The future of art as we know it will unfold in Melbourne from 16 April to 11 May, 2014 as part of ‘Next Wave Festival 2014: New Grand Narrative’. A city-wide, month-long celebration of cutting-edge arts and culture from around Australia and the globe, in 2014 ‘Next Wave’ celebrates its 30th anniversary with a tightly curated selection of the most ambitious, risky and surprising new art, including performance, dance, visual art, sound art – and ideas impossible to categorise.
“Next Wave is renowned for creating an irresistible artistic whirlwind that is impossible to ignore and completely unique in Australia,” said Emily Sexton, Next Wave Artistic Director. “In 2014 we have created a festival experience that will seize your imagination and your soul with a mix of artistic works of outstanding quality, ambition and – even dangerous – experimentation.”
Occurring every two years, ‘Next Wave Festival’ spans 28 days and features the work of 239 artists, who have been incubating their artwork for over two years.
“We curate artists who are genuinely seeking out something that’s never been done before and we offer them the tools and support they need to succeed,” said Emily Sexton. “All that hope and dreaming and curiosity in one place – in a city as adventurous as Melbourne – makes for a potent blend of provocation and fun. Audiences will talk about, see and do things at Next Wave Festival that just don’t happen anywhere else”.
Weaving stories that are often overlooked and from voices that are seldom heard, ‘Next Wave Festival 2014’ features over 40 never-before-seen new art projects that have been created especially for the Festival.
The festival boasts a robust program of multi-disciplinary art projects that will be staged in theatres, galleries, laneways, private homes and other unexpected spaces around Melbourne.
An incomparable platform for new and emerging artists, Next Wave has launched the career of notable alumni such as painter Adam Cullen, sculptor Patricia Piccinini, Indigenous visual artist Bindi Cole, theatre ensemble post, and comedy music theatre troupe The Suitcase Royale.
Next Wave Festival
16 April to 11 May, 2014
www.nextwave.org.au
Phuong Ngo, Article 14.1, performance
Photography by Alex Clayton
Courtesy the artist
