Making a scene

Locals and visitors saw a different side of Docklands last month during a unique artistic event.

Scenes on the Yarra saw artists gather in Docklands during September to create a series of site-specific artworks and performances

On Sunday, September 27 the works were presented to the public during a two-hour walking performance.

Beginning with a smoking ceremony at Buluk Park, participants were then guided down North Wharf Rd.

Corralled by a group of noisy seagulls, and guided by storyteller Simon Oats, the group was ushered along the waterfront, stopping to view performances and installations at various points along the harbour.

Featuring roving performers, live music, dance, projection and some colourful characters, the event certainly covered
all bases.

Stopping along the harbour, the group received a dance lesson, reflecting on Docklands’ 1990s rave history.

It then moved on to the Alma Doepel where Mr Oats shared tales of the tall ship and of the dockworkers whose livelihoods centred on Victoria Harbour.

After viewing projections and artworks in the atmospheric Shed 2 and Wooden Boat Builders Centre, the group continued along the waterfront, before stopping for a public poetry session.

As the sun started to set, the group could see a pair of sunbathers resting on the pier below.

At the penultimate stop, a dramatic dance captured the toil of a dockworkers life, as the sun burned orange on the horizon.

The seagulls then pushed the group right to the end of North Wharf Rd, for the final stage of the performance, below the Bolte Bridge.

An illuminated boat installation, matching the illuminated bridge, was brought up from the banks and carried through the crowd, acting as a beacon to lead the group back down the wharf.

Docklands’ Scenes on the Yarra event was funded by the City of Melbourne, Melbourne Water and the Yarra River Keeper Association.

It was the sixth instalment in a series of events that have taken place at various points along the Yarra River, from the headwaters down to the sea, since 2013

The final Scenes by the Yarra event will be staged in Williamstown in 2016.