Biosphere Boodja Festival

Over the course of a year, I worked with local schools, guiding children to sculpt endangered species while exploring themes of extinction, biodiversity, care and belonging. Watching children connect emotionally to the creatures they were making was profoundly moving. Their artworks later appeared alongside works by ceramic artists from Western Australia, Ireland, India and Singapore in Australia’s first-ever wheat crop-circle art installation. 

That installation transformed the Chester family farm into an immersive outdoor gallery. Visitors walked slowly through spirals carved into golden wheat, discovering artworks emerging from the landscape itself. At the centre stood Wheatwhale – a symbol of interconnectedness and environmental responsibility. Growing up in the 1980s, I vividly remember the ‘Save the Whale’ movement. Today, the whale represents something even larger for me: a reminder that every human action ripples outward into ecosystems around the world. 

Surrounding the Wheatwhale were hundreds of smaller clay creatures created by the children of Goomalling. Together, they became a collective expression of empathy, wonder and hope for the future. 

Read more about Biosphere Boodja Festival (PDF)

Biosphere Boodja Festival (3 min highlight reel)

Watch‍ ‍Biosphere Boodja: Caring For Everything (10 min) – single screen adaption of the giant digital animation.