Dark Mofo is the winter version of the MONA FOMA festival, also held in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. With many of its events taking place at night, it celebrates the darkness of the southern

winter solstice The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere ( Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the winte ...

and features many musical acts, large scale light installations and a winter feast. Due to its

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

influence and darker themes, it has been aligned with the

Tasmanian Gothic Tasmanian Gothic is a genre of Tasmanian literature that merges traditions of Gothic fiction with the history and natural features of Tasmania, an island state south of the main Australian continent. Tasmanian Gothic has inspired works i ...

aesthetic in literature and art. The first Dark Mofo festival was held in 2013 and featured

Ryoji Ikeda Ryoji Ikeda (池田亮司 ''Ikeda Ryōji'', born 1966) is a Japanese visual and sound artist who currently lives and works in Paris, France. Ikeda's music is concerned primarily with sound in a variety of "raw" states, such as sine tones and noi ...

's 15-kilometre-high light installation ''Spectra'', now a permanent fixture at MONA. The first year also introduced the now annual nude solstice swim that sees over one thousand people dunk in the River Derwent at dawn on the shortest day of the year. Initially the nude swim was banned by police, however the support of politicians and the general public ended with it proceeding and Hobart's mayor Damon Thomas taking part. It has been speculated that this was in fact part of a complicated bet by MONA owner David Walsh, who made his fortune gambling. Past Dark Mofo line-ups have featured musical acts such as

FKA Twigs Tahliah Debrett Barnett (born 17 January 1988), known professionally as FKA Twigs (stylized as FKA twigs), is an English singer, songwriter, and dancer. Born and raised in Cheltenham, she became a backup dancer for numerous famous musicians aft ...

Sunn O))) Sunn O))) (pronounced "sun") is an American experimental metal band formed in 1998 in Seattle, Washington. The band is known for their distinctive visual style and slow, heavy sound, which blends diverse genres including doom metal, drone, bla ...

Laurie Anderson Laurel Philips Anderson (born June 5, 1947), known as Laurie Anderson, is an American avant-garde artist, composer, musician, and film director whose work spans performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and ...

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogw ...

Einstürzende Neubauten (, 'Collapsing New Buildings') is a German experimental music group, formed in West Berlin in 1980. The group is currently composed of founding members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals; guitar; keyboard) and N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments; perc ...

Ulver Ulver (Norwegian for "wolves") is a Norwegian experimental electronica band founded in 1993, by vocalist Kristoffer Rygg. Their early works, such as debut album '' Bergtatt'', were categorised as folklore-influenced black metal, but the band h ...

Autechre Autechre () is an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are among the best known acts signed to UK electronic label Warp Records, through which all of Au ...

Merzbow is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

and

The Kid Laroi Charlton Kenneth Jeffrey Howard (born 17 August 2003), known professionally as the Kid Laroi (stylised as the Kid LAROI), is an Australian rapper, singer and songwriter. He originally gained recognition from his association and friendship with A ...

. The event has courted controversy since its inception, and interstate visitors have noted how different it is to

health and safety Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wo ...

-obsessed mainland festivals, with one writer calling Dark Mofo "the festival

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

wouldn't allow." During the inaugural festival, seven people were hospitalised after suffering seizures during Kurt Hentschlager's ''ZEE'', a light installation described as "psychedelic architecture". The exhibit was briefly shut down by the Hobart health authorities. In 2016, a series of artworks were taken down after local art students complained. 2017 saw animal rights activists protest

Hermann Nitsch Hermann Nitsch (29 August 1938 – 18 April 2022) was an Austrian contemporary artist and composer. His art encompassed wide-scale performances incorporating theater, multimedia, rituals and acted violence. He was a leading figure of Viennese Ac ...

's ''150.Action'' performance piece during which participants writhe in the entrails of a slaughtered bull. The controversy continued in 2018 with petitions from the

Australian Christian Lobby The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) is a conservative right-wing Christian Advocacy group, advocacy organisation based in Canberra. It is similar to the other international Christian lobby groups, and seeks to represent Christian citizens and v ...

and the local Coptic Bishop

Anba Suriel Anba Suriel (born 9 May 1963) is a bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Los Angeles, United States. He previously led the Diocese of Melbourne and affiliated regions in Australia from 1999 to 2018, and first served as a bishop in New Jers ...

calling for the removal of

inverted cross The Cross of Saint Peter or Petrine Cross is an inverted Latin cross traditionally used as a Christian symbol, but in recent times also used as an anti-Christian and Satanic symbol. In Christianity, it is associated with the martyrdom of Pete ...

es situated around Hobart. The 2020 festival was ultimately cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. It was expected to return in 2021. In 2021, Dark Mofo and its creative director Leigh Carmichael were broadly criticised for commissioning the work ''Union Flag'' by Spanish artist

Santiago Sierra Santiago Sierra (born 1966) is a Spanish artist, known for performance art and installation art. Much of his work deals with the topic of social inequities. He lives in Madrid. Career Sierra's most well-known works involve hiring laborers to co ...

, in which a British flag would be soaked in blood to be donated by Indigenous people from nations colonised by the British Empire. Carmichael initially defended the work, but it was eventually cancelled in response to the criticism.

Awards and nominations

National Live Music Awards

The

National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse and successful live industry, celebrating the diversity and success of the Australian live scene – recognising the best vocal talents and musicians alongside ...

(NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016. , - , rowspan="2" ,

National Live Music Awards of 2016 The National Live Music Awards of 2016 are the inaugural National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse and successful live industry, celebrating the diversity and success of ...

, rowspan="2" , Dark Mofo , Best Live Music Festival or Event , , - , Tasmanian Live Event of the Year , , - , rowspan="2" ,

National Live Music Awards of 2017 The National Live Music Awards of 2017 are the second National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse and successful live industry, celebrating the diversity and success of the ...

, rowspan="2" , Dark Mofo , Best Live Music Festival or Event , , - , Tasmanian Live Event of the Year , , - , rowspan="2" ,

National Live Music Awards of 2018 The National Live Music Awards of 2018 are the third National Live Music Awards. The event took place on 6 December 2018. The event moved its gala event to Brisbane – following events in Sydney and Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ W ...

, rowspan="2" , Dark Mofo , Best Live Music Festival or Event , , - , Tasmanian Live Event of the Year , , - , rowspan="2" ,

National Live Music Awards of 2019 The National Live Music Awards of 2019 are the 4th annual National Live Music Awards. The nominations were announced on 22 October 2020 and the awards ceremony was held on 4 December 2020. For the first time ever, all State and Territory catego ...

, rowspan="2", Dark Mofo , Best Live Music Festival or Event , , - , Tasmanian Live Event of the Year , , -

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://darkmofo.net.au/ 2013 establishments in Australia Arts festivals in Australia Festivals in Tasmania Music festivals in Australia Winter festivals in Australia