OUT OF THE DARKNESS
WHEN Mona creator David Walsh “killed” Dark Mofo last year, he said: “I’d rather be a rich coward than a poor hero.” At that time, the coronavirus crisis was in its Australian infancy and we had no idea of what was to come.
Mr Walsh acknowledged that cancellation of the festival would further cripple an already wounded tourism market but the potential financial losses to him were too large to risk. The worst-case scenario was losing up to $8m.
That sort of outcome would have ramifications for Mr Walsh and for Mona.
History has proved that he made the absolutely right decision. Had he not, he could have lost a lot of money.
As we said at the time: you don’t make a fortune out of gambling without being a master of the odds.
Many other events followed suit and the Tasmanian cultural calendar was all but wiped out.
Thankfully, fairly early in 2021 we saw the brave souls who sacrificed their annual event in 2020 try to re-emerge and reinvent themselves in the age of coronavirus.
Ten Days of the Island was one of the first cabs off the rank, followed by the announcement that Black Lab’s Dark Mofo would return this winter and would be darker than ever.
This festival made its name by courting controversy.
From the upside down crosses to the live butchering of a carcass to the shocking selfburial of an artist under Macquarie St – Tasmanians and our visitors have been shocked, repulsed, provoked and entertained.
But sadly, in this woke age, not even Mr Walsh or festival director Leigh Carmichael are immune from cancel culture and the reaction to the decision to commission an artwork that asked for Indigenous blood to soak a Union Jack nearly caused organisers to ditch the festival altogether.
Some say the decision to commission the artwork was unforgivable. Others will say the decision to back out of it was unforgivable. We say no one’s perfect, let’s get over it and enjoy what is a truly magnificent time in the depths of winter in Tasmania.
Today, the Mercury can give readers a sneak peek at the new festival precinct planned for June and at 10am on our website, subscribers can check out the full Dark Mofo program. Better still, head to the App store and download the Mercury app, sign up for alerts and have the news delivered straight to your phone.
Learning to live with coronavirus needs brave event organisers to find ways to restore our social calendars.
It doesn’t come without risk so we commend those who are having a crack for the benefit of the broader community. If only we could come up with a suitable solution in time for summer on the waterfront.