Brisbane Powerhouse is looking for volunteers to pose in a series of nude photos along the Brisbane River as part of the LGBTQIA+ festival Melt next month.
The photos will be part of a photographic series called “TIDE” which is designed to celebrate diversity, equality and inclusion — with the Brisbane River serving as a backdrop.
The work has been pulled together by New York-based artist Spencer Tunick, who has held similar nude photoshoots for campaigns across Australia, including a campaign about skin cancer on Bondi Beach.
However, campaign volunteers might get more than they bargained for as water companies are warning that bull sharks in the river might make a meal of the models.
Tony McAlister, director of Water Technology, said the sharks are commonly found in Queensland’s southeast waterways and swim as far up the Brisbane River as Ipswich, with a local resident in a riverside apartment capturing 20 bull sharks in the waterways earlier this year.
“The last recorded fatality was many years (even decades) ago, but there are many sightings, and this risk should not be discounted, especially given water clarity issues,” he said.
McAlister also warned of strong tidal currents in the river.
“If contact is proposed near the Powerhouse, which is on the inside of the river bend, these risks are lower but not negligible,” he said.
Kate Gould, chief exec of the Brisbane Powerhouse, said she could not confirm whether anyone would be going into the river for the photo shoot but said she was not expecting anyone to get their feet wet.
Gould also said she could not disclose the location of the photo shoot but that a full risk assessment would be done prior to the shoot.
A Queensland police spokeswoman said exhibitors had sought approval for the photo shoot at the river hub. “The event is artistic in nature and in compliance with section 21 of the Human Rights Act relating to freedom of expression,” she said.
Lead image credit: Spencer Tunick/ Instagram.
