Way back when, Brisbane Festival was basically a parade down Queen Street, complete with people waving from floats. These days, it’s less about tanned pretty people driven slowly through the CBD than it is a celebration of artistry, exploration, and fun.
Rather than focusing only on local delights, the festival has become a global celebration, and a not-to-be-missed event.
In 2021, Brisbane’s Art Boat built a reputation as one of the best and most innovative parts of the festival, and this year it's back with a cosmic flare. Showcasing a larger-than-life installation work, the boat takes voyagers along the Maiwar (Brisbane River), blending Indigenous storytelling, haunting soundscape, and dazzling artwork against a backdrop of familiar landscapes made somehow new.
Image © Kylie Thompson
The installation itself is stunningly beautiful, even if the chalk-heavy smoke machines give flashbacks to primary school discos. Lindy Lee has crafted a beautiful and dynamic piece of art in The Spheres, where every step you take lets you see the world, and the art, in a slightly different way. Photographers will no doubt love the opportunity to capture the piece in new and exciting ways, and truthfully, I could spend a week photographing The Spheres and never take two similar shots.
Those taking the promotional images as evidence of what to expect might be disappointed – while the images show the sculptures within an enclosed space, our version is very much untethered by walls and ceilings. This is not the ideal exhibit for rainy weather – there are approximately five bistro umbrellas on the boat, and the rest is open air and shade cloth, so remember to bring an umbrella depending on the forecast. The storytelling elements at the start and end of the journey created a beautiful sense of connection to the river and its traditional custodians, and left me wanting to hear more stories from the places I spend so much time. If I’m being brutally honest, I’m not sure the bar or live entertainment suits the mood of the piece, if only because the beautiful storytelling at the end is severely hampered by the loudness of tipsy voyagers, and interspersing haunting, meditative soundscapes with live artists shouting ‘we’re on a boat’ is somewhat jarring.
Image © Kylie Thompson
Still, there’s a beauty in that dichotomy, an oddity that feels very Brisbane.
The night’s performer, Alice Ivy, was the perfect choice to rally guest excitement between downpours, and successfully managed to lure people away from the undercover bar in a way I’m not sure much else would have managed. Throughout the festival, there will be a range of guest performers, with each night promising to be vastly different than those before. If you’re looking for an evolving artwork, ready to up your selfie game, or a chance to see Brisbane anew, the Brisbane Art Boat is your festival must-see.
