Forest parties, bush doofs, festivals; they'd be shivering skeletons without the constantly evolving, consistently astounding, wacky and wondrous garb that is décor. Dragon Dreaming Festival '09 promises to have no skeletons in its magic closet, as countless creative folk are working tirelessly as I type to construct a multitude of marvellous artworks and installations, designed to inspire, amaze and invigorate.
Dave Mankey is one of these creative folk. Under the moniker ATOMIC DAVE, Mankey creates what he calls Atomic Art; dazzling, trance-inducing, hyper-coloured screenprints of the geometric patterns produced by silicon crystal. "I started back in 1986; I saw the original images under a microscope. Something caught the corner of my eye; it was this pattern... I stared at it all night, and it just blew my mind," he muses.
Mankey's prints are indeed mind-blowing. Regulars at The Front would remember his exhibition this time last year; a series of 'hypercubes' and other geometric patterns in a veritable UV rainbow of psychedelic colours that stimulated the senses in a marvellously Magic Eye-esque manner. Says Mankey, "I did all of these prints mainly as colour experiments and also because I just had an unlimited number of ideas for artworks. With atomic patterns I'm exploring a new dimension and a new concept in art. It reaches levels where others just don't seem to get to. It's an awesome feeling."
About a dozen of Mankey's prints will be exhibited at Dragon Dreaming, including one that is ten metres long. And as if this wasn't enough, there will also be projections of his works incorporated into what will no doubt be mind-bogglingly brilliant state-of-the-art lighting.
Another local artist who will be contributing to this tremendously tantalising visual feast is one of the founding fathers of Dragon, KEN APPLEBY, who combines his Celtic heritage-inspired spiral drawings with the effects produced by developing salt crystals to create striking works of seemingly infinitely swirling flourishes. What Appleby creates on site for outdoor events, however, is different to what he produces in his studio. From "giant UV active dream catchers" to "huge bone totem poles", his outdoor works "are still about representing energy, but one has to work with the place. Kind of reflect the energy of the land... Sticks woven together in particular ways, stones piled on top of each other and placed in patterns on the ground. Leaves, logs, dirt, clay; anything can become medium for an artist."
Here's Appleby on the inherent nature of doofs and décor at Dragon Dreaming: "You can't really separate my art from my doofs. They're so intrinsically linked. The whole festival is our art piece and we're all co-creators. Everything there is part of the composition. It's something not just seen but experienced and every person who takes part is a part of it. A doof isn't something you just go to. It's a lifestyle. It's a way of being. It's an experience which resinates infinitely."
You heard the man. After all, it's been the word on thousands of people's lips of late. Dragon Dreaming '09 is going to eclipse all previous doofs and forest parties by immersing the punter in a holistic three day festival experience. In addition to the two amazing artists profiled here there'll be works from hundreds of others, as well as independent films in the outdoor cinema, a gastronomic galaxy of international food, market and healing villages, theatre and dance performances, as well as 14 separate workshops from how to find bush tucker to how to be more time efficient. And that's not even mentioning the music. For a complete rundown on all 14 workshops be sure to read the full page story in our next issue, out Wednesday September 16.
Dragon Dreaming Festival will be raging from Saturday October 3-5. For further details and ticket info head to www.dragondreaming.net.
