Council is an active member of South East Arts and strongly supports arts initiatives across the council area. Our area is home to a number of talented artists, performers and gifted community members who love getting together, swapping ideas, creative techniques and skills. South East Arts is a non-profit incorporated association that provides arts funding, advice and development programs for the Snowy-Monaro, Bega Valley and Eurobodalla Local Government Areas.
Council is an active financial member of South East Arts and works in partnership with the organisation on a number of cultural development projects. Visit the South East Arts website for further information.
The Bombala Rotary Community Choir are an excellent example of this collaboration; choirmaster Claus Zimmer leads this renowned community choir whose ages range from 13 to 80.
The region offers a number of galleries, ranging from the very small to the regional scale.
In Delegate, the Bundian Way Gallery showcases the work of Indigenous artists from across the South East while the Borderline Gallery features work from a range of our local artists and craft persons; the Delegate Progress Association handle the day to day management of the galleries, South East Arts together with the Bundian Way Advisory Committee assists with curating Bundian Way exhibitions and Council assists with promotions and funding.
In Cooma, the Raglan Gallery and Cultural Centre hosts exhibitions by local and travelling artists in a range of artistic disciplines. The Raglan is a beautifully restored historic Inn located in Lambie St. The original Inn was constructed in 1854 by James Hain and had a variety of lives before being purchased by Council and approved for use as a community gallery. Thanks to the hard work of the gallery Board, a large new extension was completed in 2014. The Raglan also plays host to regular artists in partnership with the Monaro Art Group who conduct art classes over four terms a year.
The Monaro Art Group operates a showcase at 112 Sharp St Cooma and is staffed by volunteer artists, craftspeople and writers. Made in the Monaro offers goods for sale created by local craftspeople, workshops, demonstrations and more from their shopfront at 76 Vale St Cooma.
Dedicated community groups, often with assistance from Council, run well maintained museums at Delegate, Bombala and Cathcart which preserve the history and culture of the area for future generations. The Snowy Scheme Museum in Adaminaby showcases the construction of the Snowy Mountains Hydro Electric Scheme and what life was like on the Scheme.
There are plenty of music and performance opportunities in the region, with numerous dance schools, music groups, bands, instrument and vocals teachers, and the Cooma School of Music on hand to support and develop performers from beginners to advanced. The Cooma Little Theatre offers opportunities for people to get involved in theatre performance, whether as a performer, a crew member, or a spectator.