Hobsons Bay will host a diverse range of free COVID-safe events to celebrate Midsumma.

Midsumma Westside brings the spirit of the Rainbow to Hobsons Bay

Hobsons Bay is rolling out the red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet carpet for Midsumma Westside from January 23 to February 13. Hobsons Bay will host 11 free COVID-safe events to celebrate the spirit of Midsumma, Australia’s premier queer arts and cultural festival.

Mayor of Hobsons Bay, Cr Peter Hemphill, affirmed Council’s commitment to showing visible support for the LGBTIQA+ community.

“We want our community to know that Hobsons Bay is a place they can be their authentic selves without fear of discrimination,” said Cr Hemphill.

“To demonstrate this, we take every opportunity to fly the Rainbow Flag on days of significance for the LGBTIQA+ community.

“This year we have gone one step further in transforming the forecourt of the Altona Theatre at the Civic Centre into a Rainbow as a public demonstration of support for an important part of our community.”

Since 2010, Hobsons Bay City Council has facilitated local activities and events each year through Midsumma Westside, a partnership with Hobsons Bay, Brimbank, Maribyrnong and Wyndham LGAs.

Some Hobsons Bay Midsumma program highlights include opportunities to contribute to exhibitions at the Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre and Hobsons Bay Civic Centre, an online author talk with Hobsons Bay Libraries, a Sunday film screening and discussion panel at the Altona Theatre, outdoor photographic exhibitions at The Substation and Laneway Gallery, a glitter-filled shoe decoration workshop for young people to transform their kicks from drab to fab and an all ages Rainbow Family Picnic.

The in-person COVID-safe events adhere to the current density limits and have COVID-safe practices in place. These events will move online if the state government introduces restrictions.

Launch of Midsumma Westside events in Hobsons Bay

Saturday January 23 from 2pm to 4pm, the Substation Newport, 1 Market Street Newport

Growing up queer (presented by Hobsons Bay Libraries)

Wednesday February 9 from 6.30pm to 7.30pm, online

Writers Alison Evans, Holden Sheppard and Gary Lonesborough share their experiences of growing up queer. They tell us of the support and advocacy they received and what support they wished had been there for them. They are joined by Adolfo Aranjuez leading this special in conversation event to acknowledge, inspire as well as inform and empower.

Impossible Dance (iii) (presented as part of Hobsons Bay Creative City by Matto Lucas)

Wednesday January 19 to Sunday February 27, outdoor exhibition at the Laneway Gallery at Woods Street Arts Space, 44 Woods Street Laverton

Laneway Gallery at Woods Street Arts Space in Laverton presents ‘Impossible Dance (iii),’ an exhibition showcasing photographs taken from queer club performances and spaces over the past decade by Matto Lucas. Black and white documentation photographs activate the outdoor exhibition space’s billboards and a slideshow of additional images lights up the projection window.

Every Word We Write is Panacea (presented as part of Hobsons Bay Creative City by Matto Lucas)

Sunday January 20 to February 16, Hobsons Bay Civic Centre (during opening hours), 115 Civic Parade Altona

Write a short, anonymous, positive affirmation to either your past self or a nameless family member or friend who belongs to the LGBTQIA+ community and peg the letter alongside previous messages to build a tapestry of love for the Hobsons Bay LGBTQIA+ community and beyond. Join artist Matto Lucas on Thursday January 27 from 4pm to 6pm or Sunday January 30 from 1pm to 3pm for an interactive art experience. Registration required at www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au/Community/Whats-On/Exhibition-Every-Word-We-Write-Is-Panacea

Stepping out with Pride (presented by Hobsons Bay Libraries) – For young people aged 12-25

Tuesday January 25 from 2pm to 5pm, Woods Street Arts Space, 22 Woods Street Laverton

Grab a pair of shoes and join artist and leading costume designer Anna Kolusnewski in this creative workshop. Connect with your community, experiment with airbrush techniques, stencils, glitter, paint pens and 3D paint while you transform your shoes from drab to fab! Whether you’re marching, partying at Carnival, showing your pride at work, or being a supportive ally, these shoes will be with you every step of your journey. BYO shoes – all other materials provided including rainbow shoelaces. Strictly for young people 12-25.

Why Did She Have to Tell the World: Continuity and Change in LGBTQIA+ Activism (presented by Hobsons Bay Libraries)

Sunday January 30 from 11am to 12pm, Altona Theatre, 115 Civic Parade Altona

Join us for a screening of the short film “Why Did She Have to Tell the World?”, a lesbian coming-out story spanning fifty years. The film will be followed by a panel featuring the writer-director AP Pobjoy, and young LBGTQIA+ activists exploring continuity and change in LGBTQIA+ activism from the 1970s to today.

Bookings essential

www.hobsonsbaytickets.com.au

Colours of the Rainbow in a diverse community (presented by Louis Joel Arts & Community Centre)

Frida January 28 to Thursday February 10 from 11am to 3pm daily, Louis Joel Arts & Community Centre, 5 Sargood Street Altona

Join a creative challenge to be part of a rainbow installation in the Joel Gallery. Open to all artists and creatives, new, emerging or established who have a connection to Hobsons Bay, Wyndham, Maribyrnong, Brimbank, Melton, or Moonee Valley. You will be provided with a blank canvas and a challenge Pride colour. Registrations via www.ljac.com.au before 19 January.

Rainbow Family Picnic (presented by Hobsons Bay UP Youth/Freeza Committee and Hobsons Bay Libraries)

Saturday February 5 from 10.30am to 1pm, Newport Community Hub, 13 Mason Street Newport

Let’s celebrate families in all the colours of the rainbow! Join entertainer and storyteller Jacqui Hoy, along with special musical guests for a picnic party bursting with song, stories, and pride. Bring along your picnic rug and a snack and don’t forget your hat and sunscreen.

Making Art Words and Stories (presented by Dramawerkz)

Saturday January 29 from 10am to 4pm, Woods Street Arts Space, 44 Woods Street Laverton

Four queer and diverse young artists each facilitate a workshop on their individual practice, intersecting at the ways in which their art expresses their identities. Featuring ceramicists, visual artists, theatre makers and poets, this youth-led and youth-centred event is ideal for anyone aged 13-25 with an eagerness to get creative and connect with community. Proudly supported by Hobsons Bay City Council.

Impossible Dance (iv) (presented by the Substation and Matto Lucas)

Saturday January 24 to February 14, The Substation outdoor billboards, 1 Market Street Newport

Featuring a collection of black and white photographs, the images celebrate, canonise and represent queer communities in a pre-COVID world of nightlife, art and entertainment. The spaces and bodies captured within Impossible Dance (iv) represent constructs of utopias and frame the body as a communal, yet autonomous object. As a photographer, Matto Lucas interrogates systems of power, concerns himself with GASD (Gender and Sexually Diverse) and LGBTIQ+ identities, and aims to authentically document communities on the fringes of mainstream culture.