Event Report: Dark Mofo 2015

Photo by Remi Chauvin.

Words by Fenina Acance for Yellowtrace.

Things got a little weird. I have flashbacks of eruptive fires, throbbing bass, confounding mist and guttural moans. It seemed that ambiguity, obscurity and intrigue were the driving forces behind Hobart’s infamous winter festival Dark Mofo.

Conceived by the team at MONA (Museum of Old and New Art), Dark Mofo boasted an impressive line up of local and international artists and musicians such as Marina Abramović, Anthony McCall, Patricia Piccinini, Peter Hennessey, Bompas and Parr, Antony and the Johnsons, the Preatures, Jake Blood and many more.

Winter Feast. Photo by Remi Chauvin.

Private Archaeology by performance artist Marina Abramović was held at MONA and featured installations, objects, videos, photographs and recordings from her career that has spanned over 40 years. Her latest installation urged participants reclaim time and focus on the analogue activity of counting rice. I may or may not have gotten bored and instead created a detailed rice portrait of the stranger in front of me. I later discovered that according to the artist, “if you can’t count the rice for three hours, you can’t do anything good in life.” Yikes!

Private Archaeology by Marina Abramovic.

Marina Abramović may have been the drawcard for many visitors, but it was raging dance party Blacklist that was the real showstopper. With burnt out cars outside to hypnotic projections and towering sculptures inside, Hobart’s City Hall was sinisterly transformed. It was a night that everyone could enjoy as the music expertly transitioned from genre to genre. Swing music to disco to techno? Sure, why not! At one point the whole crowd was engulfed by an enormous sheet as a laser light show beamed down from above. It was like an adult, rave version of a blanket fort. It was beyond. With rumours of abductions, a kissing booth and eclectic live performances, Blacklist had everyone under its spell for a night of total abandon.

Blacklist.

Another standout was Bass Bath by artists Byron J Scullin and Supple Fox located in the old Tasports Coolstore at Macquarie Point. After the long line, hefty health warnings and the distribution of protective headphones, what followed was an unmatched experience of intense sound and light. With the help of 8 mega powerful subwoofers, roaring waves of low octave sound washed over us with growing intensity as the surrounding lights changed from darkness, blinding white and red in a matter of seconds. The bass struck at the core of you travelling from the soles of your feet up the length of your spine.

Bass Bath by Byron J Scullin & Supple Fox.

Angry Electrons by Jason James.

Solid Light Works by Anthony McCall.

While most of us clutched our morning coffees, others chose a more daring (and baring) way to start their day. At exactly 7:42am on Monday 22 June over 750 brave people wearing red swimming caps and nothing else plunged into the frosty Long Beach waves. The Nude Solstice Swim is a Dark Mofo ritual that celebrates the winter solstice and aptly marks the end of this wonderfully brooding event.

With more and more visitors crossing the Tasman to attend Dark Mofo, it’s only a matter of time before the festival grows in size and esteem. If you’re like me and can’t wait to get down there again, it’s worth planning a getaway for MONA’s summer festival in early 2016.

You nailed it guys. Cheers for the weird times.

Dark Mofo was held at several locations in Hobart, Tasmania for 10 days and 10 nights from 12-22 June 2015.

Solstice Swim. Photo by Rosie Hastie.

Red Death Ball (from the 2014 event). Photo by Darrell Berry.

Red Death Ball (from the 2014 event). Photo by Darrell Berry Dark Mofo.

About the author.
Architecting away in Melbourne, Fenina is a shameless fashion, art and design fanatic who loves defying the relentless Melbournian uniform of black on black on black. Often spotted strutting a boisterous mix of pattern and colour, her eclectic love for the bold, raw and textured fuels her passion for design and contemporary art. When not indulging in Cy Twombly’s sensitive scribbles or Serra’s evocative sculptural forms, her love for everything Italian consumes the rest of her time. Whether it’s the language, design or food (especially food), Fenina is obsessed!

Articulated Intersect (from the 2014 event). Photo by Remi Chauvin.