The need to conserve, preserve and promote indigenous and contemporary art and craft saw the creation of the Fiji Arts Council (FAC) in 1964.
The charitable organization is one of three management agencies that come under the Department of Heritage and Arts.
Registered as a formal organization under the Charitable Trust Act, the FAC receives a grant from the government as well as an annual service agreement and since its inception has been active in the promotion and development of our artists and craftspeople.
The FAC is the national agency and catalyst for support, development, and promotion of the arts and creative industries in Fiji.
The Beginning
The Fiji Arts Council, under the then Ministry of Fijian Affairs was housed at Gorrie Street, next to where the Fiji Employers Federation building now stands.
According to the oldest staff member of FAC, the old wooden structure, which was frequented by street kids and vagrants during weekends, was burnt down in 1992 and the lot has been vacant ever since.
The FAC were then given a government quarter at Muanikau (located near the back gate to USP) which is now a kindergarten, to use as an office.
After 5 years at Muanikau, the FAC moved to Procera House on Waimanu Road.
New ideas
Under the leadership of then director Letila Mitchell, the FAC embarked on a journey of innovative ventures to include all art forms, from the visual arts, dance, music, to sculptures etc.
These initiatives were also a way of showing government and other stakeholders that through art, people’s perception and perspectives can change.
“The Waimanu Road area was synonymous with drunks and petty crimes, and we pretty much transformed the back of Procera House and filled it with art.
There were artists’ working in public and paintings on display at the car park (now Rup’s car park) and there were traditional and contemporary dance groups performing every week.
It became known as The Fiji Centre for the Art.” A senior FAC staff member shared.
“Letila had arranged for all art forms to be facilitated in the four rooms on the top floors with a rent of $150 a month. I believe if it had been allowed to continue, Fijian artists and craftsmen would’ve been well positioned in today’s art scene with their own studios.”
He added.
Redirection
Before Letila Mitchell’s contract as director expired, she had started working on moving the FAC to the former Boys Grammar School building (next to the Suva City Library), her replacement, Peni Cavuilagi, also started pushing the government for the establishment of a National Arts Centre before he was transferred to the Department of Culture and Heritage as director.
The FAC, also welcomed master Lai Veikoso from the then Fiji Institute of Technology (FIT) into its fold, where he ran music classes in one of the rooms at Procera House.
Most of his students from FIT followed him to Procera House. He led a traditional dance group called “Kabu ni Vanua” which represented Fiji to the Pacific Festival of Arts in American Samoa.
Discussions with the then government for the use of the old Boys Grammar School had reached and was approved by cabinet but the change in government put everything in the backburner and the FAC was subsequently moved from the Ministry of Fijian Affairs to the Ministry of Education.
The FAC would remain under the Ministry for Education for sixteen years.
Relocation
In that time, Peni Cavuilagi would come back as director and FAC would move from Procera House on Waimanu Road to 81 Suva Street where they would remain for 4 years until the change in government in 2022.
One of the first acts of the new government was moving the FAC back under the ambit of the Ministry of iTaukei Affairs.
Under the leadership of new director Macuisela Raitaukala, the FAC have now moved into the old Boys Grammar School building, sixteen years after being allocated it.
“We are now looking forward to next month’s International Mother Language Day in collaboration with our linguistic unit from the Ministry of Itaukei Affairs and we’re planning to have a market day in the compound.”
He said.
“We have also been mandated by government to select and finalize Fiji’s 100 representatives to the Pacifc Arts Festival in Hawaii in June and to also run the Melanesian Arts Festival to be held in Suva in 2026.”
