The Art Raft Collective

Artlink article 2024

The Art-Raft Project: Activism at work, rest and play.

The art-raft project is, in Hakim Bey / Peter Lamborn Wilson’s words, a materialised ‘temporary autonomous zone’, where collaborators and activists have space to playfully propose questions, be involved in a common cause, generate connection and envision more positive, future narratives. 

The project began as a response to the needs of the People’s Blockade, a peaceful ‘flotilla’ protest organised by Rising Tide, held annually in the harbour and river mouth of the Coquun/ Hunter River, at Muloobinba/ Newcastle. United on Awabakal and Worimi land and waters, the November 2023 protest saw 3000 people occupying the world’s largest coal port for 34 hours. 

The art-raft collective of artists, carpenters, an architect and a social worker set out to create a playful vessel, in contrast to the metal-clad export ships that enter and depart the harbour, day and night. The collaborative process of designing and constructing the raft came from their existing networks in Newcastle. Everyday materials were donated and recycled, skills were pooled and shared, community groups were mobilised. Considering the ways in which creative collaborations can become tools to support climate activism and direct action, the art-raft crew balanced artistic expression with pragmatic problem solving. The goal was always to make and launch an interactive floating installation as a key element of the blockade. It was also a reminder of the human agency and personal risk involved in all forms of environmental protest.

During the 34-hour blockade, the art-raft transitioned from a daytime site of playful chaos — with a slide, craft table, and a crow’s nest equipped with binoculars and a trumpet— to a solar-powered beacon of nocturnal comfort. During the night shift, freshly cooked pancakes were passed out to protesters on kayaks, while activists rested, drank tea, played music and swapped stories. Over two days on the water, surrounded by the splendour and terror of the elements, the art-raft witnessed pods of dolphins, tempestuous winds and a flash thunderstorm. 

Reflecting the thrown-together, ad-hoc and DIY composition demanded by urgent social action, the people’s art-raft needed constant adjustments. Having miscalculated weight distribution, crew had to shut down the water slide at times to fix the crooked flooring with ratchet straps. The raft’s ramshackle appearance provided a comical visual element alongside a large police ship, forebodingly named Nemesis. Despite police approaching the raft several times, remarking that “they didn’t trust it would last the night,” the collective shared an optimistic attitude: the best response to a powerful nemesis is to create a more powerful story. 

For a day-night-day, despite police presence, Newcastle Harbour felt fundamentally different, allowing those present to experience a new environmental ecology for this place, and to imagine... What is possible? How can we invest in a new narrative for this harbour, this river mouth, beyond its life as the world’s largest coal port? 

The art-raft crew plans to revise this idea in 2024, by hosting an artist residency program along the Coquun/Hunter River, between the harbour’s entrance and Maitland on Wonnarua country. Already a collective of contemporary artists and new collaborators are gearing up for the thirteenth People’s Blockade, ten days of action planned in 2024 by Rising Tide. We welcome involvement from across the country.