This winter, QANTAS have increased their flights to Tasmania, so it's quicker and easier than ever to get to the Isle of the Curious. Tasmania is just an hour's flight from Melbourne, two hours from Sydney, and three from Brisbane.
One of the flagship exhibitions of Hobart’s Dark Mofo festival, Tempest recreates an island of wonder within the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. Curated by former Biennale of Sydney and Australian Centre of Contemporary Art director Juliana Engberg, the exhibition has its roots in Shakespeare’s island-set play, and will create a perfect storm of romance, magic and drama, taking over the entire TMAG. Among the wunderkammer of works are new commissions and existing works by major international artists including Tacita Dean and William Kentridge, and Australian artists Pat Brassington, Rosemary Laing, Ricky Swallow, Valerie Sparks and more.
The opening night on June 10 will be a "storm of activity" (their words), with live music, performances and a revelry from 5pm to 10pm. The week of Dark Mofo, you can also expect to see artist talks, and the Australian premiere screening of Tacita Dean's latest video piece Event for a Stage, shot in 16mm film, at the State Cinema.
Dark Mofo is only the beginning for Tempest, which is on until November. Later on, there'll be regular performances planned, including a production of Shakespeare's Tempest by the Blue Cow Theatre, and an interactive work of puppetry from Terrapin Theatre.
Tempest will also incorporate historic works, artefacts and natural history specimens from TMAG and other state collections – notably in an imaginative recreation of Prospero’s library, through which visitors will enter the exhibition.
For more information about the exhibition's public programming, visit TMAG's website.