Vahri McKenzie, Trash Tail, video still, 2024. Videography by Michelle Hall.

First Image: Artist Cass Tytler in Vahri McKenzie’s Ripairian. Photograph by Emily Fenner Wilson

Midland Junction Arts Centre presented Ripairian on Sun 28 Sep 2025 and Sun 5 Oct 2025. Ripairian celebrates Mandoon Bilya (Helena River) through riverwork, performance and community connection. Led by Vahri McKenzie, a group of professional and volunteer artists responded to the ecological and social complexities of Mandoon Bilya guided by three cues: rubbish, weeds and graffiti. Presented as a livestreamed performance artwork and immersive exhibition, they revealed a place that’s vulnerable to waste and neglect and still vibrant and resilient despite this. The livestream event was held in the Auditorium and accompanied by music by Michael Terren.

Vahri McKenzie is an artist, educator and scholar whose artistic practice frames creative engagement as a model of, and practice for, ways of being together in a complex world. She is passionate about shared creative experiences that are transformative for individuals and for communities, and responds to local situations to develop concepts for participation and collaboration. As Course Co-ordinator of WAAPA’s BA in Arts and Cultural Management, McKenzie teaches and publishes about the many ways artists and arts workers contribute to making a better world. She is an Affiliate Member of Edith Cowan University’s Strategic Research Centre for People, Place and Planet.

Gemma Ben-Ary is a visual artist and curator based in Perth, Western Australia, focussed on feminist theory, eco-feminism, and contemporary craft. An accomplished curator with a passion for Western Australian art and culture, she serves as Chairperson at Art on the Move. Ben-Ary holds a Bachelor of Arts (Visual Art, Writing) from Edith Cowan University, an Advanced Diploma in Fine and Craft (Sculpture) from the Central Metropolitan College of TAFE, and is currently working towards a MBA (Arts and Culture) from Deakin University.