Reading Boorloo: Art, Culture and Memory In-conversation with John Kinsella and Colin Archibald

Join acclaimed author and writer-in-residence John Kinsella in conversation with storyteller, creative thinker and community consultant Colin Archibald for an evening of reflection on the layered stories of our city. 

In Writing Boorloo: Art, Culture and Memory, Kinsella turns his lyrical lens toward the urban landscape of Boorloo (Perth), exploring how public art, city sculptures and built environments become vessels of memory, resistance and transformation. Drawing from his recent writing, he delves into the intersections of poetry, politics, and place, revealing how the city’s textures and tensions shape the stories we live among. This is more than a literary event — it’s an invitation to reimagine the city through one’s personal landscape. 

Whether you're a devoted reader or simply curious about the voices embedded in our streets, come and engage in a conversation about identity, history, and the evolving urban fabric of our city, Boorloo. 

John Kinsella

John Kinsella

 John Kinsella is the author of over forty books. His many awards include the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Poetry, the Victorian Premier’s Award for Poetry, the John Bray Award for Poetry, the Judith Wright Calanthe Award for Poetry and the Western Australian Premier’s Award for Poetry (three times). His latest books are the three volumes of his Collected Poems (The Ascension of Sheep, 2022, Harsh Hakea, 2023 and Spirals, 2024, UWAP), the new poetry collection Ghost of Myself (UQP, 2025), the short story collection Beam of Light (Transit Lounge, 2024) and the novel The Mahler Erasures (Dalkey Archive, 2024).

John is a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge University, and Emeritus Professor of Literature and Environment at Curtin University, Western Australia. He lives on Ballardong Noongar land at Jam Tree Gully in the Western Australian wheatbelt. In 2007 he received the Christopher Brennan Award for Lifetime Achievement in Poetry. In 2024, John was inducted into the Western Australian Writers Hall of Fame as part of the 2024 Western Australian Premier's Book Awards. 

Colin Archibald

Colin Archibald

Colin Archibald has overcome many obstacles during his life but good fortune timing and opportunity gave him undoubted resilience to follow his passion, Eleven Consulting is the result of many years spent identifying pathways and opportunities for all. His undoubted skill and his ability to create change has inspired people from vastly different backgrounds and cultures to achieve their true potential.