Damian Barbeler (Festival Curator)
Damian Barbeler is the creator of the hiberNATION Festival. He is an award-winning composer and multimedia artist recognised for his playful artistic style and lush, emotional creations inspired by textures and patterns from nature.
He regularly collaborates with colleagues from diverse fields including film, architecture, software design, media arts, dance, and incorporates visual, sculptural and light elements with all his music.
His work often emphasises tactile experiences of physical places and relationships. His work (with artist Tim Jetis) Visiting Eucalyptus is a good example, where 6 months of travelling, photographing Eucalyptus trees resulted in a concert work, installation, book, film and website.
Damian has twice received the ‘Recommended Work’ award at the UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers and was a finalist in the Toru Takemitsu Prize in Tokyo in 2008.
June WAS to see the premiere of his major trans-music work “Paper Forest” for Jane Sheldon and Continuum Saxophone Quartet, in the Dangrove art space in Sydney. But don't worry... that piece is on it's way soon... somehow!
HiberNATION Festival and the artists creating this work (and the rest of the festival works) are reminded of and grateful for the ancient and dazzlingly creative expression of this land wrought by generation upon generation of first nation peoples. We are priviledged to have this land as inspiration and acknowledge their unrivaled depth of understanding and love of this country. We try every day to do better to understand and respect this most ancient and inspirational of world traditions.
Liam Mulligan (Festival Curator)
Liam Mulligan (b. 1997) is a composer, vocalist, film maker and visual artist based in the Sutherland Shire. Liam's music is heavily inspired by experimental electronic noise with strong aleatoric elements. His pieces focus on creating a strong bond between the performers and audience through multi-sensory composition and performance. His practices in music define who he is as a film maker and visual artist. These works focus on the abstraction of everyday life, and are created and edited through particular software which allows him to improvise freely. Liam also enjoys combining his musical and artistic practices into installations and performances which revolve around input from the audience. Liam's musical works have been premiered in Verbrugghen Hall, City Recital Hall, St Stephen's Uniting Church and in The Rocks for events including Vivid Sydney and Unashamedly Original. He is also a co-founder of the Sydney based composer/performer collective Konzertprojekt where, in 2019, Liam co-curated and project managed 'Konzertprojekt presents: Light Qualities' - a mini-festival of four concerts featuring new Australian music from emerging composers.