Vertigo
April 2015
017
You need rebellion to create change […] it’s never going to end and it’s a good thing. It isn’t news that the tightening of lockout laws has changed
Mark Gerber, of the Oxford Art Factory in Darlinghurst,
the dynamic of the Sydney party scene — from 1:30am
describes the renaissance of the scene as being necessary
lockouts to 10pm bottle-o closing times and 3am ‘last drinks’ calls together with other imminent changes to
it acts as a facilitator for resistance and good. “You need
drinking and licenced venues. In response, there has been
rebellion to create change […] it’s never going to end and
a resurgence of DIY warehouse parties, largely occurring
it’s a good thing. Local councils should support it and not
in Sydney’s Inner West. These parties are stirring debate between escapist anti-establishment partygoers and local councils and governments. of the changes, arguing that councils need to work with, Hiding away within gutted warehouses, appearing relatively
not against, these spaces. She wrote, “These warehouse
derelict from its outside, their recent spread is more than
spaces re-purposed unsightly industrial landscapes into an incredible underground scene that’s vital to the growth of
the wall, independent, experimental, and creative projects
the music industry, while providing space for independent
are cultivated and performed in colourful spaces with walls
collectives, artists and all manner of creative types to
painted by artists — impassioned, emerging, and local. On
practice their art.”
a purely aesthetic and cultural level, it departs completely from conventional venues.
In response to the renaissance, Marrickville Council have demonstrated duplicitous stances to the warehouse spaces.
For many, the space creates a warming sense of community
They have continually met the spaces with hostility with the
and creativity, independent from the traditional Sydney
resurgence of enforced legal action, prompting a crackdown
cultural landscape. As a result, the release from regulations
in the area. This has led to a slow and anticipated decline in
instead becomes a supplementary gain as opposed to
recent months.
its main appeal. Council complaints, on the other hand, have deemed warehouse parties a hazard because of the
In this legal and cultural war between non-traditional
‘limitless’ nature of the underground scene.
and prescriptive ideas of community and the subsequent regulation, security, and hazard control, outcomes are
It’s a common practice for the media to perpetuate the idea
unclear. Formal agreements between those who run these
that these parties offer threat or hazard due to the illegal
artist-led precincts and local councils have the potential
practices creating them. Complementing this are a range
to undermine the ‘underground’ nature of the venues. The
of Council issues, neighbourhood noise complaints, and
cultivation of formally recognised licencing agreements
the consequences of unregulated alcohol and open drug
and regulations could lead to a similar dissipation of the
use. Alternative cultural standpoints have promoted these
creative anarchism and anti-establishment limitlessness
spaces as a beacon for emerging artists and experimental
that motivates the spaces.
creative projects and as a function of cultural resistance to
It has sparked debate about the regulation of community spaces, particularly regarding the lockouts and the management of social and cultural creative products by larger controlling bodies intending to reclaim power.
Artwork: Collette Duong