KSCA's ART AND FARMING PICNIC
with EPICUREAN HARVEST at Bula Mirri Farm, Hartley, NSW.
Sunday 28th April, 10:30am – 2:30pm
Tickets $20, bookings essential.
BYO Picnic and drink!
For event information and tickets, click here.
Explore the creative future of farming in the era of ever-changing climate at Bula Mirri Farm, now home to an exciting project combining horticulture and solar technology.
Epicurean Harvest (Erika Watson and Hayden Druce) have embarked on a collaboration with award-winning sculptor Mark Swartz and solar scientist Bjorn Sturmberg as part of KSCA's "An Artist, a Farmer and a Scientist walk into a bar..." Join this amazing team for a tour of the farm and a conversation about their project, along with members of KSCA and special guest artist Allan Giddy – a path-breaker in the use of alternative energy systems in art.
In the spirit of fostering small scale creative farming livelihoods, this picnic is a fundraiser for Epicurean Harvest so they can continue to implement land management strategies to conserve water and make their land more resilient to volatile weather.
BOOK TICKETS HERE
PS. While you’re in the Blue Mountains, drop into Lyttleton Stores Atelier in Lawson to see the ‘Art, Farming and Cultural Change’ KSCA exhibition! Click here for info.
THE DAY!
10:30am - WELCOME, introductions and house keeping.
11am FARM TOUR! Led by Erika and Hayden. Learn about the regenerative farming practices that supply top restaurants in Sydney and see the site of the solar energy project.
12:30pm/1pm - LUNCH, Set up under a tree with your picnic lunch and get to know each other. KSCA members, Hayden, Erika, Mark, Bjorn and Allan will lead an open conversation about why farmers are behaving like artists, artists are behaving like engineers, and why this makes complete sense in the 21st century!
2:30pm - DEPART (and head to Lyttleton Stores in Lawson to catch the KSCA exhibition).
FAQS
How do I get to the Farm? Hartley is on the Great Western Highway two and a quarter hours from the Sydney CBD through the scenic Blue Mountains. It is a perfect Sunday day trip, and you can easily drop into some of the tourist spots of the Mountains on the way home. Bula Mirri Farm has a dirt driveway, but is suitable for 2WD and buses. Please car pool, parking is limited. There will be a paddock available to park in.
Where does the Farm Tour take me? You will join us for a short walk over the 120 acre property, where you will see the two acre vege garden that services some of Sydney's top restaurants, get an introduction to the cows and the story of how they are managed. You will see the water management system based on PA Yeomans Keyline system, regenerative ecosystem processes and the site of the solar energy project.
What should I bring? Bring your own picnic lunch, plenty of water, a picnic rug, sensible shoes and clothes, a hat and sunblock, a jumper and a raincoat (we can hope). Also bring an interest in art and culture, farms and farm innovation, and a good sense of humour.
What should I expect? This is a day for connection and education in the country air. However it is an operating farm, which means it can be dirty, there are dangerous machinery and tools, uneven ground, wildlife, livestock, stinging nettle and electric fences. That said, being responsible and taking care of yourself and others, respecting animals, the land, signs and directions given to you, mixed with some good old common sense and you will have a BRILLIANT time outdoors learning and being with friends.
Can I bring the kids? This is an adult event; kids are welcome and free but must have careful adult supervision.
How can I contact the organiser with any questions? You can contact us via email - info@ksca.land. We will get back to you as soon as possible.
What's the refund policy? This is a social event and fundraiser to help Epicurean Harvest towards securing a water supply to the vegetable garden and greater farm. Attendees can receive a refund up to 7 days before the event.
ABOUT EPICUREAN HARVEST
Erika Watson and Hayden Druce are first generation young farmers, and owners of Epicurean Harvest, growing organic vegetables for Sydney restaurants (such as Quay, Ester, Freds and more) on 2.5 acres of their 120-acre farm, Bula Mirri. Bula Mirri is located on Wiradjuri Country, Hartley, NSW, bordering the Blue Mountains and Central West. They have relied on the weather and land for an income for five years, and have been at Bula Mirri for only 2 years. They are dedicating Bula Mirri to regenerative and collaborative practices to provide people with connection to land, provenance, arts and food. They are part of a global movement to monitor agricultural practice and measure the regeneration of the environment for ecological improvement. Erika and Hayden both have a Diploma of Holistic Management in Sustainable Rural Lands, Business and Communities; Bachelor of Horticultural Science (Hons1); Hayden a Masters in Flavour and Aroma; Erika is experienced in project management, outreach and extension and both have backgrounds in art and music. Now at Bula Mirri and with the combination of art and science, they are farmers reigniting their creative focus on art based on regenerative land management, climate, biology and ecosystem processes.
Their farming and produce has gained great recognition though numerous Gold Medals in the delicious. produce awards, and appeared in ABC Organic Gardener Magazine, ABC TV Gardening Australia, Gourmet Traveller magazine, Country Style Magazine.
ABOUT ALLAN GIDDY
Sydney-based public artist Allan Giddy is a pioneer in the use of sustainable energy systems and light in ‘time-based sculpture’, and is the founding director of the Environmental Research Institute for Art (ERIA) at UNSW Art & Design. His work has been shown at the Tate Modern, in ISEA and TISEA (International Symposia on Electronic Art), and numerous other venues internationally, and is in the collection of the MCA, Sydney.A past winner of the prestigious NSW (now called the Helen Lempriere) Travelling Art Scholarship, Allan regularly engages in industry and other partnerships to achieve his projects. Over the last decade Allan has expanded his practice into the public domain, specifically public sited ‘active sculpture’, and has completed a number of large public commissions, in Australia (including permanent works for City of Sydney and Sydney Olympic Park Authority), China, Ireland, Germany, the UK and Aotearoa New Zealand.
Allan has also conceived and curated several high-profile public exhibitions involving energy, including La Lune: Energy Producing Art (2014), which was runner-up in two categories of the Australian Event Awards that year (Best New Event and Best Achievement in Sustainability), and NOX Night Sculpture , which won a Highly Commended award in the Creative Communities category of the NSW Local Government Excellence Awards. His current celebrated work Flow uses the natural flow of water to convey the voices of Indigenous children in honour of first nations languages and is being toured across the country.
Clear here for more on Allan’s past work.
