Transitions 2025
Umbrella and Townsville City Galleries are pleased to announce the participants for this year's Transitions mentorship program:
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Artist mentee Simsala Grimm with mentor Lisa Ashcroft
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Artist mentee Daniel Meza with mentor Luke McLeod
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Artist mentee Natalie Simpson with mentor Ann Bartholomeusz
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Artist mentee Alicia Allen with mentor Dylan Mooney
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Writing mentee Michael Smith with mentor Dr Louise Mayhew
The mentees all met each other in late February, starting the program with a series of icebreakers, professional development intensives and presentations from guest mentors, artists, and staff from Umbrella, Townsville City Galleries and other local galleries. They are now working one-on-one with their mentors (in person or online) over the coming months, alongside regrouping for critique sessions with their peers, staff and guests.
See below to explore more about the mentees' projects and their work with their mentors - to be updated throughout the program.
The Transitions program is a partnership between Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts and Townsville City Galleries.
Participants (touring Murky Waters Studio) left to right: Alicia Allen (mentee), Simsala Grimm (mentee), Rachel Cunningham (Senior Education and Programs Officer - Townsville City Galleries), Daniel Qualischefski (Deputy Director - Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts), Michael Smith (mentee), Natalie Simpson (mentee) and Daniel Meza (mentee). Photograph: Sabrina Toby.
Group critique sessions and gallery tours
The 2025 participants have been meeting for feedback sessions with their peers, staff and guest mentors at Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts and Perc Tucker Regional Gallery. Umbrella's Daniel Qualischefski has led the mentees in discussions, along with his colleagues (including Erin Ricardo, Margaret Robertson, Amanda Galea, Rikaela Rusch and Sabrina Toby) and staff from Townsville City Galleries (including Rachel Cunningham, Jonathan Brown, Ashleigh Peters and Tanya Tanner). The group have heard from and been joined by guests Natalie Ward (2023 mentee), Michael Pope, Anne Lord, Alison McDonald, Sue Tilley, Rhonda Stevens and Ann Vardanega, with Bradley Vincent scheduled to attend the final group session. The guests have presented on their arts practices and careers, and / or the local art galleries they coordinate, including The Drill Hall Studio, Gallery48 and Murky Waters Studio.
2025 participants left to right, back row: Daniel Meza (mentee), Daniel Qualischefski (Deputy Director - Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts), Michael Smith (mentee), Natalie Simpson (mentee) and Rachel Cunningham (Senior Education and Programs Officer - Townsville City Galleries); and front row: Alicia Allen (mentee) and Simsala Grimm (mentee), Photograph: Sabrina Toby.
Transitions alumnus Natalie Ward (a 2023 mentee) presenting to the 2025 cohort about her experience and providing advice for the mentorship and post-Transitions journey. Photograph: Daniel Qualischefski.
Participants of Group Critique Session 1 (left to right): Rhonda Stevens (guest mentor), mentor Ann Bartholomeusz with mentee Natalie Simpson, Daniel Qualischefski (Deputy Director - Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts), Rachel Cunningham (Senior Education and Programs Officer - Townsville City Galleries), Ashleigh Peters (Education and Programs Officer - Townsville City Galleries), Alicia Allen (mentee) and Simsala Grimm (mentee). Photograph: Rikaela Rusch.
Mentee Michael Smith presenting about his writing work in the final Group Critique session.
Jonathan Brown (Townsville City Galleries), Natalie Simpson and guest mentor Ann Vardanega in the second Group Critique session. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Left to right: 2025 mentees Simsala Grimm, Daniel Meza, Alicia Allen, Natalie Simpson and Michael Smith. Photograph: Sabrina Toby.
Alicia Allen speaking about her project during the first group critique session. Photograph: Rikaela Rusch.
Some of the 2025 Transitions participants from the third group critique session, left to right: Daniel Meza (mentee), Ann Bartholomeusz (mentor), Alicia Allen (mentee), Daniel Qualischefski (Deputy Director, Umbrella), Simsala Grimm (mentee), Natalie Simpson (mentee), Kate O'Hara (Director, Umbrella), Jonathan Brown (Acting Senior Education and Programs Officer, Townsville City Galleries), Louise Mayhew (mentor) and Jo Lankester (Senior Exhibitions and Collections Officer). Photograph: Sabrina Toby.
Alicia Allen with Dylan Mooney
Mentee Alicia Allen, a proud Aboriginal woman with connections to Kunja, Marjany and Gunggari Country has been paired with her mentor Dylan Mooney, a proud Yuwi, Mualgal - Meriam and South Sea Islander artist. Dylan has been mentoring Alicia in both her visual arts practice (comprised predominantly of mural work and painting) as well as guiding and helping her to reconnect with her Culture. The pair have been exploring themes of grief and Cultural disconnection, reconnection and advocating for mob, alongside explorations of cultural identity, climate, social and environmental justice. Alicia has begun planning for the 'Transitions' exhibition later this year, developing an installation which will sensitively navigate all of these influences while sharing the histories and remnants of her mural works.
