The Clarence and Richmond Valley art community is being encouraged to come forward with ideas to get a share of the multi-million dollar Regional Cultural fund, secured by the Nationals in Government, Clarence Nationals MP Chris Gulaptis says. “We were spectacularly successful in the last round with $7.6 million allocated for a major overhaul the Grafton Regional Gallery announced by Deputy Premier and Nationals Leader John Barilaro when he visited the Jacaranda city recently,” Mr Gulaptis said. The Fund is for building new artistic and cultural spaces such as galleries, theatres, libraries, museums and halls, as well as the upgrading or repurposing of existing arts, screen, culture or heritage infrastructure for local communities. “I want to hear from locals how we can enhance our art infrastructure,” Mr Gulaptis said. “The North Coast is arguably the art capital of regional Australia so we really should take advantage of this opportunity again,” Mr Gulaptis said. Expressions of interest for the Regional Cultural Fund are open until 21 September 2018. For further information, including guidelines for applicants, find the Regional Cultural Fund page at www.create.nsw.gov.au.