The work of three QUT production design students is currently centre stage at the world’s biggest gathering of performance and arts designers – the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, where they contributed to the Australian student exhibit.
Tessa Rixon, a senior lecturer in scenography with QUT’s School of Creative Practice, joined Jazz Heckeroth (Bachelor of Design (Architecture)), Josiene James (Bachelor of Fine Arts (Technical Production)), and Lani Dwyer (Bachelor of Fine Arts (Technical Production)) in the Czech Republic for the event which began on 8 June.
They worked with Jacob Nash from Bangarra Dance Theatre, who, along with QUT Indigenous Chair in the Creative Industries Professor Wesley Enoch and Stephen Page (Bangarra), guided them through a First Nations approach to design.
“The Prague Quadrennial is the world’s biggest gathering of performance and theatre designers, educators, researchers, students, industry partners and manufacturers, with over 50 countries showcasing their national work,” said Ms Rixon.
“Jazz, Josiene and Lani have had the most incredible experience here. They got to co-design the Australian Student Exhibit in collaboration with Victorian College of the Arts students.
“Leading First Nations designer and artist Jacob Nash co-curated the work with Jo Briscoe, senior lecturer in design at the VCA. They led students through an Indigenous approach to designing an immersive exhibit that attempts to express the vastness of the Australian landscape through naturally dyed materials and soundscapes.
“The Exhibit has partnered with University of Melbourne’s 50 Words Project, an online mapping of First Nations language throughout Australia, to include genuine Indigenous voices - from the various locations from which natural dying materials were sourced – within the soundscapes.”
More about the exhibit can be found here https://www.pqau.com.au/
Running until 18 June, the 2023 Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design features 250 new works on display from over 80 countries, ranging from scenographic models to multisensorial installations, costumes, interactive performances, and architectural space concepts.
Main image: QUT students Lani Dwyer, Jazz Heckeroth, and Josiene James with Wesley Enoch at the 2023 Prague Quadrennial
Media contact:
Amanda Weaver, QUT Media, 07 3138 3151, amanda.weaver@qut.edu.au
After hours: 0407 585 901, media@qut.edu.au
