Dark Mofo: Crowds brave the rain for beloved winter feast
Punters fitted in their best winter woolies braved the rain last night lining up for hours to dig in to a spectacular winter feast. DARK MOFO’S MUST SEE EVENTS ON TODAY + MAP >>
Tasmania
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QUEUES started off slow but grew chaotic for the Dark Mofo Winter Feast on Thursday night as rain lashed the state.
The weather didn’t stop punters from turning up in their winter woollies and as the line grew, some were told the wait would be two hours.
But Andy Farrell was among the first people to enter the venue at 4pm, only queuing for 10-15 minutes.
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He, like many others, came equipped with his umbrella and rain jacket.
“I leant my double bass to a fellow who’s going to be playing tonight so I’m mostly coming to watch him,” Mr Farrell said.
“He’s a fine bass player.”
Mr Farrell said people in the queues seemed happy despite the rain.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of feast this is,” he said.
Two hours later, Ned Whitehouse had noticed from his nearby office window queues were thin approaching 6pm.
He headed quickly to the feast and got straight in, making a beeline for the chargrilled Squidlipops.
“I haven’t been before,” he said.
“I was surprised there was no line at all.”
Mr Whitehouse was ready to seek out “hearty, warming foods” and a mulled wine before checking out Dark Downtown.
“The weather adds to the atmosphere and gloomy theme,” he said.
“Fire enhances the food.”
But mere minutes after Mr Whitehouse had arrived at the feast virtually queue-free, a post-6pm rush amassed crowds waiting to be let in.
Some were told the wait would be about two hours as the venue’s capacity had been reached.
By 8pm, people who had been waiting in the rain abandoned their efforts, as a small trickle of new queuers tried their luck. The Feast is on Friday and Saturday 4pm-9pm for $20 then free until midnight, and Sunday 4-11pm for free. Organisers Dark Lab are considering extending the festival beyond this week.
The festivities will continue into the weekend and includes The Tench — gloomy and erotic art in the backdrop of the Hobart Penitentiary. It includes painted works from palawa artist Thelma Coral Beeton, a dystopian gated training performance from Georgie Mattingley and a carnal tale of women behind bars after committing murder. The exhibit is free, with a warning for sexually explicit and violent material, Friday 6-11pm and Saturday and Sunday 5-11pm.
Dark Mofo festival an explosion of colour on opening night
The old K & D timber yard has been infiltrated with sculptures made not of timber, but of clay, metal and LED lights.
Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran’s Earth Deities is one of the more visually striking installations at the Dark Mofo Winter Festival’s new night time CBD precinct Dark Downtown.
“I imagined these multi-limbed, multi-special beings descending onto the city at night time,” he said.
“The works were designed to be experiential, lights move and come on and off.”
Nithiyendran arrived in Hobart from his home in Sydney three weeks before opening to construct the towering, bright figures which took nine months and 37 people to create.
The artist was impressed by the scale of the festival following a year of uncertainty around the arts worldwide.
“We’re in these globally really precarious public health times and people can’t gather at all so I think we’re really lucky to kind of flock together in droves to experience art and ideas,” Nithiyendran said.
The festival officially launched on Wednesday night after months shrouded by anticipation and ambiguity.
Dark Mofo kicked off with a Home State Reclamation Walk led by members of the local Aboriginal community, with music from the ceremony filling the entire city.
The impassioned opening transformed the old K & D hardware store carpark at Hobart into a scene similar to what might have existed there years before the city was built.
Tens of Aboriginal dancers executed an intricate and inspired dance atop a dirt circle to cheering crowds, with speaker Uncle Rodney Dillon celebrating the occasion.
“We welcome everyone here tonight from one side of the country to the other, from south to north,” he said.
A ceremonial walk through the Dark Downtown precinct at the cordoned off block between Liverpool, Murray, Bathurst and Harrington Sts culminated in the opening of the related exhibition Home State nipaluna, where the Aboriginal flag was raised over a scene of native flora, dirt and fire pits on Liverpool St.
From there, crowds scattered to find the many installations at Dark Downtown – some boldly obvious, others harder to find.
Inside the former K & D warehouse was a high-impact light and sound show titled 3.2 from artists Alexander Letcius and Kristina Karpysheva – a crescendo of white strobes and red lights artfully flooding the space in vivid patterns and anxious flashing shapes.
A nearby room coated in gold foil housed The Character Ride – an interactive sculpture from Akinori Oishi and Pictoplasma where a smiling, balloon-like figure could be sat upon while it would spin and buck.
Outside were food trucks including a Vietnamese street food signature “midnight” charcoal black banh mi, roasted chestnuts, mulled wine and deluxe mars bar ice cream desserts.
The iconic red Dark Mofo plus symbol was illuminated in a shed at Melville St.
At Watchorn St, punters could write their fears on paper and cast them into the large Ogoh-Ogoh – a Bruny Island Mt Mangana stag beetle – which will be burned at the end of the festival.
Free event Dark Downtown will run 6-11pm Thursday and Friday, and 5-11pm Saturday and Sunday.
