THEMES of home and belonging are just some of the concepts underpinning the Footscray on the Edge public art festival.
The festival, taking over Footscray streets this month, cements the reinvention of the area as an artistic hub.
Curator Kendal Henry, a New York street artist who’s Maribyrnong’s artist-in-residence until March, says the festival includes provocative and socially engaging works that reflect a community undergoing rapid change.
Maribyrnong mayor Catherine Cumming says Footscray is a surprising, challenging and “edgy” place.
“This festival is reflective of all that Footscray encompasses” she said.
“In Footscray we have a thriving arts scene that attracts the most innovative international artists and curators, like Kendal, and is home to some of Melbourne’s most creative emerging and established artists.”
Public artworks include Compulse by local artist Richard Allen, which transforms pedestrian crossing buttons into an interactive game of virtual ping pong.
The Madden Square artwork creates an interactive game of light and sound via intricate programming when the buttons are pressed. Other artworks are scattered throughout the Footscray CBD.
The festival also includes Grant Hobson’s photographic and text exhibition F5: Footscray in Transition, the second instalment of a five-year photography project displayed in store windows along Paisley Street, capturing the physical and cultural changes of 10 sites in Footscray.
