Plastic-free Biennale

Lucas Ihlein and Kim Williams

For this wide-ranging socially engaged project, Lucas Ihlein and Kim Williams began with the Biennale of Sydney itself, engaging staff in discussions and field trips while also looking at the organisation’s environmental management more broadly. On Cockatoo Island, the artists have been working with one of the main food and beverage caterers, Societé Overboard. In their home of Wollongong, they’ve engaged local kids and Wadi Wadi Elder Aunty Barbara Nicholson to create a new plastic-themed song “Plastic in the House”. For this present iteration, the artists have created a space for gathering and discussion, centred around the old-fashioned activity of washing up, as both metaphor and action for taking responsibility, allowing people to bring re-usable containers rather than buying disposable items. To delve into all aspects of the project, visit the artists project blog: plasticfreebiennale.sydney

Commissioned by the Biennale of Sydney with generous support from the Australia Council for the Arts, and generous assistance from Detached Cultural Organisation, Hobart.

Dates: March - September 2020

Location: Cockatoo Island, Sydney, NSW Australia