Ground-breaking tours recognised in Australian Arts in Asia Awards Members of the Bangarra Dance Theatre on the eve of their tour to Mongolia. BANGARRA Dance Theatre's tour of Mongolia last year marked the first time an Australian arts organisation had toured the Asian country. That trip, which also took in Thailand and Vietnam, came soon after the Sydney Symphony Orchestra cemented its Australia-China Cultural Exchange Program with a six-city tour of China. The organisations, and those ground-breaking tours, were recognised last night in the inaugural Australian Arts in Asia Awards. More than 70 finalists were nominated across 14 categories for the awards, which Arts Minister Tony Burke said recognised the building of connectuions and relationships with with Asian artists. Bangarra's Spirit shared its dance category award with Annalouise Paul for Game On, a work that featured contemporary dance accompanied by traditional Indian tabla player Bobby Singh. The SSO was awarded the major arts organisation award for its exchange program, which sees it partnered with China's National Centre for the Performing Arts. Other winners included James Atchison for his Mr Midnight/Mr Mystery book series (literature) and Melbourne's Playking Productions for its work Cho Cho (theatre). Australia-Singapore co-production Serangoon Road was recognised in the digital and film category while Warburton Art's visual art touring exhibition Our Land, Our Body, which was shown in seven major Chinese arts centres, won the indigenous award. Victoria's Snuff Puppets, and Sydney's 4a Contemporary Art for Sydney Pavilion shown at the Shanghai Biennale were also recognised along with Asialink's the Bookwallah, a roving international writer's festival recognised for community engagement. Sydney's Jane Dyer was awarded the individual art award for her public art commission, The Butterfly Effect, on permanent display in Beijing. Mr Burke said forging deeper relationships with Asia was more about far more than trade and business. "There is a cultural engagement which is much stronger than simply cultural exchange," he said. It's not only ensuring that Australian creativity is available in Asia, and the creativity of great Asian artists is available here. The awards were announced on the eve of an essay published in Currency Press's Platform Papers today that claims the federal funding agency the Australia Council had squandered its opportunity to capitalise on growth in Asia, of which he said it has "zero cultural literacy." Former Australia Council program director and artist David Pledger writes that the agency's pursuit of market-driven outcomes as opposed to artistic ones were lamentable.