Tandanya is staging something ambitious this September. Silent Country, a two-night Nature Festival collaboration, brings together live music, visual art, panel discussion and an intimate native food dinner at the Grenfell Street cultural centre on Friday 25 September and Sunday 27 September 2026.
At the heart of the program is an urgent conservation issue: buffel grass, an invasive species transforming landscapes and threatening fire safety across South Australia. Through music, exhibition and food, Silent Country explores what is lost when Country is displaced.
Tandanya CEO Brenz Saunders says the event signals a new direction for the cultural institute. “This new style of events for Tandanya will bring together artists, musicians, thinkers and chefs into the same space to showcase their talents while uniquely expressing concerns about buffel grass, which is destroying our landscapes and threatening the fire safety of towns across South Australia.”
“Silent Country will enable audiences to experience a collection of artistic expressions through music, artwork and food: listening to the stories of Country, viewing the visual interpretation of culture and tasting the essence of native produce from Country.”
Opening night: Friday 25 September
The exhibition space opens at 4.30pm, with the formal program running from 5.30pm. A panel at 6.30pm, led by MC Taigen Ryan, will feature Yankunytjatjara community leader and buffel grass advocate Zibeon Fielding, researcher Camille Dobson and Brenz Saunders.
At 7.30pm, Electric Fields takes the stage. The multi-award-winning electronic-soul duo represented Australia at Eurovision in 2024. Vocalist Zaachariaha Fielding grew up in Mimili in the APY Lands, where buffel grass is transforming the Country, culture and community at the heart of Silent Country.
The Tandanya-curated group exhibition spans visual art, sound, moving image, textiles and sculpture, with work by Anna Dowling, Brooke Rigney, Sandra Taylor, Evanna Williams, Colleen Raven, Damien Coulthard, Damien Warman and artists from Tutti Arts. Tickets from $15 plus booking fee.
Dinner: Sunday 27 September
Two nights later, Silent Country moves from stage to table. Indigenous-owned native food company Warndu joins acclaimed chefs Matt Stone and Shannon Fleming for a one-night dinner experience built around native plants and food species under threat. Each course celebrates the abundance held within healthy Country while confronting what is displaced when buffel grass takes over. The dinner runs from 5.30pm to 8.30pm, with tickets from $190 plus booking fee.
A glimpse of 2027
For Tandanya, Silent Country offers an early look at what is taking shape for 2027: culturally led, creatively fearless and made for big ideas to collide. Founded by community in 1989 on Kaurna Yarta, Tandanya is Australia’s first national Aboriginal cultural institute and is preparing for a bold relaunch as a nationally significant platform for art, knowledge, learning, leadership and exchange.
Nature Festival 2026 runs from 25 September to 11 October under the theme SEED, with more than 350 experiences across South Australia.
Tandanya is located at 253 Grenfell Street, Adelaide.
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