Semi Permanent Sydney 2023 (AU)
31 May — 02 June 2023
Carriageworks
Semi Permanent Festival of Creativity & Design will return to Carriageworks as part of Vivid Sydney 2023, from 31st May through 2nd June 2023. Now in its 21st year, Semi Permanent will again bring together the creative industries from across Asia Pacific for three full days of inspiring keynote talks, panel discussions, workshops, exhibitions, demonstrations, installations, and more.
The breadth of this year’s program is reflective of creative practice in 2023, including graphic, product, spatial and motion design, filmmaking, photography, illustration, publishing, writing, advertising, animation, Web3, and visual data. Many of the talks and programs delve into important and timely cultural subject matter, including futurism, feminism, First Nations culture, accessibility, sustainability, and diversity, equity and inclusion. Each year, Semi Permanent takes the opportunity to explore a universal idea that most aligns to the challenges and opportunities of the time. For 2023, we introduce the platform ‘REFORMATION’. “We thought the world would seek to build itself back as it was, but it’s increasingly clear that our collective future cannot—nor should not—look anything like its past,” says curator Mitchell Oakley Smith. “We live amidst a once-in-a-generation chance to write past wrongs, reform seemingly immutable practices, and redesign the world in a shape we’d like to see.” “One look around will tell you the seeds have already been sown: the promise of a borderless Web3 world; the reclaiming of time via remote work capabilities; the dismantling of industrial hierarchies and traditions that prioritised some consistently over others. And in its place, something new is beginning to emerge: new creative languages, new ways to communicate, to create, organise, disrupt, rebuild. New ways to speak, hear, interpret, understand, and connect. Less barriers to entry, and more possibility for brilliance. With all the chips seemingly thrown in the air—which of these do we catch, and which do we let go?”
Highlights
Speakers & Artists
Schedule (Local Times)
9:30 AM
Workshop ∙ 1 hour
Legacy Brands, Fresh Perspectives: A Design Evolution Workshop, presented by Refinery29 & PEDESTRIAN.TV
Learn how to communicate taboo topics in ways that resonate with young people and discuss the value of local trend forecasting, disrupting global guidelines and the urgency of diverse design teams to persistently grow and evolve audiences and brands.
11:30 AM
Masterclass ∙ 1 hour
The Art of the Title, with Filipe Carvalho
Sit down with Emmy Award-winning director and designer Filipe Carvalho as he delves into the granular aspects of title design for television and film, demonstrating the visual power of these shorts in capturing an audience's attention.
1:00 PM
Fireside Chat ∙ 1 hour
The Business of Design, with Bijan Berahimi & Evi. O
Design as a practice is inherently challenging, but how do we apply right-brain creativity to the setting up of a studio and running of a business? Join two esteemed independent design business owners for a look behind-the-scenes of their visual practices.
2:30 PM
Masterclass ∙ 1 hour
Worlds Beyond, with Liam Young
Filmmaker and speculative architect Liam Young will delve into the topic of future urbanism in a conversational masterclass, unpacking the methodologies of worldbuilding in an intimate setting.
4:00 PM
Workshop ∙ 1 hour
Cultivating Your Creative Flow State, presented by Squarespace & Societal
Learn how modern-day technology is helping professional designers channel their flow state to create more immersive brand experiences, as told through inspiring analogies, educational components, and case study highlights.
8:30 AM
Doors Open
9:30 AM
Welcome to Country & Opening Titles
9:45 AM
Talk ∙ 45 minutes
Mikaela Jade — Indigital
The founder of Indigenous edu-tech company, Indigital, seeks to develop innovative ways to digitise and translate knowledge and culture from remote and ancient communities, exploring how it applies to the future of business through the metaverse and Web3.
10:30 AM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Evi O. — Evi O. Studio
Striking a balance between beauty and function with Australia’s leading designer and artist.
11:00 AM
Break
11:30 AM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Jordy van den Nieuwendijk
In between the lines with the acclaimed Dutch artist and illustrator.
12:00 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Gabby Lord — Super Keen
New York-based Australian designer Gabby Lord discusses identity in both personal and professional aspects of her life, co-founding a branding studio during the height of COVID, and experiencing culture across three different continents.
