AN artist has been paid $10,000 to float 10,000 paper planes in Victoria's State Library.

Ross Coulter wants to track "thought patterns" in the La Trobe (Domed) Reading Room by releasing the planes from balcony "stacks", and will use a Georges Mora Foundation Fellowship to pay for the project, the Herald Sun reports.

"It's going to be part performance and part video artwork," he said.



"A playful act of rebellion in a way. But then creativity has always been bound up with rebellious acts."

Yesterday Coulter was one of 11 writers, artists and researchers who were awarded $150,000 to "make scholarly, literary or creative use" of the library's rich collections.

The Creative Fellowships, now in their seventh year, foster the creation of new work and provide office space for winners.

In his fellowship application for Ten Thousand Paper Planes, Coulter - a former library staff member - said he wanted to make "original use" of the Reading Room by releasing 10,000 paper planes into the space and video-taping their descent.

"While there is simplicity in this artwork, there are logistical, organisation and creative challenges that will further my development as an artist," he wrote.

Fellowship judges saw merit in this and approved finance for six months.

A launch date has yet to be set for Ten Thousand Paper Planes. In the meantime, Coulter will photographically document the Reading Room and do plane test runs.

"I'm not so much going for speed and distance," he said. "I'm interested in the aerobatic qualities."

Read more at the Herald Sun.