Water Refuge – Cold water exposure, art & literature
June 14 @ 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
A$40.00 – A$45.00
Inspired by Denmark’s winter bathing traditions, Wei Weng’s latest book, Water Refuge (2023), explores how bodies of water transcend geography —becoming spaces of renewal, resilience, and connection.
As the winter solstice approaches this June, join Wei Weng and renowned journalist Louisa Lim for a thought-provoking discussion on cold-water immersion, cross-cultural dialogue, and the role of literature as a bridge between cultures.
The artist will showcase a specially curated selection of Danish art and design books, along with world literature that examines water as a symbol of sanctuary, migration, and belonging.
Celebrate the Winter Solstice in true Scandinavian spirit—surrounded by books, conversation, and the warmth of hygge. Connect with fellow swimmers, artists, and literary enthusiasts for an afternoon of storytelling, seasonal tastings of Nordic food, and drinks are included in the ticket price.
About speaker guests:
Wei Weng (b. 1981, Nanning, China) is a multidisciplinary artist exploring the intersections of photography, lacquerware, and speculative fiction. Shaped by a global upbringing across China, Pakistan, Malawi, Switzerland, and the USA, her work bridges visual art, craft, and literature. Her recent art books, Water Refuge (2023) and Eat A Chili(2021), have been shortlisted for major photography festivals and are available through Printed Matter (NYC), M+(Hong Kong) and Perimeter Books (Melbourne). In 2023, Wei relocated with her family from Copenhagen to Melbourne, where her studio is based in Abbotsford, VIC.
link to Water Refuge book trailer www.weiweng.info
@halcyon2wei
Louisa Lim is an award-winning journalist and podcaster who reported from China for a decade for BBC and NPR. Her second book, Indelible City; Dispossession and Defiance in Hong Kong (Text publishing, 2022) won the 2024 OpenBooks Award in Taiwan and was named a New York Times Notable book. Her first book The People’s Republic of Amnesia; Tiananmen Revisited was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize. She is an Associate Professor in Audiovisual Journalism at the University of Melbourne’s Centre for Advancing Journalism, and an avid open water swimmer.
Link to Louisa’s article about open sea swimming
www.louisalim.com
@limlimlouisa