Forests of the Sea — Group exhibition

An exhibition bringing together Gippsland artists and students to make the Giant Kelp forests of Phillip Island visible through art.

Conceived and organised by Dina Goebel.

• Exhibition dates: 22 February -10 April 2027
• ArtSpace Wonthaggi: 1 Bent Street, Wonthaggi · Open daily 11 am – 3 pm · Free entry
• Launch & Awards: Sunday 28 February, 1–3 pm · All welcome

About the exhibition

Forests of the Sea brings together six Gippsland artists alongside Year 11 and 12 students to make visible an extraordinary ecosystem most of us rarely see.

Giant Kelp forests once formed extensive underwater habitats around Victoria’s coastline. At Phillip Island, the Island Kelp Recovery Project is now working to restore these environments. Because the forests remain largely hidden beneath the water, art provides another way for the community to encounter, understand and connect with what is being restored.

Conceived and organised by Dina Goebel of That Creative Feeling, the exhibition brings different artistic practices together around a shared subject: the kelp forests, marine environments and ecological relationships of our region. Dina is also artist lead for the Island Kelp Recovery Project, working with the project to bring its story into public view through art.

Exhibiting artists:

Dina Goebel · Susan Hall · Helen Tiernan · Jacqui Christians ·
Wendy Fletcher · Shandelle Nolan

Their work approaches kelp and marine environments through different materials, processes and visual languages, creating multiple ways to see and think about an ecosystem that normally exists beyond everyday view.

Working with: Island Kelp Recovery Project The Island Kelp Recovery Project is Victoria’s first Giant Kelp restoration initiative, founded by Offshore Biotechnologies and Rotary Phillip Island and San Remo. The project brings together marine expertise, local organisations and community participation to restore Giant Kelp habitat around Phillip Island. Forests of the Sea forms part of that wider effort to make the restoration work visible and accessible to the community. Visit the Island Kelp Recovery Project

Dina Goebel — Fragile Futures Dina will present selected works from her ongoing Fragile Futures practice, which considers fragile ecosystems through the materials and systems of contemporary production and consumption. Using 3D-printing waste and fabricated materials, her work explores the contradiction between our desire to preserve natural environments and the synthetic materials increasingly entangled with them. Explore Fragile Futures

Student exhibition opportunity

Year 11 and 12 students at Bass Coast College and Newhaven College are invited to create one original artwork depicting the Giant Kelp forests being regenerated at Phillip Island.

• Work can be made in any medium. Two-dimensional works can be up to A3 size, and three-dimensional works can be up to 42 cm on each side. AI-generated artwork is not accepted.
• Up to 20 works will be selected for exhibition alongside the six participating Gippsland artists.
• Three students will receive Highly Commended awards of a $50 art voucher, selected by representatives from ArtSpace Wonthaggi, the Island Kelp Recovery Project and That Creative Feeling.

The entry form contains the complete artwork requirements, sale information, delivery and collection dates, declarations and parent or guardian consent.

Enter your student kelp artwork here

Key student dates: