News · 12 May 2026

In Detail: Tara Pattenden & Alycia Bennett

In 2026, Metro Arts launched Seedfund Residencies: a new artist development initiative supporting artists to test early-stage ideas, experiment collaboratively, and invite audiences into the creative process through informal public outcomes.

The first Seedfund – a collaboration with Adelaide Contemporary Experimental (ACE) – brought together Brisbane artist Tara Pattenden (Phantom Chips) and Adelaide-based artist Alycia Bennett (Anoname) for a week-long residency at Metro Arts in April 2026, culminating in an Open Studio, sharing works-in-progress and an improvised noise performance.

Working across experimental sound, installation, DIY technologies and immersive environments, the pair quickly discovered shared interests in noise, interactivity, handmade systems, and the strange architectures of digital and physical space. By the end of the week, the gallery had transformed into something between an underground cave, an internet rabbit-hole and a live experimental instrument.

We spoke with Tara and Alycia about cardboard, cavediving, collaboration, and what comes next.

What approach did you take to the creative process?

Tara: We started by setting up our music making equipment and showed each other how we perform. From there we discussed other things we were interested in. We were making stuff and having ideas while working with equipment and materials.

Alycia is into caving, having had multi-day adventures in eastern European cave systems, so that became the inspiration for the construction. We made light controlled synthesisers for lights for the cave/tunnel. We got lots of cardboard from the rubbish room to make the cave. For the projections, Alycia’s use of multiple tabs of Youtube open and the idea of scrolling came into play and we used TouchDesigner to show digital images of people’s faces.

Alycia: I also have an interest in nail art and took decorative ideas from that to allow participants to engage with the tunnel. Creating unknown outcomes and welcoming interactivity in the space for audiences and participants who visit. Crafting and using hands can be an ice breaker sometimes and acts as a way for others to engage creatively.

Image: Alycia Bennett (L) and Tara Pattenden (R) at Metro Arts Gallery One, tunnel entrance in background, April 2026. Images captured by Matthew Zaza, Metro Arts.

Alycia Bennett and Tara Pattenden at Metro Arts Gallery One, seated working together on synth electronics.

Challenges, surprises and outcomes

Were there any challenges or great surprise discoveries from this time in residency?

Alycia: It was great to see/hear/play Tara’s hand built synths in person, she was so generous to share circuit building with me and I will take this away and experiment in my own practice and I’m looking forward to building on this at ACE.

Tara: It was good that we were able to build a tunnel so quickly and the cardboard holds up when you overlap it. We have both used cardboard in our previous practice. We took a video of us from two perspectives destroying the tunnel at the end of the week. That is a great artifact from the project.

What ideas or outcomes are sticking with you after the residency?

Tara: Nothing specific yet. We have a lot of ideas about how to continue the project though, and how to build a space together. We discovered that we have have similar backgrounds and really connected well, especially across experimental music.

Alycia: It was great to spend time at Metro Arts with Tara, she also toured me around and showed me other DIY space and artist studios in Brisbane. I have an interest in organising and community art spaces so it was great to see what the arts scene is doing there. I hope to share the same with Tara when she visits Adelaide for our ACE residency there.

Image: Alycia Bennett (R) and Tara Pattenden (L) at Metro Arts Gallery One, April 2026.

What are your plans for the next residency?

Tara: ACE does a lot of work with exhibitions that use all the senses, not just visual art. We will continue the conversation there, creating music performance with built synths. The next residency will probably be slightly longer. I’ll work on having a good desk to work, at the right height.

Alycia: It will be great to have more together in a space and also flesh out all our ideas and test these at ACE.

What would truly help you to make this kind of experimental collaboration possible to sustain and grow?

Tara: As always, time and funding to work together, experiment and research; and support to get it out, which we have through ACE and Metro Arts.

Alycia: Definitely more time together and would love to have a collaborative show together where we can work for extended time to realise an idea.

Image: Cave/tunnel created by Alycia Bennett and Tara Pattenden at Metro Arts Gallery One, April 2026.

Seedfund Residencies are designed to create space for experimentation before ideas are fully formed – and what began as a week of improvisation, experimentation and shared curiosity has opened up the early stages of an ongoing collaboration between Tara and Alycia, continuing later this year through a second residency at ACE in Adelaide.

You can learn more about upcoming Seedfund Residencies and other artist opportunities via Metro Arts and ACE.

Follow Alycia & Tara via

Alycia Bennett
Instagram: @alyciabennettart

Tara Pattenden

Instagram: @phantom_chips
Facebook: fantomchips
Twitter: @phantomchips

Websites:

Phantom Chips: https://www.phantomchips.com/
Cyber Palace: https://cyberpalace.com.au/

This residency is a collaboration between Metro Arts and Adelaide Contemporary Experimental (ACE).