Children working on a collaborative artwork with artist Noeleen Hamlett, on the surface of the communal patio table, 2014. Images courtesy of CAHS.Artist in Residence program

Bentley Adolescent Unit, Bentley, Western Australia


  • Client: Child and adolescent Health Services (CAHS)
  • Stakeholders and partners: Aboriginal Health, Princess Margaret Hospital
  • Role of Artsource: Employment Agency and Working Group Member
  • Artists: Turid Calgaret and others
  • Outcome: Two year AIR Program
  • Completion date: October 2014


Extending the AIR program initiated by Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) in 2011, the Bentley Adolescent Unit, in collaboration with Artsource, PMH Aboriginal Health, and PMH curator Belinda Cobby, delivered a two-year long program of artist in residents workshops with a particular focus on Aboriginal culture.

Aboriginal artist Turid Calgaret was engaged as Art Coordinator and worked with Artsource to put together a varied program of visual art, film, literature and other artistic workshops. Artists included Charlotte O’Shea, Natasha and Derek Nannup, Noeleen Hamlett and others. Turid worked with BAU Occupational Therapist, Christine Gerard, and the rest of the AIR Working Group to deliver the program and support the artists in navigating the health environment.

The approach effectively enhanced the wellbeing of the patients’ time at BAU. It offered an opportunity for many adolescents to engage with aspects of their culture and with their peer group. The culmination of the project is a large mural which will have a permanent home in the new Children’s Hospital in Nedlands.

Children working on a collaborative artwork with artist Noeleen Hamlett, on the surface of the communal patio table, 2014. Images courtesy of CAHS.