Platform Artists Group Inc. or Platform Contemporary Art Spaces, commonly known as Platform, is one of Australia's longest operating

artist-run initiative An artist-run space or artist-run centre (Canada) is a gallery or other facility operated or directed by artists, frequently circumventing the structures of public art centers, museums, or commercial galleries and allowing for a more experimental ...

. The organisation develops exhibitions of

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...

by artists from Australia and around the world. Platform primarily consists of 3 separate spaces, all located in and under the busy

Flinders Lane Flinders Lane is a minor street and thoroughfare in the central business district of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The laneway runs east–west from Spring Street to Spencer Street in-between Flinders and Collins Streets. Originally laid out ...

precinct in the heart of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

city. Most of the activities of Platform are located in the

Campbell Arcade Campbell Arcade is a pedestrian arcade located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The arcade is accessible from Flinders Street station and was built in 1955 to ensure crossing between Flinders Street and Melbourne's main train station was safer ...

subway under Flinders Street in Melbourne. A pedestrian poll conducted in 2005 by Connex estimated that more than 35,000 people a week pass through the Platform exhibition sites, making it one of the most visible sites for public art in Melbourne. Platform provides support for many young artists by enabling them to present solo exhibitions and the organisation often debuts artists to the general public. During its operation, Platform has presented new work from more than 2,500 artists. Many have established successful art careers and have become well-respected professional artists.

History

Founded in 1990 by artists Andrew Seward and Richard Holt, Platform's first location was a collection of glass display cases in the old

Spencer Street station Southern Cross railway station (until 2005 known as Spencer Street station) is a major railway station in Docklands, Victoria, Docklands, Melbourne. It is on Spencer Street, Melbourne, Spencer Street, between Collins Street, Melbourne, Collins ...

pedestrian underpass. In 1995, the

City of Melbourne The City of Melbourne is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central city area of Melbourne. In 2018, the city has an area of and had a population of 169,961. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. The ci ...

offered the group another underground space, Campbell Arcade, a subway located under Flinders Street and connecting

Flinders Street station Flinders Street railway station is a train station located on the corner of Flinders Street, Melbourne, Flinders and Swanston Street, Swanston streets in the Melbourne city centre, central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria (Austral ...

Degraves Street Degraves Street is a pedestrian precinct and thoroughfare in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is a short, narrow laneway in the Central Business District that runs north–south from Flinders Street to Flinders Lane and is situated in-between ...

. Platform expanded the exhibition program into this second space, running group and solo exhibitions at both the city's major train stations. In 2000, Platform Artists Group further expanded the organisation into a subway shop they named Sticky. Promoting and selling Artist books and

Zines A zine ( ; short for ''magazine'' or ''fanzine'') is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine. Zines are the product of either a single person or of a very sma ...

, Sticky has since become an independent organisation and one of Australia's largest sellers of zines, stocking work from the United States, UK, Germany, France, China, Japan and New Zealand. In 2004, the Spencer Street site was destroyed as part of the redevelopment of the station. Platform continued to deliver a contemporary art program at Campbell Arcade, Flinders Street Station under the new title, Platform Contemporary Art Spaces. In 2010, Platform marked its 20th Anniversary by publishing the book, ''What Art, Which Public?''.Twenty Years of Platform, Three Thousand (2010)
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References

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External links

Platform Website (2000-2006)

Platform Blog (2006-)

Visit Victoria
Australian artist groups and collectives Artist-run centres Arts organizations established in 1990