Courtesy of the artist and Fremantle Biennale, Photos by Rebecca Mansell
Raki Nikahetiya, 50000 years or for as long as we remember, 2025
Australia: Fremantle Biennale with Raki Nikahetiya
Carried by the land – in search of home
From November 13 to 30, the Fremantle Biennale took place in Australia near Perth, focusing on site-specific contemporary art. Among the exhibiting artists was Raki Nikahetiya with a sensory installation about the intertwining of identity, displacement, and home.
December 03, 2025
Can a place of refuge become a home? A new home, a temporary one? Under the title SANCUTARY 25, the Fremantle Biennale presented site-specific contemporary art from November 13 to 30 that deals with questions of searching for, finding, and forming a home. The organizers of the biennial in Fremantle near Perth are committed to treating the culture of the Whadjuk, the traditional owners of the Walyalup area, with respect. The site-specific artworks enabled artists and visitors alike to establish a deeper connection to the land and to reflect intensively on the overarching theme of the biennial.
One of the participating artists was Raki Nikahetiya, whose oeuvre encompasses arts and crafts, experimental photography, and installation art. His work, shaped by personal experiences, opens up new perspectives on home and identity: born in Sri Lanka, the artist experienced displacement due to civil war and grew up in Austria. He now lives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, but also works regularly in New Delhi, London, and Vienna. At the Fremantle Biennale, he presented his sensory installation FIFTY THOUSAND YEARS, or for as long as we remember: he contrasts the relatively short life of humans in search of home with the permanent existence of the land on which humans walk. His installation enables sensory experiences and encounters with objects and photographs, while at the same time audio recordings of eight people recounting their experiences of flight and new settlement can be heard.
In addition to his artistic work, Raki Nikahetiya is co-founder of the sā Ladakh Biennale: Asia's highest land art biennale raises the profile of regenerative land art and promotes multicultural exchange on local and global solutions to climate change. Nikahetiya, the Sā team, and sponsors facilitated a collaboration with the Fremantle Biennale, which promotes artistic and cultural exchange between the regions of Ladakh in India and Walyalup in Australia. With sculptor Stanzin Tsepel and interdisciplinary artist Arunima Dazess Wangchuk, artists from Ladakh exhibited in Australia for the first time. In return, Fremantle-based artist Shupiwe Chongwe will participate in the next edition of sā Ladakh in 2026.
Courtesy of the artist and Fremantle Biennale, Photos by Rebecca Mansell
Raki Nikahetiya, 50000 years or for as long as we remember, 2025
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