The Tidal Exchange carries first nations artists between the Central West and South East regions of NSW.
Artists from two vastly different NSW environments will spend a month making work in each other’s regions in the new Tidal Exchange program.
The inaugural 2026 program will give space for a duo of Aboriginal artists from the South East Arts region to undertake a residency at the The Squatters, Portland in the Arts OutWest region, and for an Aboriginal artist from the Arts OutWest region to undertake a residency at Narra Bukulla, near Tanja on the far south coast.
From the Arts OutWest region Wiradjuri artist Sonia Cox and from South East Arts region Batemans Bay based Walbunja woman Bronwen Smith and Wiradjuri man Gavin Chatfield have been selected.
The artists will spend a month each in late 2026 or early 2027 in residence, experimenting with their artistic work. They will also run a community workshop or activity during their stay.
“The Tidal Exchange is about creating meaningful opportunities for First Nations artists to connect with new places, communities and creative networks. By partnering with Arts OutWest, we’re investing in relationships that extend beyond a single residency—supporting artists to explore, experiment and build lasting connections across regional New South Wales.”
— Kate Bradbury, Executive Director, South East Arts
Sonia Cox is an emerging multidisciplinary artist with a background in community services and health. Sonia often works with natural materials including barks from her local environment and is an exhibiting artist at Arts OutWest’s Kew-Y-Ahn Aboriginal Gallery. Sonia Cox will spend time at Narra Bukulla on the NSW South Coast at Tanja in early 2027.
“This residency will give me the time and space to concentrate on extending my practice, experiment and work with new materials from a different environment and it will be an opportunity to connect with knowledge holders and communities different from my own,” Sonia Cox said.
Bronwen Smith and Gavin Chatfield are husband and wife and business partners behind Gwiyaala Aboriginal Art based in Batemans Bay. Their practice encompasses contemporary acrylic painting on canvas, digital graphic design, textile design, and large-scale 3D installations. They will complete a residency in 2027 at The Squatters at The Foundations, Portland in the NSW Central West.
“Our shared visual vocabulary is deeply anchored in Country, frequently celebrating local totems, flora, and marine life like oysters, stingrays, fish, bees, and dragonflies,” Bronwen Smith and Gavin Chatfield said.
“As a collaborative artistic duo, we want to use this residency in Portland to explore how our dual creative dynamics adapt to an inland, historic, and industrial landscape. Transitioning from our deeply familiar saltwater environment of the Eurobodalla coast to the rugged Central Tablelands will challenge us to expand our visual language both individually and collectively,” they said.
“We hope to gain fresh technical inspiration, build long-lasting networks within the Arts OutWest region, and return to the South Coast with a powerful body of collaborative work that bridges the coastal and inland regional narratives,” they said.
These residencies were offered as part of the Aboriginal arts development programs of Arts OutWest and South East Arts, funded through the Australian Government’s IVAIS (Indigenous Visual Arts Industry Support).
More about the residency locations:
Narra Bukulla, Tanja (Far South Coast, NSW)
Narra Bukulla is a privately-owned property adjacent to Mimosa Rocks National Park, south of Bermagui on the Far South Coast of NSW. It provides artists with a large studio in a remote, bush setting. The artist’s workspace / studio at Narra Bukulla is peaceful with high ceilings, large, long walls and an open floor space with roller-door access.
Residency 2026 – Sculpture Bermagui
The Squatter’s Cottage, Portland (Central West NSW)
The Squatter’s Cottage sits within The Portland Foundations precinct in Portland, NSW, which was once a huge cement works. The quarries are now lakes, the large estate is lined with informal bushwalks and the gracious industrial buildings are aged.
The Squatters Residency – Arts OutWest
Artists social media links:
Bronwen Smith and Gavin Chatfield
Instagram:
Sonia Cox
Instagram: