Well over 3,000 people spent Friday night eating, drinking and immersing themselves in art at Greenock’s Wanderlust event, part of the Barossa Fringe on Tour.
A group of dedicated organisers, who stood out in their bright yellow t-shirts, had turned Greenock into a visual arts gallery.
The Wanderlust concept was about “a desire to wander”, an art lead European style street party, turning the town into a gallery and celebrating self expression.
Wanderlust Greeenock started through a conversation between a small group of local artists. It was inspired by a post office in Uki, NSW which had invigorated the community every six weeks for opening nights.
Over 70 local artists came together with a couple from Adelaide to share their work in various Greenock venues, with 45 exhibitors in the outdoor gallery alone.
Two of the organisers, Renee de Saxe and Kirsty Kingsley agreed that highlights were the SAJI experience and Bait Fridge.
A four metre tall dragon sculpture by Liam Davies-Brown, Theatre Sports, Pam the Slam poet and Doug Turner’s aboriginal workshops really captivated the crowd.
Throughout the night Guru Dudu Silent Disco roamed the street, with 50 people still dancing in the square at the end of the night.
“We are over the moon with the response. People were glowing, their response to the art was incredible,” said Renee.
“It was a fresh and unexpected event that resonated with the innate human need for self expression amongst peers.”
Renee said this group already have other exciting plans to continue to promote the region’s talented artists, including their 100 Barossa Artists for SALA in August.
“And crazily, we have started to talk about the next idea,” she said.
“What we really hope most of all is that this event inspires other artists to build and action their own ideas and share it with the community.”