12:30 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
wani toaishara
Exploring ideas concerning African Indigeneity, statelessness, and climate change across photography, installation, and video art.
1:00 PM
Break
2:00 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Megha Kapoor — Vogue India
On championing the spirit of creativity and celebrating the diversity of the subcontinent through the world’s most esteemed fashion publication.
2:30 PM
Talk ∙ 1 hour
Bijan Berahimi — FISK
Upending the traditional agency model with a community-focused business that’s equal parts gallery, store, and creative collaborator.
3:30 PM
Break
4:00 PM
Talk ∙ 45 minutes
Sinéad Burke — Tilting the Lens
The prolific writer, academic and activist will discuss who we are not designing for, and unpack strategies for the industry to be more inclusive.
4:45 PM
Talk ∙ 45 minutes
Liam Young
Speculative world-builder Liam Young will blow minds with mankind’s greatest collective endeavour yet.
9:00 AM
Doors Open
9:50 AM
Acknowledgement of Country & Opening Titles
9:55 AM
Experience ∙ 10 minutes
Breathwork Session with Rory Warnock presented by Ārepa
Join Performance & Wellness Coach Rory Warnock for a guided breathwork session.
10:10 AM
Talk ∙ 40 minutes
Seb Chan — ACMI
Merging physical and digital experiences with the director of Australia’s multi-award-winning, multi-platform museum of moving image.
10:50 AM
Talk ∙ 40 minutes
Filipe Carvalho
The Portuguese Emmy Award-winning designer and director of HBO, FX and A24 on bringing together good ideas and good visuals.
11:30 AM
Panel ∙ 30 minutes
Christopher Doyle & Gabby Lord
To mark the 10th year of Christopher Doyle & Co., its founder joins his first hire, Gabby Lord, to unpack the challenges and opportunities that come with running your own studio and the power and importance of generosity and vulnerability in design.
12:00 PM
Break
1:00 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Samuel Leighton-Dore
The artist, illustrator and screenwriter will discuss his creative process and storytelling across mediums.
1:30 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Mikaela Stafford
From render to reality, Mikaela discusses the projects that have evolved from digital beginnings to IRL experiences.
2:00 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Chris Yee
On the unique character of the Asian-Australian creative community and the power of storytelling.
2:30 PM
Talk ∙ 30 minutes
Jazz Money
Exploring the stories that we tell to construct national and personal identity with poet and artist Jazz Money.
3:00 PM
Break
3:30 PM
Talk ∙ 1 hour
Mona Chalabi
In her first appearance in Australia, the Data Editor of The Guardian’s US bureau will show how we can remove the ‘numb’ from numbers.
4:30 PM
Panel ∙ 1 hour
Getting it Done — presented by VICE and Refinery29
The custodians of publishing powerhouses VICE and Refinery29 discuss launching, and relaunching, legacy brands for Gen-Z, and the value of fast, distinctly Australian content strategies and design identities to balance counterculture in a commercial world.
Information
- Carriageworks is the largest multi-arts center in Australia.Carriageworks commissions Australian and International artists to make monumental new work that intersects with contemporary ideas. Reflecting the diverse communities of urban Sydney, our artist-led program is ambitious, radical and always inclusive.Carriageworks was built between 1880 and 1889 as part of the Eveleigh Railway Workshops. By the 1900s several thousand people worked here, building and maintaining locomotive engines and carriages for the expanding rail network. Those workers shaped the development of our city for over 100 years.The Carriageworks site was one of the first places to employ Aboriginal people on an equal basis. It is also the place where generations of new migrants were first employed. In 1917, it was within these walls that the Great Strike started, which saw thousands of workers march on NSW Parliament and, through sheer power in numbers, shut it down.In 2007, the site was redeveloped as a cultural precinct. Today, Carriageworks is the most significant multi-arts centre in Australia.
Carriageworks is wheelchair accessible. An access ramp leading to the main entrance is located at street level at 245 Wilson Street.
Accessible parking is available at the end of Carriageworks Way. Enter via 229 Wilson Street.
Taxis can enter at 229 Wilson Street for level-access entry.
The closest train station with wheelchair access is Newtown Station.
The Carriageworks car park includes four mobility parking spaces.
Accessible toilets are located off the public space within the main building.
Service animals are welcome throughout the precinct.
Partners
