It is with many well-wishes that we announce the retirement of SPACED’s Artistic Director Marco Marcon.  

Beginning when SPACED (formally IASKA) was first launched in 1998, Marco has tirelessly led the organisation. Under his guidance, SPACED has pioneered the artist-in-residence model. His vision has created a geographically dispersed program, and has established a network of partnerships with regional organisations and communities.  

Marco was born in Italy and migrated to Australia in 1985. He was awarded degrees by the University of Rome, Murdoch University and a PhD by the University of NSW. He was a key contributor and editor of Praxis M, (a leading Western Australian Journal of contemporary art in the 1990s) and taught at several universities. He has also curated numerous exhibitions, has given papers at national and international conferences, and published over 110 essays and articles in journals, books and catalogues. In 2013 he was awarded the prestigious Sidney Meyer Fellowship. He steps away from SPACED to pursue writing and art criticism, and in his stead the organisation will be led by Elizabeth Pedler (Acting Director, formerly Programs Manager). 

“I do want to thank sincerely and warmly the many, many people and organisations that have supported SPACED and me personally, since we started in 1998. They are staff, collaborators, board members, artists, local residents, colleagues, funding bodies, sponsors. Thank you to all of you sincerely. ... I will keep following SPACED's future adventures from afar, knowing that you will look after it with passion, care and intelligence.” - Marco Marcon 

“As founding director of SPACED (formerly IASKA), Dr Marco Marcon has made an enormous contribution to Perth’s and Australia’s arts community. Marco has grown SPACED, from a mere idea to an innovative arts institution, and overseen residencies by hundreds of significant local, interstate, and international artists, in dozens of locations across Western Australia. He will always be irreplaceable, both in our community and in our hearts.” - Elizabeth Pedler, SPACED Program Manager 

Marco reports from retirement in Rome, outside of the art world’s social constructs: “if you are interested in my candid reflections on contemporary art’s weird social mores and conceptual entanglements, please check out my brand new Substack feed. If you disagree with me, and you often will, you will be granted the right of reply and the opportunity to engage in a dialectical tug-of-war. Nobody will win or change their mind, but fun will be had by all”.

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