A spectacular creative show of light and colour drew record numbers to the city on Saturday for Ballarat’s biggest night of the year.
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It is estimated around 60,000 people, more than half of Ballarat’s population, filled the streets of the CBD for a celebration of art, creativity and community.
Around 40,000 people attended the 2017 event.
White Night artistic director David Atkins said crowd numbers far exceeded the organising committee’s expectations.
“It’s very rewarding to see it be as successful as it was,” he said.
“We know with confidence there was a lot more people than 2017.
With a larger precinct and more programs on offer, White Night Ballarat has gone to the next level.
- David Atkins, White Night artistic director
Over 60 projections, installations, performances, exhibitions and music featured in the streets and laneways of the Ballarat CBD from 7pm until 2am, capturing the imaginations of visitors young and old.
The event proved popular for families, with many young children on the streets with parents late into the night.
Mr Atkins said the atmosphere in the streets was warm and friendly, and showed a fantastic sense of community.
“There is a different mindset to doing White Night in a place like Ballarat compared to the atmosphere in Melbourne – it is in line with the low incident rate,” he said.
SEE A FULL GALLERY OF PHOTOS HERE
Visit Victoria chief executive Peter Bingeman said running White Night in regional cities was a key objective to increase visitation to regional areas.
“This event offers a unique opportunity to showcase this amazing historical town, and it's heartening to see visitors from far and wide flocking to this captivating festival in increasing numbers,” he said.
Ballarat residents as well as visitors from afar travelled into the CBD for the unique event. Many restaurants and cafes opened for the duration of the event, taking advantage of the record crowds.
In terms of the art on offer, projections on iconic Ballarat buildings proved crowd favourites.
The Secret Life of Buildings on the Ballarat Town Hall, Spiritual Enlightenment on the Mining Exchange, Here’s Looking at You on Craig’s Royal Hotel, and Rebel on the Myer Building showcased Ballarat’s heritage in a new light.
SEE THE FACES OF WHITE NIGHT BALLARAT HERE
Installations amazed and engaged with audiences of all ages including Bunjil, the 48-piece LED animation along Sturt Street, The Bells on Lydiard Street and the Playlists for Heartbreaks on Armstrong Street had people dancing to their favourite love songs.
City of Ballarat mayor Samantha McIntosh said White Night was an enormous success for Ballarat.
“It certainly showed the creative side of our city by putting Ballarat up in lights, building on crowds from last year, and telling us a story about Ballarat’s ability to stage such a spectacular event,” she said.
A number of local artists showcased their work to record numbers throughout the evening, as well as many from interstate and overseas.
Creative Dreams projected above Frango and Sons Restaurant on Sturt Street featured art by Ballarat students created for the Ballarat Children’s Art Award 2017.
The projection drew the attention of crowds and many children who contributed to the show excitedly watched their work projected onto the building.
Other acts travelled from further afield. Interactive performance Birdmen made the journey from Holland to perform in Ballarat.
Windy weather did create a challenge for some performers and installations.
Close-Act’s visual arts performance Birdmen was restricted by the wind. The act, who wore 28kg bird like costumes on stilts, restricted their performance to behind the Town Hall while monitoring conditions. High wind caused one performer to fall from stilts in costume after an attempt to enter Sturt Street for a performance at 7pm.
Wind also temporarily closed Police Lane as hanging chandeliers were taken down from wires across the top of buildings.
Police were happy with the behaviour and conduct of the crowd who attended the White Night festival, according to a police spokesperson.
No major issues were reported to police or ambulance services.
White Night Bendigo and Geelong will run later this year.