What can death teach us about how we live? Four voices explore death, grief and ritual—revealing how endings can inspire care, creativity and better ways of living
Confronting mortality can reshape how we gather, grieve, and remember. From contemporary death rituals and intimate end-of-life care to regenerative coffin-making and art shaped by a cancer diagnosis, this conversation invites a deeper reflection on life’s inevitable end.
Join cultural anthropologist Dr Hannah Gould, death care worker Amy Firth, fibre artist Zimmi Forest and conceptual artist Chanelle Collier as they open this honest dialogue on loss, legacy and the rituals that help us make sense of mortality. Bringing together personal, cultural and creative perspectives, this conversation reflects on what it means to live – and to leave meaningfully.
Cost
Adult $25
Member $20
Concession / Youth $22
Bundle & Save
2 events 10% off3 events 15% off
4+ events 20% off
Location
Bundanon Art Museum
Boyd Education Centre
170 Riversdale Road
Illaroo NSW 2540
Featuring
Dr Hannah Gould is a cultural anthropologist specialising in contemporary death, religion and material culture in Australia and Asia. Hannah is a Lecturer in Buddhist Studies and Fellow with the DeathTech Research Team at the University of Melbourne. Alongside academic research and publishing, she creates public programs to advocate for more equitable systems of deathcare for all. To date, this has included work as a presenter with ABC Catalyst and as Academic Advisor and on-screen talent for the SBS documentary series Ray Martin: The Last Goodbye. She regularly appears on radio and writes for outlets such as The Conversation and ABC News. How to Die in the 21st Century is her first book.
Joe Wilson and Chanelle Collier are artists based in Sydney. They share a conceptual practice making artwork using textiles and sound. They create audio-visual worlds for intimate experiences, wielding personal emotions of love and friendship, sincerity, and grief. Recently performed at ‘Phoenix Central Park’; participating artists, Beechworth Biennale; recording at 64 Sound, and performing at Archival LA in Los Angeles; Make Good Festival, Bundanon; and live at Wollongong Art Gallery. Wilson and Collier have collaborated at Higher Ground Studio since 2015. They have been recognised through commissions, grants, residencies, and fellowships awarded including: Cité Internationale des Arts, France, 2018 & 2019; Create NSW 2018, 2021 & 2022; Phoenix Central Park, 2021; The Renshaws Retreat 2022; Artspace Emerging Visual Arts Fellowship Finalists 2022; Vermont Studio Center, USA, 2022; Bundanon, 2022, 2023 Artist in Residence, & performance in 2024.
Amy Firth is an interfaith minister, funeral director and ceremony designer based in the Blue Mountains on Dharug and Gundungurra Country. With over two decades in the arts and a deep commitment to community care, she creates funerals and ceremonies that are creative, participatory and deeply personal. Amy hosts the Blue Mountains Death Café, facilitates Grief In Motion workshops, and is a passionate advocate for death literacy and community-led death care.
Zimmi Forest is a coffin weaver and fibre artist of over 50 years experience, based in northern NSW. Her work includes teaching, exhibiting, foraging and offering the unique service of coffin weaving for families and communities. Her woven coffins are made from harvested Cat’s Claw Vine, a noxious weed, creating a regenerative and circular solution. The experience and meaning of creating an end-of-life carrier always has a profound impact and supports families and communities as they move through the transformational process.
Make Good Festival is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
