AGB Events highlights Crossroads for The Ghan during 2021 Parrtjima Festival

Working as the Creative Directors and Producers of the 2021 Parrtjima Festival, AGB Events produced and delivered a travelling installation on The Ghan for NT Tourism. 

Friday, 9 April marked the official opening night of 2021 the Parrtjima Festival, however the celebrations actually began earlier in the week with the iconic locomotive The Ghan – a 900-metre luxury train that travels the 2,797km (1846 miles) stretch between Darwin and Adelaide.

Three of the train’s carriages were wrapped in Aboriginal artist Chantelle Mulladad’s work Crossroads. Crossroads was used in the external and internal dressing of The Ghan carriages, and features in the Merging Kultcha installation at Parrtjima.

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Turning a whole carriage into a travelling Parrtjima light installation, AGB Events utilised digital imagery from the 2019 Ranges Show, a light and sound spectacular projected onto 2km of the MacDonnell Ranges. This was projected onto a wall the entire width of the Ghan carriage measuring 2.7 metres by 1.6 metres high with interior printed graphics measuring 16.7 by 17.15 metres each side, and was enriched by an epic musical composition and narration. 

The 10-minute show included a welcome from AGB First Nation’s Advisor and Parrtjima Curator Rhoda Robert AO and was narrated by Australian Actor Aaron Pederson and Benedict Kngwarraye Stevens. The lighting designer was Richard Neville and was supplied by MPH Australia and Mandylights. Musical composition and sound design was delivered by Damian Robinson and supplied by the Central Australia Aboriginal Media Association(CAAMA).

AGB Events worked with technical partner Novatech based in Adelaide, who delivered the entire projection and control system including a FujiFilm Z5000 HD projector and 2.7 by 1.6 metre screen covering the width of the carriage. RGB DMX controllable lighting and an L-Acoustics audio system immersed viewers, set the mood and added dramatic effect. The entire system is programmed and operated using a QLab control system. All audio-visual and lighting was programmed and monitored from Novatech’s Adelaide operations.

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The Merging Kultcha installation at Desert Park features five illuminated camels, each over three metres high, using a mosaic of coloured glass for a stained-glass window effect. It symbolises the interconnected history between the Arrente people and late Afghan cameleers.

Art and storytelling are fundamental to Aboriginal culture and at the heart of Parrtjima. Through Parrtjima AGB Events bring to light Aboriginal Artists and reimagine their works in a different way. Parrtjima activates the desert landscape of Central Australia. It is a meeting place of old and new, and the festival uses the latest technologies to showcase the oldest continuous culture on Earth.

https://www.parrtjimaaustralia.com.au, agb.events