Declan Furber Gillick

Declan Furber Gillick is a multidisciplinary artist, writer and performer from Mparntwe (Alice Springs). His practice spans prose, theatre, poetry, music, rap, film, television and visual arts. His family and cultural makeup is a proud mix of Arrernte (Aboriginal) and Irish-Australian heritage.

Declan is Melbourne Athenaeum Library’s 2022 Playwright in Residence and is a resident studio artist at Watch This Space, an Artist Run Initiative in Alice Springs.

He is currently working as part of a First Nations writing team to adapt Melissa Lucashenko’s novel TOO MUCH LIP for television.

In 2019, Declan was commissioned by Ilbijerri Theatre Company to write SCAR TREES, a new play for theatre-as-education, which toured in Melbourne and regional Victoria that year.  In 2018 Declan was invited to take up a residency as part of Melbourne Theatre Company’s (MTC) Next Stage Program, where his play JACKY was subsequently commissioned and programmed.

In 2018 Declan’s play BIGHOUSE DREAMING premiered at Melbourne Fringe Festival and received the Green Room Awards for Best Independent Writing and Best Ensemble, as well as Melbourne Fringe Awards for Best Performance Work, Best Writing, Melbourne Festival Discovery Award and Best Emerging Indigenous Artist.

Declan has worked as an artist teacher, mentor and co-writer with Desert Pea Media, University of Melbourne Student Theatre, MTC’s First People’s Young Artist Program and Victorian College of The Arts, as well as independently with Nalderun Education Aboriginal Corporation and with emerging Wamba Wamba artist Brodie Murray.

He began recording and releasing music as KNOMAD in 2019 and has to date released one EP – LOVE AND POLITICS PT 1. Declan also featured on Melbourne’s independent radio station 3RRR.

Declan has had writing published with Affirm Press, Australian Poetry Journal, University of Queensland Press, Southerly Journal, Redroom Poetry, Magabala Books and Kill Your Darlings.

Declan completed a Masters of Writing for Performance at The Victorian College of The Arts (VCA) in 2017.

Instagram: dfurbergillick