Lifeforce the focus for Foto Biennale

LOVERS of the visual image are in for a photographic feast when the Ballarat International Foto Biennale begins later this month.

The full program for what will be the 11th running of the arts festival was released at the RACV Goldfields Resort, Creswick on Tuesday.

This time carrying the theme of lifeforce, the biennale starts on Saturday 23 August and runs through to 19 October, with many venues taking part throughout the city.

Multiple wineries across the region will also host exhibitions, while RACV Goldfields is showcasing work by several acclaimed photographic artists including the Hagoromo (Full Flower Moon) series.

The eight-week festival brings leading international photographers, digital creators and innovators together, aiming to celebrate the energy and creative spark of artists and audiences.

“There is a life force in all of us, a spark that compels us to create, to connect, to capture the world around us,” said BIFB artistic director and CEO Vanessa Gerrans.

“This year’s biennale honours that energy with a program that is dynamic, provocative and deeply moving.

“From globally acclaimed photographers to emerging voices, the 2025 Biennale offers audiences exclusive Australian exhibitions, world premieres and large-scale outdoor installations that transform Ballarat into a walkable, immersive art experience.

“It’s quite life affirming to be able to interact with the photographers and the sponsors, the volunteers and the artists.”

Festival highlights and must-sees include an Australian exclusive showcase of work by photographer Campbell Addy at the Ballarat Mining Exchange. Addy will also be a guest speaker at a featured event during the launch weekend.

The world premiere of One–Way Ticket to Vietnam 1966–1968 will be showcased in the Ballarat Town Hall and during Tuesday’s full program release, Ms Gerrens said it demonstrated “the power of photography to influence world politics.”

Individual exhibitions and events on offer will include the Australian exclusive showing of Enninful x Mapplethorpe at Post Office Gallery featuring images by master photographer Robert Mapplethorpe (1946-1989) and curated by Edward Enninful, the Martin Kantor Portrait Prize at GovHub, and work by Budjiti woman Leicolhn McKellar at the Art Screen in Alfred Deakin Place.

Installed on the facade of Ballarat’s National Centre for Photography, Mumu Mirri will invite people to reflect on the interconnectedness of all living things and the enduring knowledge embedded in Country.

Mumu Mirri or moth in Wadawurrung language, is a new public artwork by Dave Jones in collaboration with Wadawurrung artist Dr Deanne Gilson.

“This large-scale commission celebrates the Bogong Moth, an ancient source of sustenance, ceremony and survival for First Nations peoples,” Ms Gerrans said.

City of Ballarat mayor Cr Tracey Hargreaves said the biennale “continues to place Ballarat on the world stage.”

Since its inception, BIFB has seen audiences grow to over 250,000 and has contributed more than $28 million in direct economic impact for Ballarat.

Over 60 days from August to October the festival will deliver a curated core program showcasing Australian and international artists, an open program of new artists, workshops and public programs.

EVIE LAMB