With Hobart currently in the thick of Dark Mofo 2018, the city’s Lord Mayor, Ron Christie, has lashed out at the festival for its “unhealthy culture”, stating he wants to “put the brakes on” the festival.
As ABC reports, Christie claims to have been inundated with complaints about the festival from locals, following on from numerous controversial events, including a bull slaughter art show in 2017 and this year’s street burial performance from Mike Parr and giant inverted crosses on display.
Christie has suggested the council reconsiders its annual funding of $200,000 in cash and in-kind support, despite the festival reportedly bringing in an estimated $50 million annually to the city.
"They say the mark of a good city is how well you look after your citizens, and I think the citizens have expressed their concerns about different aspects of Dark Mofo and which way it's going culturally," Christie told ABC.
Read more:
- New Weird Stuff At Dark Mofo This June
- Dark Mofo Confirms Controversial Bull Slaughter Art Show Will Go Ahead
Christie also said the event had been tarnished by controversies and suggested organisers consider relocating the annual festival to somewhere like Launceston, which hosted half of MONA FOMA earlier this year.
But Dark Mofo creative director Leigh Carmichael told ABC they had no plans of moving the festival.
"I think Dark Mofo belongs in Hobart, it's a Hobart-based event," Carmichael said.
"It would put pressure on us in certain areas, certainly in relation to the Winter Feast, but we'd look at it at the time."
Dark Mofo’s three-year funding deal with the council is up for renegotiation later this year.
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