newspapers, council listings, arts networks, and online event platforms. The gallery sustained a strong public presence through consistent branding, printed promotional material, and an active social media platform.

The Cr8Studios Annual Program Summary 2011–2012 documents this period as a concentrated phase of independent cultural production, community engagement, and creative leadership. It reflects a model of artist-led infrastructure that combined curatorial vision, professional operations, education, and inclusive community participation.

 

 

 

 

Foundational Practice (Pre-Cr8Studios)

Prior to establishing Cr8Studios in Coffs Harbour, Raymond Mather developed extensive curatorial and community arts experience at the Tanks Art Centre, Cairns (2000-2005), working across exhibitions, installations, education programs, and large-scale community events during the venue’s formative operational years.

This Archive entry forms part of the broader record of professional creative work and cultural contribution undertaken prior to the launch of ART1.

This page sits within the ART1 Archive, documenting professional experience and cultural engagement prior to the launch of ART1.

View other credits, projects, and cultural initiatives documented in the ART1 Archive.