Your guide to Wild Freo
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The countdown is on for Wild Freo, a revamped Fremantle Street Arts Festival for 2022.
Wild animals will take over Fremantle across the Easter long weekend from 16–18 April, with a BIG program of events for art and animal lovers alike.
We’ve pulled together a quick guide for everything to see and do at this year’s festival.
Animal Galleries16–18 April | City surrounds and Woolstores | Free
Sometimes when you are little you need some help to be seen.
Inspired by a love of animals, a series of native animal illustrations will be installed across Fremantle – some to scale – some larger than life!
These bold installations amplify the presence of endangered WA species in our urban environments.
Keep your eyes peeled for a grey nurse shark, a blue whale, a numbat, a red-tailed black cockatoo and maybe even a woylie.
This work is created by Jenessa King, an illustrator, graphic designer and visual art teacher.
Find out more here.
Envoy 222216–18 April, 10am–5pm | City streets, festival venues and Walyalup Koort | Free
The year is 2222, 200 years from now…
Join in on a walking tour like no other where you’ll be transported to a future world to see just how much Walyalup/Fremantle has changed.
Use your phone to access this future world, with five different immersive audio walking tours to choose from.
This work is created by Cezera Critti-Schnaars, Bryan Woltjen and Soundscape by Envelope Audio.
Find out more here.
The Echo Maze16–18 April, 10am–5pm | B Shed Fremantle Ports | $10
Can you find a mate or reunite yourself with the rest of your family using just your hearing?
It’s time to find out!
The Echo Maze is a dark, interactive underwater simulation modelled on the migration patterns of the Pygmy Blue Whale.
Don high-tech Echo Hats and traverse an undersea labyrinth using no more than your hearing and your wits.
Along the way, collect points capturing prey whilst attempting to avoid the many dangers.
This work is created by Joe Leach, a British/Australian musician, sound artist and audio visual specialist.
Book tickets here.
Observing Stone16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Whalers Tunnel | Free
The illuminated eyes of displaced native animals are watching as you move through the bowels of the whaler’s tunnel and the carved cliff of limestone.
Where have these vulnerable creatures gone to and do they remain in their original habitat?
Observing Stone is an installation of animal’s eyes – illuminated with lights and projected through glass lenses that once illuminated stages in Perth.
This work is created by Sandy McKendrick, an artist, performer and puppeteer living near the coast of Fremantle.
Find out more here.
A Particular Garden After16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Old Customs House | Free
Join us for this installation exploring growth and disappearance at Fremantle's Old Customs House.
Experience an indoor forest that comes alive through projections of abundant, endangered, and extinct animals and plants.
The space will be transformed as the projections fill the room with colour before fading back to white with each animated loop.
Audiences are invited to walk through the forest to explore the themes of appearance and disappearance.
This work is created by Angela Ferolla and Elsewhere/Rebecca (Rebecca Riggs-Bennet).
Find out more here.
Preserving for the Future16–18 April, 10am–5pm | WA Shipwrecks Museum – Education Space | Free
Explore the hidden wonders of our unique wildlife while guided on a nocturnal night walk through the old education building at the WA Shipwrecks Museum.
Immerse yourself in the sounds and sights of the West Australian bushland, spotting our once abundant wildlife around the Walyalup region in a thought-provoking experience using still-life creations.
This work is created by Teori Shannon, an enthusiastic Taxidermist, and Soundscape by Envelope Audio.
Find out more here.
Fantastic Creatures16–19 April, 11am–4pm | Walyalup Civic Centre | Free
Create your own fantastic creature animal totem in these weaving workshops with Whadjuk Noongar artist Sharyn Egan.
Learn about the significance of animal totems, Noongar lore and the importance of looking after each totem as you make your own special creation.
Participants will learn the art of traditional binding and wrapping techniques using natural fibres and wool.
All materials are supplied.
Find out more here.
Ecosonica16–18 April, 10am–5pm with live performance between 12–2pm | Walyalup Civic Centre – Council Chamber | Free
Listen to this beautiful sonic installation in the surrounds of the new Walyalup Civic Centre Council Chamber created by musicians from the Perth Symphony Orchestra and John Curtin College of the Arts.
Ecosonia explores the connections between various musical, auditory and technological responses to the loss of the natural world, in particular the plight of endangered and threatened Australian fauna.
At set times in the day the installation will be peppered with live improvised performances by Perth Symphony Orchestra musicians.
This work is created by the Perth Symphony Orchestra and John Curtin College of the Arts.
Find out more here.
Kookaburra Riot16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Esplanade Reserve | Free
Kookaburra Riot is a spontaneous sound installation awaiting in the branches of the Norfolk Pines of the Esplanade.
