ARA

Is membership for you?

Who is it for

The ARA is there to support re-enactors to enjoy their hobby whether you are:

a veteran re-enactor
a member of a well established or long running re-enactment group
new to re-enacting or
are doing reenacting with a number of different groups

The ARA offers members, event organisers and the public, advice and guidance on such things as performance and display safety and the reasonable presentation of historical accuracy in recreational re-enactment activities.

Public liability protection

The ARA provides services such as public liability insurance for a wide range of re-enactment activities to help support independent groups and individuals to pursue their unique re-enactment interests in the manner that best suits each individual and group.

Representation

The ARA also acts to represent members’ interests in areas such as legislation that affects re-enactment activities.

Australian Re-enactors Association Inc

About the ARA

The ARA was established in 2012 by veteran Australian re-enactors to represent the common interests of re-enactors who participate in re-enactment as a recreational pursuit whilst supporting independent groups and individuals to pursue their unique re-enactment interests in the manner that best suits each individual and group.

The common interests shared by re-enactors across Australia have, in fact, very little to do with the activities of historical re-enactment, they are, however, “real world” issues. ARA Members and re-enactors across Australia have many diverse, unique and, in some cases, incompatible approaches to Authenticity and History and how they enjoy their hobby as re-enactors.

Each member and group that they are affiliated with know best what they want in those unique areas and they don’t have to be common nor compatible approaches. The ARA embraces and encourages diversity in approach.

The ARA’s role is in more contemporary and back end issues such as public liability insurance, safety, ethical practice, promoting re-enactment as a hobby.

The ARA is made up of re-enactors:

• Some re-enactors may be just interested in (eg) combat, arms and armour.

• Others may be interested exclusively in (eg) a craft or crafts.

• Some others may even be interested in (eg) total immersion in living history.

• Others still may also be interested in a combination of both, all three, or in even more diverse interests.

The above interests are only examples could just as easily be replaced with Cooking, animal husbandry, Lutheran Monk calligraphy, Scottish Hawking, Viking boatbuilding or Assyrian beer consumption (get the idea?).

Some of these re-enactors may share their views, interests and approaches and they may choose to share their hobby together at events that they mutually attend or by forming or joining groups that share their interests.

Not all groups and individuals share the same passions and approaches but the object of the ARA is to represent their common interests. The role of the ARA, its members and their affiliate groups is best illustrated by the ARA Logo which is an Encapsulated Triquetra which shows how re-enactors and re-enactment groups that have wildly different interests and approaches to re-enactment benefit collectively in the ARA:

As you can see, the ARA only involves itself in a small part of what re-enactors and their affiliate groups get involved in and only deals with the issues that are common to its members and that are best managed centrally. This leaves its members to fully explore and celebrate their own diversity of interests and approaches to re-enactment, to set their own rules and standards – which is, after all, why they started re-enacting as a hobby in the first place.

The ARA’s role is to support these common interests for its members and act as a peak body to ensure re-enactors can readily access its services in the pursuit of their hobby. The ARA has no interests in dictating to its members the level, scope or approach they may have in pursuit of their hobby. The ARA is focussed on looking after the individual needs of re–enactors as opposed to the needs and interests of re-enactment as a hobby itself.

The ARA understands that re-enactment is YOUR hobby and past-time, and with support and the backing of the ARA to take care of the back end, your hobby will continue to evolve and grow the way you want it to.

For further information, please contact the ARA Committee.