Arts-led Wellbeing coming alive in Wintergarden.

As a site steeped in arts heritage, Bridges aims to capture and share community stories of the Wintergarden and activate the spaces through performing arts, film and other artforms that the building is historically connected to.

Bridges purchased the former Bundaberg Fire Station in 2021 with plans underway to renovate the site as a precinct for arts, culture and wellbeing. While the organisation awaits funding outcomes for these renovations, the opportunity arose to look at leasing another heritage building at the other end of the street – the Wintergarden Forum. Both sites lend themselves to being places for Bridges to implement their Arts-Led Wellbeing Strategy. The aim of this is to work with creatives to offer opportunities for learning, storytelling and developing experiences that provide connection and wellbeing. To date Bridges has offered opportunities in singing, circus, theatre, visual arts and oral history.

“Once the lease is finalised and we settle into the space, we aim to start capturing the stories of the Wintergarden as we did through our Stories of the Station project that launched last year. Parts of the Wintergarden will be dedicated to sharing local stories through permanent and changing exhibitions,” explained CEO Sharon Sarah.

Bridges existing mental health and drug and alcohol programs will continue to operate out of its Millbank offices. The focus for the Wintergarden is connecting people to creative and social opportunities for the wellbeing of the Bundaberg community. The vision is to host events, performances, workshops and ongoing programs that support social cohesion and build on the existing strengths of the creative and cultural industries that the Bundaberg region is known for.

“As a not-for-profit charitable organisation leasing the building, we will be looking at options such as sub-leasing spaces, developing social enterprises and sourcing funding and philanthropy to make what we do at the Wintergarden sustainable and accessible.”

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