Internationally acclaimed Adelaide artist Emma Hack will bring together 888 South Australians this April to create a striking large-scale living artwork on Port Willunga Beach, forming the shape of the state’s marine emblem, the leafy seadragon.
Taking place on Sunday 12 April, participants will be arranged across the sand using coloured clothing and body paint, creating a vivid image designed to be captured from above through aerial photography and film.
Described as a once-in-a-generation community artwork, the installation forms part of Hack’s new Ocean Movement series, a body of work dedicated to exploring the connection between people, art and the natural world.
Best known globally for her body art featured in Somebody That I Used to Know by Gotye, Hack says the concept has been more than 30 years in the making.
At its core, the project is a powerful environmental statement. The installation honours the Great Southern Reef, an 8,000-kilometre marine ecosystem spanning Australia’s southern coastline, home to thousands of species found nowhere else on Earth, including the iconic leafy seadragon.
Created in partnership with the Great Southern Reef Foundation and supported by the City of Onkaparinga, the work aims to raise awareness of the need to protect fragile marine environments at a time when our oceans are increasingly under pressure.
The finished artwork will be documented through aerial drone footage, photography and a short documentary, with imagery to be shared globally across media, education and conservation platforms, extending the impact far beyond the day itself.
South Australians aged 18 and over are invited to take part in the installation, with registrations now open via Emma Hack’s website. A minimum $20 contribution per participant will support the project, environmental art initiatives and ocean conservation efforts.
Event details
Location: Port Willunga Beach, SA
When: Sunday, 12 April 2026
Participants: 888 people
Cost: From $20 (registration required)
Ages: 18+
Registrations: emmahackgallery.com
