On the weekend of the 9th to the 11th of June, 20 senior IB Art/VCE Studio Arts and Media students and 4 Arts staff members travelled to Hobart to experience the Dark Mofo festival and visit the MONA gallery. The trip was synchronised with Kardinia International College, Geelong, and enabled the students to integrate and mix with other Arts students.

The trip commenced on Friday afternoon with a bus trip to Tullamarine airport where students and staff then flew across the Bass Strait to the charming city of Hobart. Staff and students resided in a quaint and comfortable hostel within walking distance to all the major sites, including galleries, cafes and the famous Salamanca Market.

Saturday was an early start with staff and students exploring the Salamanca Market with its numerous stalls selling gourmet produce, arts and crafts. Students then visited the Hobart museum and Art Gallery and explored the township of Battery Point and some smaller private galleries.

The day concluded with exploring the amazing Dark Mofo festival which included art installations, laser lights and interactive art where students had the opportunity to engage in performances with the Tasmanian University Arts students. Dark Mofo is MONA's midwinter festival to celebrate the winter solstice and bring light to the dark. The festival included large scale public art, food, film, music, light and noise.

On Sunday staff and students took the scenic ferry ride down the Derwent river to the MONA gallery (Museum of Old and New Art). MONA is the largest privately owned museum in Australia. At MONA students experienced a range of Art work from different artists and were lucky to witness the opening of the new exhibition 'The Museum of Everything'. Students were amazed by the unique gallery design and layout at MONA.

The fun filled trip concluded with a scenic bus trip through the countryside of Tasmania travelling from Hobart to Launceston to catch our flight home.

Visiting the Art galleries and festival in Hobart has exposed the students to Art and artists and prepared students from both IB and VCE for potential exam questions.