Tasmania’s famed Museum of Old and New Art’s highly awaited 2016 Festival of Music and Art will take on a new format this summer, returning to Mona for a long weekend of non-stop music, art and performance.
Image: Dame Evelyn Glennie. Photo credit: Jim Callaghan. Picture courtesy of the artist and Mofo 2016 / Mona, Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
When Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie started curating the Festival of Music and Art known as Mofo in 2009, he initially encountered difficulties in explaining the concept to new artists.
‘Now people around the world are beating down the door to get in. Another major shift is that every year, more visitors from overseas and interstate come to Mofo. It’s a major influx of interesting people,’ said Ritchie
Mofo 2016 is set to feature more than 300 artists, musicians and performers from as far afield as Ethiopia, Belgium and Norway.
This summer’s highlights include the iconic Flaming Lips; award-winning composer Antonio Sanchez, who will be performing his original drums-only score, live, to a screening of the film Birdman; Japanese hip-hop turntablist pioneer DJ Krush; Norwegian art-pop provocateur Jenny Hval; award-winning poet-turned-rapper Kate Tempest; and solo heroic percussionist, Dame Evelyn Glennie.
The Flaming Lips Photo: George Salisbury courtesy of the artist and Mofo 2016 / Mona
Ritchie said the notion of ‘solo percussionists as heroic figures’ is a pervading motif at this year’s festival.
‘People readily accept solo singer-songwriters or violinists, but percussionists are usually at the service of other musicians. And they’ve been assailed and marginalised by drum machines for some time. But if you let them play on their own, they create fascinating sound worlds.’
Apart from Sanchez and Glennie, Ritchie said gong master Michael Bettine and drummer-percussionist Will Guthrie are the percussionists to watch out for at Mofo 2016.
Standing in the Shadows of Mona 2012 (concert on outdoor stage) Photo Credit: MONA/Rémi Chauvin
Providing a platform for female as well as international artists is another important responsibility that Ritchie has been able to take on while at the helm of Mofo 2016.
‘There’s an underlying sexism in society, but particularly in the music business so endemic that people don’t even notice it. It’s important for festivals and other access points for artists to be open to women.
‘Similarly, we present a lot of artists from around the world as contemporary artists, not ethnographic specimens. International non-Anglo artists are frequently marginalised or segregated. We intentionally avoid that.’
New collaborations take centre stage under Ritchie’s expert programming, with Kate Miller-Heidke set to debut new works with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, and three dark plays by the renowned playwright Samuel Beckett due to be performed by the State Theatre Company of South Australia.
Jenny Hval. Photo: Jenny Berger Myhre courtesy of the artist and Mofo 2016 / Mona
Over the years, Ritchie has learned to trust festival artists and give them the freedom to fully explore their ideas, while typically commissioning ones that exude creativity and adopt unusual or ground-breaking approaches.
‘If you encourage an artist to step outside their normal routine, they appreciate that because they don’t always get let off the leash.
‘What this has done is create a culture where the audience realises they’re going to hear and see unfamiliar things, but trusts us enough that they are willing to take that trip.’
The transformative experience that Mofo is so known for is fostered by the festival organisers, who refuse to tell visitors what they should expect.
‘Every year there are themes, but we never say what they are. It’s more fun to speak with the rare individuals who discern them as if they cracked the Rosetta stone,’ said Ritchie.
Mofo 2012 crowd. Photo Credit: MONA/Remi Chauvin
The summer festival will occur in various venues around Hobart between 13 and 18 January – including the Federation Concert Hall, the Salamanca Arts Centre’s Peacock Theatre, Moonah Arts Centre, and even off the ‘big island’ of Tassie, over at Alonnah Hall on Bruny Island – as well as within the confines of Mona between 15 and 17 January.
Ritchie said there are two reasons for moving the festival hub to Mona – to avoid formula, and because Mona is a great place to experience the range of music and art experiences that Mofo is known for.
The entire Mona site will be closed off to the general public, with ticket-holding ‘Mofos’ granted entry to Mona’s many offerings, as well as the major retrospective Gilbert & George: The Art Exhibition. Meanwhile, the museum continues to evolve along with the old and new art collection of Mona owner, David Walsh.
‘Visitors will find an immersive indoor and outdoor experience with numerous performance spaces and installations throughout the museum and grounds. They’ll be able to experience spaces catering to one audience member to thousands and everything between.’
The music on the stage and lawn area will be presented in a summery and casual way, explains Ritchie, while maintaining the eclectic, in-depth programming Mofo is famous for.
Allan Halyk, The Tea Cube. Photo Credit: MONA/Rémi Chauvin
As in previous years, the MoMa market will return for the three-day weekend at Mona, but with extended hours and a conceptual theme ‘celebrating the much-maligned microscopic critters in our gut’. The market then continues weekly on Sundays on the Mona lawns.
After party in the extreme, ‘Faux Mo’, will continue its hedonistic takeover of Hobart’s empty spaces, taking residence this January in ex-government offices that will be demolished next year, while Brook Street Pier will play host to Mofo artists throughout the weekend.
Ritchie said the great thing about Mofo 2016 is that it is accessible to anyone with an open mind.
‘We hope the experience is unique and people realise they could not experience it anywhere else other than our isolated little island and humble museum. And that it kicks ass.’
Mofo 2016 is an initiative of Mona, supported by the State Government through Events Tasmania. Tickets are on sale now at www.mofo.net.au.