Sit back, relax – you are invited to cloud watch and listen closely!
Did you know the Kookaburra was introduced to WA in 1897 to control snake numbers?
Although successful, it also preyed upon other native species threating their numbers.
These birds can now be heard and seen around Fremantle suburbs. They are wide spread and not currently in danger – but people do have a soft spot for them and their notable laugh.
The greatest threat to kookaburras is habitat loss caused by the removal of trees.
This work is created by Rebecca Riggs Bennett, an emerging electronic music producer, sound artist and composer for different forms of performance.
Find out more here.
Hollow Homes for Feathered, Furry and Scaly Friends16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Walyalup Koort | Free
Experience this sculptural and sound installation created by the community for our feathered, furry and scaly friends!
Nest-boxes form the centre of this installation and the wildlife they are destined for come to life through the stunning sound recordings.
Urban development can lead to the loss of old-growth trees in towns and cities, resulting in fewer natural tree-hollows for wildlife that depend on them.
Nest-boxes play an important role in helping to restore habitat, enabling a future for many native animals.
The nest-boxes have been made by the community in workshops led by The Re-Cyc-Ology Project, Fremantle Men’s Community Shed with images being provided by Simon Cherriman of iNSiGHt Ornithology.
Find out more here.
Stomp, Bob, Waggle, Nod – No Dance16–18 April, 11am–4pm | Walyalup Civic Centre – Fremantle Library courtyards | Free
Join us for a silent disco like no other in one of the quietest places in town.
Enjoy the musical rhythm and natural soundscapes with your own animal groove.
But remember, we don’t want to scare the animals!
Instead we want to move like them.
Some animals can dance of course, but most cannot…. Come move with us off the beat!
This work is created by DJ Wild Paws.
Find out more here.
Wild foods & Animal tracks16–18 April | City streets, festival venues and Walyalup Koort | Free
Are you hungry? Embark on this discovery trail to discover the food sources around Fremantle that are critical for animals to survive.
Wild Foods & Animal Tracks is a visual street installation sharing the tracks and food sources of endangered WA species.
But to find the food, you need to first find the tracks!
Embark on this journey throughout Fremantle to see what you discover and remember; food is not always on the ground.
This work is created by Jenessa King and AO Let’s Go Print and Distribution.
Find out more here.
Treasure Hunts of Hope16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Walyalup Civic Centre | Free
Join this animal search in the urban habitat of Fremantle – a busy place, a place of change, a place where we don’t always find what we are looking for.
This work is a sad treasure hunt but full of hope – created from a series of activations featuring dioramas, writing and poetry.
Sometimes what you can’t find is more important than what you can – sometimes the story is all we have.
This work is created by Daley Rangi, an antidisciplinary artist generating unpredictable works and words.
Find out more here.
Boodjar16–18 April, 11am–6pm | Fremantle Town Hall | $10
Innovators in the realm of visual and physical theatre, Erth present ‘Boodjar’.
Boodjar meaning ‘ground’ in Noongar language, leads you into the living underworld for an encounter with the seldom seen.
This multi-sensory, puppetry-based experience is filled with creations inspired by work with leading international conservation zoos.
Erth’s work has delighted and inspired audiences for more than 30 years – this team of creators, makers and performers are internationally renowned for pushing the limits of design, content and experience.
This work is created by Erth Visual and Physical Inc.
Find out more here.
Wild Shadows – Shadow Play16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Walyalup Civic Centre – Reception Room | Free
Make your favourite animal shadow puppet and explore a multi coloured world of light and shadow.
Create your own story with your imaginative creations and explore silhouette scenery of nature’s environments.
Children of all ages can participate at their own level and immerse themselves making and playing in the world of shadows!
This workshop is facilitated by Rachel Riggs, a multi-disciplinary Fremantle artist.
Find out more here.
Held in Stone16–18 April, 10am–5pm | Old Customs House | Free
Held in Stone invites audiences to explore and consider the animals that surround people in their absence – the miniscule creatures that once formed or lived amongst the limestone that Fremantle is built on.
Limestone holds the stories of animals that have lived in and on the limestone and swum amongst or beside the limestone reefs with many remnants remaining throughout Fremantle.
Through their skeletal projections and simple animations, these creatures will be reimagined through a magical installation in Old Customs House.
Sandy McKendrick has created this work with vets, animal researchers, bird experts, whale researchers and museum connections to get access to skeletons, radio imagery and photos.
Find out more here.
Wild Freo is proudly brought to you by the City of Fremantle. Visit www.streetartsfestival.com.au for more info.