MELBOURNE – As music fans and industry people gathered to celebrate this year’s inductions to the ARIA Hall of Fame, the Arts Centre has announced an agreement to design and host a new annual ARIA Hall of Fame exhibition showcasing the careers of the selected inductees.

“The Arts Centre is delighted to work with ARIA and the Hall of Fame inductees to bring Australia’s important music heritage to life through this exhibition series,” said Janine Barrand, the Arts Centre’s Manager of Collections and Research. “As Australia’s largest performing arts centre the exhibition is sure to be a source of enjoyment for a broad audience.”

The exhibition will feature memorabilia from each of the inductees’ careers, from concert photos and album posters, to costumes and instruments. Each year will be different and will rely upon donations from the artists themselves, their labels and private collectors.

“This is the next step in the evolution of the ARIA Hall of Fame,” said Ed St John, ARIA Chairman and President & CEO of Warner Music Australasia. “For the first time this year, members of the public were invited to attend the Hall of Fame event and now we’re very excited to announce the expansion of the Hall of Fame experience to even more music fans with the launch of the Arts Centre exhibition.”

The inaugural exhibition (featuring the 2008 musician inductees – Russell Morris, Dragon, Max Merritt, The Triffids, and Rolf Harris) will open at the Arts Centre in November and run through to the end of January. In years to come, the exhibit will coincide with the Hall of Fame induction event and run for three months.

About the Arts Centre
The Arts Centre, Melbourne, is Australia’s largest performing arts centre, attracting more than 2.7 million visitors annually. It is also home to two important cultural collections which help make it a leader in the performing arts – a story teller of Australia’s past and a champion of contemporary creativity in performance and in related visual arts.

About the ARIA Hall of Fame
The Hall of Fame has been an important part of the ARIA Awards since the award's inception back in 1987. Traditionally taking place during the music awards ceremony, ARIA has inducted artists as diverse as AC/DC, Joan Sutherland, Olivia Newton-John, Johnny O'Keefe, Paul Kelly, INXS, Slim Dusty, Jimmy Little and many more into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Inductees are selected by the ARIA Board of Directors after consultation with the Hall of Fame Advisory Committee. Since 2005, the ARIA Hall of Fame has been an annual stand-alone event that honours Australian musicians’ achievements which have had a significant impact in Australia or around the world.

About ARIA
ARIA is a national industry association representing major and independent record producers, manufacturers and distributors. It acts as an advocate for the Australian music industry, administers the labelling code of practice, provides a ‘blanket’ non-exclusive licensing function for copyright users and compiles industry information and research. For more information visit www.aria.com.au

Tags: ARIA