Port city to turn blue for biennale

DESPITE the rainy weather, all of the Fremantle Biennale events are set to go ahead this weekend.

The highlight of the second biennale is a giant wave of blue light that will cover Esplanade Park from Friday to Sunday.

The light simulates a virtual flood and is intended to create a call to action about rising sea levels and climate change.

Called Waterlicht, the light installation from social design lab Studio Roosegaarde is the opening act and headline feature of Biennale.

The festival, which first came to Fremantle in 2017, will continue until November 24 with involvement from more than 40 international and local artists, architects and designers.

The previous festival the yellow circles down High Street, which were an optical illusion created by Paris-based Swiss artist Felice Varini.

“Artists from across Australia and the world have been creating work over the past year, which will see hidden and iconic spaces across the city reimagined, from the industrial port through to the submarine HMAS Ovens,” Fremantle Biennale founder and artistic director Tom Muller said.

White Gum Valley artist Jessee Lee Johns is creating the living installation South Mole Resort, which will consist of temporary bungalow-like structures within the industrial environment of the working port.

The installation is intended to operate autonomously as an isolated community behaving like a self proclaimed republic, where visitors can engage with the day spa for relaxation, visit the tattoo parlour, shop at the souvenir store, visit the museum and even spend a night at the hotel.

“It’s taken me three weeks to build the resort and I’ve made the most out of the materials that I have,” Johns said.

“I want people to have a good time when they come here but also look at neglected spaces in a different way.”