News

Night sky storytelling making its mark in regions

A series of large-scale ephemeral light and sound installations is reverberating across regional WA.

11 Apr 2023

Jo Pickup

hundreds of lights appearing in the night sky over the ocean in a patterned display.

Visual Arts

Kim Scott, ‘First Lights – Binalup’ (2023). Courtesy of the artist and Fremantle Biennale. Photo: Nic Montagu.

For the past three years, First Lights, a small yet visionary site-responsive contemporary arts festival has been working with First Nations storytellers and custodians to bring their stories of Country to life on what is arguably the world’s most sacred canvas – the open-air night sky.

What began as an ephemeral light and sound project to present First Nations stories within a site-specific harbour-side contemporary arts platform (First Lights – Moombaki, at the 2021 Fremantle Biennale, CROSSING21), this project is now casting ancient stories across some of Australia’s most beautiful outback night skies.

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Jo Pickup

ArtsHub's Arts Feature Writer Jo Pickup is based in Perth. An arts writer and manager, she has worked as a journalist and broadcaster for media such as the ABC, RTRFM and The West Australian newspaper, contributing media content and commentary on art, culture and design. She has also worked for arts organisations such as Fremantle Arts Centre, STRUT dance, and the Aboriginal Arts Centre Hub of WA, as well as being a sessional arts lecturer at The Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA).