Look South! Creative Industries Forum 2026
Join the Sydney Culture Network at the Bayside Creative Industries Forum - a full-day event designed to support, connect and inspire South Sydney creatives and industry professionals.
Hear from leading artists and creative sector experts, gain practical insights into building a sustainable creative practice, and connect with Bayside’s growing creative community. Our 11am panel is set to be an insightful conversation on creative opportunities in Sydney’s south, facilitated by SCN Council member Anne Loxley with special guests Gary Bigeni, Megan Riakos and Lyle Ah Sam.
The SCN panel Look South! is scheduled to be held at 11am on Thursday 30 July 2026 at Botany Town Hall, please register for the Creative Industries Forum.
Location: Botany Town Hall
Date : Thursday 30 July 2026
Time: 10am – 5pm (doors open to public 9:30am)
The Sydney Culture Network’s Look South! Panel is being held at 11-11:45am
Public Transport is encouraged – 307 and 309 bus lines
Parking: there are limited parking spaces in surrounding streets.
Look South!
PAnel Facilitator - Anne Loxley
Anne Loxley is an award-winning curator who specialises in collaborating with artists and communities to creatively address significant issues. In 2020 she joined ACE as Executive Director. Previously Anne was Senior Curator, C3West, for Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art, (2011-2019) where she developed innovative ways for artists to collaborate with communities, businesses and non-arts organisations, to address important concerns. 2017 – 2019 she was program associate, visual arts, Perth Festivals. Anne is an alumna of the Australia Council’s 2019 Leadership Program. In 2014, Anne was featured in Jess Scully’s 20 Influential Creative Women list for 2SER’s celebration of International Women’s Day. In 2011 she was named by the Sydney Morning Herald as one of Sydney’s 100 most influential people. Anne is Deputy Chair of the City of Sydney’s Public Art Advisory Panel, and a member of these organisations: Western Sydney Arts Alliance Working Group, Western Sydney Women’s Leadership Network – Art and Culture and the Sydney Cultural Network council. A former Sydney Morning Herald art critic, she has published numerous essays and spoken at conferences nationally and internationally. With Blair French, she co-edited Civic Actions: Artists’ Practices Beyond the Museum (2017). She has a depth of media experience including her I 2011 role as resident art expert of ABC TV’s Photo Finish, hosted by Osher Günsberg.
Gary Bigeni
Gary Bigeni pushes the limits of fashion as individual expression through his custom made-to-order fine art collections.
Original designs are hand painted by Gary directly onto ethically sourced eco-cotton, then made in very limited production runs using sustainable manufacturing practices. Intended to last a life-time, all pieces are gender neutral and designed to reflect the distinctive personality of the wearer.
Even as a young Maltese boy living in Sydney, Australia with his three siblings and mother, creativity was always present for Gary Bigeni. As a child he would sneak into his mother’s wardrobe and cut large circles out of the bottom of her dresses so he could create collections for his GI Joes and Barbies. Years later, following fashion training at East Sydney Tech, Gary Bigeni launched his eponymous label and secured himself as part of the Australian fashion cohort.
With multiple fashion week shows, presentations, artist collaborations and celebrity muses, Bigeni built a reputation for masterful drape, intelligent silhouettes and artful use of colour. Over time, Gary Bigeni’s collections have evolved and bought his tribe of followers with him. Whilst still created on a foundation of masterful fabric manipulation and soft tailoring, his once quiet palette now exudes the vibrance and joy of his own style and personality. Today Gary Bigeni’s girl is the artist. The city dweller, she works hard and plays hard, professional by day and party by night – her effervescence pervades.
Megan Riakos
Megan Riakos is a writer and filmmaker known for bringing a bold, distinctly female lens to genre storytelling. Her debut feature as writer and director, Crushed, received strong critical attention, with The Australian calling it “a tense, bloody mystery thriller” and The Hollywood Reporter describing it as “a solid debut.” She is also the creator of Australia’s first all‑female horror anthology, Dark Whispers – Vol 1, praised by Killer Horror Critic as “a shining example of horror anthology film done right.” Megan went on to write and direct an episode of Deadhouse Dark, which premiered at CANNESERIES, became a Shudder Original, and earned her an Australian Directors’ Guild Award nomination.
Alongside her creative practice, Megan is an experienced industry advocate, consultant and educator. She co‑founded Women in Film & Television (WIFT) Australia and founded Raising Films Australia (advocating for parents and carers in screen) and has worked closely with screen industry organisations and policymakers to shape practical, sustainable change across the sector.She has taught extensively at leading institutions including AFTRS, UNSW, QUT and NIDA, and currently serves as a member of the AFTRS Alumni Advisory Group. Known for her practical, energetic approach, Megan brings a collaborative mindset and a deep commitment to building a stronger, more inclusive industry, both on the screen and behind the scenes
Lyle Ah Sam
yle Ah Sam is a Mitakoodi and Wakka Wakka artist and the founding artist of Soul Reign. Raised on Larrakia Country in Darwin, his learning came through family, community, and time spent alongside Elders. Observation, listening, and relationship formed the centre of how knowledge was shared. His art practice continues in that same way today.
When Lyle works in a place, the painting is only one part of it. People gather nearby, conversations begin naturally, and questions are welcomed. The artwork becomes a meeting point and bridge. Lyle was taught by his Uncle and Elder, Johnny Daylight Lacey. Through him, he continues the teachings passed through earlier generations, including Uncle Joseph Baird-Wallis and Uncle David Malangi.
This learning is developed through time, presence, and responsibility. That experience shapes how Lyle now shares knowledge, by working alongside people. Lyle’s paintings often depict animal and plant life. Each piece connects to story, memory, and relationship to Country. While the works can stand on their own, they are also part of a living practice, the painting forms a shared focus between people gathered in the space. Art, conversation, and time spent in connection with culture and each other are not separate parts of the work. They are the work.
Over many years, Lyle has worked with schools, youth programs, and community organisations through cultural art programs, workshops, and mentoring. Many visits grow into longer relationships and participants return, take part in mentoring, and become involved in collaborative projects.
Through the Goodways Project, he also supports a regular community space where people can continue creating, learning practical skills, and building confidence alongside others.