Family Day with FLENK Collective

FLENK Collective will present a series of activations for engaging families meaningfully and creatively with the artworks and themes of the 25th Biennale of Sydney. Building on practices of the members of FLENK and artist co-creators, these programs encourage sharing stories, model reciprocity and engaging the senses.

FLENK is a collective of artists, educators, and digital creators who connect audiences with contemporary art and artists. Since their partnership began in 2021, FLENK continues to engage communities and create public programs that respond to contemporary art and art practices, including gallery engagements, drop-in activities and workshops for all ages and
abilities.

FLENK Collective was founded in May 2021 by Flora Suen, Laura Carey, Emma Hicks, Nicole Barakat and Katy Plummer

Family Days at the 25th Biennale of Sydney are a celebration of creativity, colour, and connection! Designed for kids (and kids at heart), these lively days invite families to explore, play, and make art together. Expect hands-on workshops, performances, and activities bursting with energy, music, and laughter, all curated by community-led organisations who bring their unique perspectives and local spirit to the program.

Joyous, loud, and full of life, Family Days are your invitation to dive into art, imagination, and shared experiences for all ages. And best of all, entry is free!

Poetry in the Dust – Charcoal and words with artist Akala Newman

10.30 am-11.15 am
11.45 am-12.30 pm
1 pm-1.45 pm

Meet at Boiler House ground floor

Join acclaimed Wiradjuri and Gadigal artist Akala Newman for Poetry in the Dust, a family-friendly workshop blending poetry, songwriting, and charcoal drawing. Set against the striking backdrop of White Bay Power Station, participants will consider the site’s rich industrial past and creative future through word and image. Using charcoal, a material that carries both history and transformation, families will be guided through reflective poetry exercises and expressive mark-making that respond to sound, texture, and emotion. All ages welcome. Materials provided.

Your presence is a gift – listening to plants with Nicole Barakat

10 am-3 pm

Program Hub

Artist Nicole Barakat invites you to listen to plants. Listen and connect through a special collection of flower essences made by the artist. Feel and respond to the energy and spirit of our plant ancestors in creative ways and create an artwork as a gift to yourself, to remember your ability to listen and connect. We all have the ability to activate our sensitivity to the plant world, to listen with intention and trust the wisdom they generously share with us. Nicole undertook an artist residency in Paris, France in 2023 where she spent time listening to one of her ancestral trees, a 300-year-old Lebanese cedar tree. This workshop is drop-in and suitable for all ages. All materials and instruction provided.

re-memory re-exchange – FLENK collective

10 am-4 pm

Program Hub

Drop in to a friendly little space in a quiet corner of the White Bay Power Station where you and your family can have a conversation with the artist inside the space. During the conversation, you receive a token that fits in the palm of your hand: a gift of a memory fragment from a previous visitor. You learn the person’s first name, and maybe even the artwork or prompt they responded to.
To finish your exchange, you create a small memory fragment to offer back and leave with the exchange when you are ready, to continue a practice of reciprocity. Part performance, part engagement, part quiet space, and an embrace of the Biennale’s theme, this offering activates re-collection and memory practices on a micro-level. The artists from FLENK collective and artist co-creators are the mediators in this memory exchange.