explore Trans, Non Binary and Gender Diverse stories inside the giant Cochlea

I don’t need to explain myself

It’s hard when you first transition

I feel very safe, no body shouts at me in the streets anymore

love is listening

I’m allowed to be myself 

I wish that I wasn’t so scared and fully say what I wanted

Cochlea – a giant inflatable installation celebrating voices from the frontlines of gender.

Amorphous puppets invite you to enter a winding cavern of interlocking tubes and passages, culminating in the spiral vortex at the centre of the inner ear. A world of soft-edged chambers, geometric forms, and colour-saturated light.

Inside the huge 15-meter Cochlea, gender terrorist OPAL presents immersive interviews with trans, non binary and gender diverse locals.

Cochlea draws on Snuff Puppets’ 30-year legacy of giant public spectacles and presenting giant Human Body Parts as symbols of our shared humanity.

 

Cochlea premiered at Melbourne’s Midsumma Festival 2023

Voices:  Jo Clifford, Parminder Kaur, Niki Koutouzi, Josie Hess, Lily Longman, Claire Mulraney, Clara Roebuck, Ash Spittal, Kikki Temple 

Artistic Director, Designer, Builder:
Nick Wilson

Resident Artist: OPAL

Producer:
Ro Bright

Pupppet Builders:
 Erin Hall, Daniele Poidomani, Liam Berg, Andy Freer, Caito Zacharias

Thank You:
 H & M Cafe, Karen Bryant, Brendan Cooney, Shian Ching Lee

Midsumma x Ignite Melbourne has been supported through the Melbourne City Revitalisation