Dylan Mooney and Alicia Allen. Photograph: Daniel Qualischefski.
Alicia's painting rags from working on murals which she intends to repurpose. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Mural by Alicia Allen. Photograph courtesy the artist.
Alicia speaking at the second Group Critique Session at Townsville City Galleries. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Simsala Grimm with Lisa Ashcroft
Simsala Grimm shares an ongoing fascination with diverse, tactile and repurposed materials with her mentor Lisa Ashcroft. Lisa has been helping Sim to expand upon her multidisciplinary practice, bridging the personal and the political to explore identity, power structures and related concepts. Sim's most recent work has also been inspired by her love of horror films, and she has been creating diorama-like scenery and figures for an upcoming photoshoot.
Lisa Ashcroft and Simsala Grimm. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Simsala hot-gluing cord onto her papier-mâché work-in-progress. Photograph: Lisa Ashcroft.
Simsala revealing more of her work-in-progress. Photograph: Lisa Ashcroft.
Simsala's work-in-progress. Photograph courtesy the artist.
Simsala's work-in-progress. Photograph courtesy the artist.
Daniel Meza with Luke McLeod
Daniel has been working with Luke to expand upon his studio photography skills within his broader street photography and arts practice. He has been exploring new approaches, concepts and aesthetics within studio portraiture, including creative experimentation with lighting and colour, which you can see in these exciting behind-the-scenes and work-in-progress images. Luke has also been helping Daniel to develop his client liaison skills to guide specific outcomes.
Daniel Meza with Luke McLeod. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Creative photographic portrait by Daniel Meza.
Daniel Meza and Luke McLeod joining the first Group Critique Session online. Photograph: Rikaela Rusch.
Daniel Meza taking a creative photographic portrait of Luke McLeod. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
Creative photographic portrait of Luke McLeod by Daniel Meza.
Natalie Simpson with Ann Bartholomeusz
Natalie has been extending her emerging arts practice by working one-on-one with Ann. The pair have been experimenting with varied mediums and aesthetics to explore the overlapping boundaries of drawing, digital drawing and printmaking, and concepts related to nature, botany and sustainability. Natalie is now honing her project experimentation to focus on the African Tulip Tree - a beautiful weed (found locally and in tropical climates across the world), that unfortunately contains toxic nectar which kills native bees.
Ann Bartholomeusz and Natalie Simpson in The Studio at Umbrella. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
One of Natalie Simpson's experiments / works in progress. Photograph courtesy the artist.
Ann Bartholomeusz and Natalie Simpson revealing a linocut print in The Studio at Umbrella. Photograph: Amanda Galea.
One of Natalie Simpson's experiments / works in progress. Photograph: Ann Bartholomeusz.
Natalie Simpson in the first Group Critique Session. Photograph: Rikaela Rusch.
Michael Smith with Dr Louise Mayhew
As the inaugural arts writing mentee, Michael has been mentored remotely by Louise while also learning and developing in-person alongside the emerging artist mentorships. This cross-disciplinary approach has provided the artist mentees a greater insight into arts writing, and Michael a greater insight into visual arts practices via his peers.
Michael and Louise have been exploring contemporary approaches to visual arts writing, including appropriately conveying meaning and context within different writing approaches and styles. Michael aims to write a text accompanying the artist mentees’ works in the Transitions exhibition at Umbrella in November.
Michael Smith and Louise Mayhew meeting online for a mentorship session. Screencap courtesy the artists.
Some of Michael’s digitally-handwritten notes.
Michael presenting about his writing development in the second group critique session with Acting Senior Education and Programs Officer Jonathan Brown (Townsville City Galleries).
How to Write About Contemporary Art by Gilda Williams, a book Michael shared as part of his mentorship.
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Acknowledgement of Country
Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts respectfully acknowledges the Wulgurukaba of Gurambilbarra and Yunbenun and the surrounding groups of our region - Bindal, Gugu Badhan, Nywaigi, Warrgamay, Bandjin and Gudjal - as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we gather, share and celebrate local creative practice. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the first people of Australia. They have never ceded sovereignty and remain strong in their enduring connection to land and Culture.
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Acknowledgements
Umbrella is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, part of the Department of Communities, Housing and Digital Economy, and by the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian, state and territory governments. | Umbrella is supported by the Tim Fairfax Family Foundation and receives funding from Creative Australia through the Australian Cultural Fund. | Townsville City Council is a funding partner of Umbrella's program.