At sunrise on the shortest day of the year, 3,000 brave souls plunged into the River Derwent for the Nude Solstice Swim, marking the end of Dark Mofo 2025. The festival, which returned in full this year, saw over two weeks of boundary-pushing art, numerous Australian-exclusive musical acts, and huge numbers of visitors and locals embracing the dark in the depths of Lutruwita / Tasmania’s winter.
Spread across Nipaluna / Hobart, along with tentacles reaching into the north of the state, Dark Mofo saw over 480,000 entries across its many locations. Crowds of thousands attended performances and art installations throughout the city, revelled at Night Mass and dined by firelight at the Winter Feast.
Dark Mofo Artistic Director Chris Twite said: ‘At the close of Dark Mofo 2023 we set about rebuilding the festival and laying the foundation for another decade. This morning, after two years of hard work, it was tremendous to see 3,000 courageous souls gathered once more on the shore of the Derwent to brave the freezing waters for the Nude Solstice Swim to cleanse us and bring this year’s Dark Mofo to a close.
‘The response in 2025 has been incredible. The streets of Hobart have come alive with locals and visitors celebrating winter and Dark Mofo again.
‘Whether they streamed into Dark Park and the Winter Feast, joined us dancing until the early hours, or helped hold the Maugean Skate effigy aloft, each attendee demonstrated continued demand for Dark Mofo and excitement for its future.
‘It has been such an incredible effort from our team and all our partners to make this festival happen. We’re so grateful to all of them, and to everyone who supported Dark Mofo this year. For now, we’re all looking forward to a bit of a rest, but we can’t wait to show you what we’ve got planned for next year soon.’
Over 103,000 tickets were sold to Dark Mofo events this year, generating $4.6 million at the box office. A record number of Night Mass tickets saw nearly 16,500 revelers navigate the sprawling late night party over two weekends.
There was a 20 per cent increase in spending on food and drinks compared to Dark Mofo 2023, including the purchase of 370 litres of mulled wine. 19,000 people visited Mona over the two festival weekends. The museum’s new exhibition—in the end, the beginning, by Arcangelo Sassolino—runs until April 2026.
The festival’s Executive Director Melissa Edwards said: ‘We could not be more thankful for the ways that everyone has come together to return Dark Mofo to Tasmania this year. From local businesses and residents Painting the Town Red, to the generous support from state and local government, to the community and our visitors showing up in vast numbers and embracing everything the festival has to offer—we’re feeling deeply encouraged and positive for the future.’
This year’s boundary-pushing art program saw Paula Garcia pull off a death defying head-on collision in front of over 4,000 people. Karina Utomo unleashed her Mortal Voice in the flesh at Basilica, and Carlos Martiel was buried in sand for over two hours at City Hall in Custody. Martiel had another work in the festival, Cuerpo—a film which sees the artist suspended at the edge of life— which screened in The Old Bank alongside Paul Setúbal’s live performance work Because the Knees Bend. Musical performances included Alabaster Deplume, Berlin Atonal, the TSO and many more.
Sprawling late night party Night Mass featured a multitude of artists waiting to be discovered. The Winter Feast served up squidlipops, possum baos, donuts and Analiese Gregory’s abalone, along with offerings from Guest Chef Niyati Rao and her collaboration with Stillwater.
The Ogoh Ogoh Procession and Burning, saw the fears of festival-goers go up in flames inside a giant model maugean skate, created by Balinese artists.
