Kuweni Dias Mendis 'Reverberations'

Reverberations chronicles artist Kuweni Dias Mendis’ journey of belonging as a migrant woman of colour and culture in Australia. 

This multisensory arts experience incorporates film, live music, movement and visual arts in an exploration of identity and belonging, forged in spirituality.

‘Reverberations’ comprises three segments, starting with the screening of a short by award-winning filmmaker Jude Kalman. Part performance and part storytelling, the film documents the artist’s experience in Australia.

The second segment is a performance art piece featuring live music by Tsoof Baras (drums), Lisa Tran Kelly (harp), and Menaka Thomas (vocals) with choreography from Mohini Natyam dancer Bindu Rajendran.

The performance concludes with the audience being invited to participate in co-creating an ephemeral installation using tools and pigments to reflect on belonging, migrant identity, and remembrance. 

Kuweni Dias Mendis is a Sri Lankan-Australian artist based in Australia since 1999. As a diasporic artist her work reflects on her diverse experience of culture and identity. Australia has deeply influenced her artistic practice, which focuses on raw mark-making and integrates regenerative practice, arts activism, and cultural facilitation. Kuweni uses ritual and ceremony as the source of her artistic manifestations, her creative inquiry into the pulsation of place.

Kuweni Dias Mendis’ art installation ‘Running RIvers: People of Place’, curated by Elena Dias Jayasinghe, will be showing at Outer Space, 20 September to 26 October. This exhibition is inspired by the Brisbane River and speaks to the multicultural influences of contemporary Australia.

Presented by BEMAC

About BEMAC Live

BEMAC Live is a series of professionally produced shows, underpinned by BEMAC’s programming principles, that champion and elevate diverse artists, and their artistry, as creators of original work of the highest quality and relevance possible. For more information about BEMAC’s program of upcoming events, visit bemac.org.au/season/

Matinée 3:00pm, Sunday 20 October
Show 3:00pm–4:00pm (Relaxed Performance)
Participative Workshop 4:00pm–6:00pm
Tickets $20

Evening: 4:00pm, Sunday 20 October
Participative Workshop 4:00pm–6:00pm
Show 6:30pm–7:30pm
Tickets $35/$25

Queensland Multicultural Centre
102 Main Street, Kangaroo Point QLD

There is very limited parking around the QMC. We encourage all guests to use public transport. QMC is only a 2-minute short walk from the Holman Street Ferry Terminal and bus route 234. You can find more info about how to get to QMC at http://qmc.org.au/visit