Hop to it: Giant neon frogs take over Port River
First there was a giant pigeon landing in Rundle Mall, then a blue blob popped up in Mount Gambier, now frogs as tall as a two-storey building are hopping into the public arts picture in the Port. It’s all for an arty, music and food festival this weekend.
Eight giant neon frogs ranging from three to six metres tall are lining Port Adelaide’s riverfront this weekend for a free exhibition as part of the SALA festival.
Sydney-based art collective Amigo and Amigo are behind the colourful frogs, which range up to eight metres tall – the height of a two-storey building.
The Night Walkers were originally commissioned by Vivid Sydney and are making their Adelaide debut in a walking trail lighting up Port Adelaide’s Commercial Road and Black Diamond Square.
Amigo and Amigo founding director Simone Chua says that, unlike your typical artwork in galleries and museums, viewers are invited to touch, listen and play with the frogs.
“With Night Walkers, there are these interactive frog buttons that you press, and the frog will respond to you with its call,” Simone says.
“And we actually recorded the calls of the frog species, so for example, the corroboree frog sound is the actual sound that the corroboree frog makes.”
You might like
Each giant inflatable neon frog’s colouring is based on the real look of the small amphibian, which Simone says is usually only detectable under a microscope.
“You can see their beautiful patterns under a microscope, with a magnifying glass but you don’t really see them on a large scale, so we were inspired by their actual patterns, and that’s what all the prints are.
“We’ve taken these really wonderful details and supersized them, so people can have this up-close experience.”
Each has a sign with more information about their species, and the frogs are weatherproofed, with weights inside so they don’t blow away in the wind, and electronics hidden away.
Subscribe for updates
“We like it to feel like magic, so all of the inner workings of the frogs are inside them, and they can’t be seen,” Simone says.
“That’s really important to us so that you know, you press a button and this frog comes to life.”
But frogs aren’t the only species on show; roving performers EscarGlow – three-metre-tall, illuminated snails – will also roam around the River Night Walk route.
Local music programmer and record store Porch Records will soundtrack the weekend, with local musicians playing at Commercial Road from Friday to Sunday.
The lineup includes Harrison Smith Trio, DJ Nantale and Kara Manansala.
Kara – who’s previous gigs include Nexus Arts Interplay showcase and WOMADelaide – describes her music as folk meets neo-soul and contemporary jazz.
She told CityMag she was excited to be involved in the Port Adelaide mini-festival because it was important to develop local talent and bring music and art to communities for free.
“I’m nothing of the performer I am now without every gig I’ve had beforehand, on a small stage or a big one and if I had never jumped on stage before and I jumped straight to WOMAD, that would have been petrifying,” Kara says.
“Activating spaces for the community that aren’t necessarily scoping out gig guides and curating what they want to go to is offering them local talent on a platter and allowing for such a beautiful exchange, as a benefit to the community and it’s beneficial to the artist.”
Commercial Road will also host the Meandering Markets, with handmade jewellery, art, homewares and treats within and around the Port Admiral Hotel.
There are a range of other workshops, like watercolour and clay painting, on in the evenings, as well as an exhibition called SALA Up Late, at POP Gallery on St Vincent Street.
River Night Walk is a free, family-friendly event from 5:30pm to 9pm on Friday, August 14 to Sunday, August 16.
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