FEAST FOR THE SENSES
Matt Short and Sharon Wong were among the throng enjoying a gamut of tasty fare on the first night of the Dark Mofo Winter Feast on Wednesday.
The pair were kicking back at the cocktail bar in the PW1 venue on Hobart’s waterfront having travelled to the state from Kingsford, NSW.
“We’re loving it, we’re eyeing off the bao and possibly some waffles,” Mr Short said.
The family-friendly event has become a major drawcard for Dark Mofo since it began in 2013.
But this year’s festival could be the last.
Creative Director Leigh Carmichael told ABC radio on Wednesday morning Dark Mofo had “perhaps run its course”, signalling the potential end of the winter tradition.
Mr Short said based on his first impression of the festival, it should “definitely” return in 2022.
“It would be such a shame if they didn’t come back, they’ve done such a good job here.”
In the large feast area, children yelped as giant flame balls shot out of rusty metal pyramids.
NSW tourists Scott and Kelly Morgan came to the state not realising Dark Mofo was happening, before bringing their excited children Bailey Morgan, 6, and Marley Morgan, 4, to the candle-speckled feast.
“We started off with Willie Smith’s cider, had some homemade guacamole and tortilla chips for starters, and for dinner there’s a lot of options to choose from,” Mr Morgan said.
“We wanted to come tonight because it’s kid-friendly.”
The banquet will continue Thursday 4-10pm $20. Friday and Saturday 4pm-midnight $20, and Sunday 4-11pm for free.
Tickets are also free every night after 9pm or for under-16s with a parent or guardian.
For bookings and more information visit darkmofo.net.au
Whats On – Dark Mofo
When tickets for Dark Mofo went on sale last week, patrons pounced.
Most were snapped up within an hour and with few tickets dwindling, organisers announced two more shows.
For those of us who missed out or those who simply aren’t that organised, there are still plenty of options to get in on the action over the seven day event.
From day one of the winter festival there’s a lot to choose from and many of the shows and installations are free to attend.
Paradise Lost
Where: Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
When: 16-22 June – starts at 10am each day (FREE)
The first free event to open will be Paradise Lost at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, the exhibition of convict artist and suspect serial poisoner, Thomas Wainewright.
The exhibition opens at 10 and runs until October 3.
X Cathedra
Where: The Hanging Garden
When: 16-20 June – 11AMuntil late (FREE)
Next, you can head over to The Hanging Garden for X Cathedra, where several DJs play from midday til late. X Cathedra runs from June 16 til the 20th.
Spectra
Where: Mona
When: 16-22 June – sunset to sunrise (FREE)
When the sun sets, an old favourite will beam into the sky, and spectators can head to MONA to get a closer look.
Spectra can be seen from across Hobart and surrounding suburbs.
It will run every night of the festival.
Dark Downtown
Where: Liverpool, Bathurst and Melville Steet, between Murrary and Harrington Street
When: 16-20 June (FREE)
This year’s answer to Dark Park is called Dark Downtown, and organisers have promised there’ll be plenty of installations on display.
It’s free to enter and will be located on Liverpool, Bathurst and Melville Street, between Murray and Harrington Street.
It’s at Dark Downtown where a Dark Mofo staple will be found, the Ogah Ogah.
Those taking part in The Purging can write their fears on a piece of paper, where it will be added to a stag beetle sculpture, which will go up in flames at The Burning.
There’s one installation you might be able to catch from the comfort of your home if you have a view in the direction of the Hobart Waterfront.
Memorial
Where: Hobart waterfront
When: 16-20 June (FREE)
Alex Podgers Memorial is not an ordinary fireworks display.
A handful of people have been selected to place the ashes of their loved ones inside Mr Podger’s fireworks, which will explode into the night sky Wednesday through to Sunday.
The full list of free events including details of Dark Downtown can be found on the Dark Mofo website.
Winter Feast
Where: Princes Wharf 1, Castray Esplanade
When: 16-20 June – times vary (TICKETS ON DOOR)
From 4pm on June 16, the table will be set and Winter Feast will be back on the menu.
Tickets will need to be purchased at the door for all nights except Sunday June 20 and the website warns there may be a queue.
“We are excited to bring the Winter Feast back for 2021, after the disappointment of having to cancel Dark Mofo last year because of COVID-19,” Winter Feast Project Manager Katharine Dean said.
“With nearly 80 stalls, including 30 new, first-time stallholders, offering a range of quality, ethically-sourced Tasmanian food and drinks, we’re sure that there’ll be something to suit all tastes.”
Due to Covid restrictions, most patrons will need to be seated when they are not browsing stalls, but there is limited vertical drinking and dancing space available.
Night Shift (18+)
Where: 112 Murray Street
When: 17-20 June – 10pm until late (TICKETS ON DOOR $20)
Another festivity you won’t have book is Night Shift, but the website warns it could be another one with a long wait to get in, with tickets sold at the door.
The event promises a dance party late into the night featuring plenty of DJs.
The 18+ event kicks off on the 17th from 10pm at Altar on Murray St.
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