Curiocity Brisbane 2022
This interactive art event is bringing immersive science-driven installations to Brisbane hot spots for 17 days this winter.
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Overview
Walking around Brisbane is a great way to enjoy your own backyard, see the local sights and get in some exercise. And for a 17-day period between Friday, June 24 and Sunday, July 10, doing just that will also allow you to engage with a series of interactive installations. They're called 'curiocities', and they're part of the returning Curiocity Brisbane festival, which focuses on the interaction of science, technology, innovation and the arts. This year, the festival's been curated by local artist, curator and academic Jay Younger.
If this all sounds familiar — and not just from past years — that's because Curiocity Brisbane was planned to go live during World Science Festival Brisbane in March. But, no fear — it's here now! And enlivening a month of winter with its buzzing lineup of art-meets-science creativity, panel discussions and tours.
First things first, lace up your walking shoes. This year, the festival will guide you past 20 outdoor, interactive installations, displayed along a 5km walking trail — snaking through South Bank, South Brisbane's Cultural Precinct, the City Botanic Gardens and the CBD.
Standout installations include Acknowledging Place, which asks participants to sit and consider an Indigenous perspective of caring for Country; public sculpture OHCE/ECHO, which captures your portrait and embeds it in the work; and The Wandering Birds Have Returned to the River (Even Bernice), featuring imaginary giant bird nests made out of repurposed and reusable consumer goods.
Other Curiocity must-sees include Luminous Threads, which combines embroidery with modern fibre optic technology; Mirage Project [Iceberg], which uses stereoscopic photography to inlay an iceberg from Antarctica into South Bank; and light and soundscape In the Air, a time-lapse piece that uses data from Antarctic ice-core samples to map changes over the past 400,000 years in a half-hour music and light show.
Looking for some boundary-pushing chit chat? The Curious Conversations offering is for you. On Sunday, June 26, Art, AI & Empathy will see Younger and artist Georgie Pinn dive headfirst into the question of whether immersive technology can teach us to be better humans. Hidden in the Trees will highlight the intricacies present at the intersection of our devices and understanding of our natural world on Sunday, July 3. And First Nations artists will discuss their creative pieces and the communicative role art plays in awareness and protection of Country at Art, Science & Indigenous Knowledge on Sunday, July 10.
If you want someone with the intel to explain the art to you, nab a spot in one of two free walking tours guided by the festival curator herself. The Curiocity Brisbane Tour will start at the Wheel of Brisbane on Wednesday, June 29, and the State Library of Queensland on Wednesday, July 6.
Ready to explore, create and play? Head to the website to plan your visit and register for a free Curious Conversations session.
