A Picnic Among Friends was developed by Living With Our Dead, a not-for-profit community organisation that creates ceremonial and memorial events that place death as a significant part of life.

The Picnic was developed to encourage a personal and communal expressions of how we live and love with loss. And how we can create new life and communal ways to remember those we love.

First held in 2010, the Picnic became an annual event for the benefit of communities across Greater Sydney. In 2019, Living With Our Dead decided to launch a digital resource for individuals and communities to create their own memorial event.

Through our events and collaborations, we hope we have forged a new language and aesthetics of death and remembrance. Through this resource, we look forward to inspiring and supporting others to continue this project.

LWOD Management Committee 2010-2019

Victoria Spence, Julieanne Campbell, Kate Brennan, Kate Raffin, Andrew Batt-Rawden, Mayu Kanamori, Debi Toman, Jade Kemety, Laura Brown, Corinne Sellers

we would like to thank all involved with A Picnic among Friends through the years:

Creative Director  and Ceremony - Victoria Spence

Co Director and Artist Curator - Clytie Smith

Dramaturg and Event Consultant - Fiona Winning

Production Manager and Rigger - Clytie Smith

Fabric Concept and Maker - Nicole Barakat

Site Specific Artists - Jacqueline Sherry, Paula De Prado, Gillian Christie, Brooke Morgan, Denise Litchfield, Jade Kemety, Mondo, Fiona Winning

Production Assistant - Corinne Sellers

Sound Technician - Vic McEwan

Musician - Annette Tesoriero

Choirs - members of Warren and Nothing without Belinda, conducted by Mark D’Astoli

The Ferntastics - children from Ferncourt Public School, conducted by Bonnie Kay

Choir Coordinator - Brian Brooks

Kids Art Table - Meredith O’Donnell

Helpers and Artists on the day - Janine Peacock, Matty Stegh, Buzz, David Sheridan, Honey Spence, Nancy.

Ceremony Consultant - Zenith Virago

Florist - Olivia Downie from Belle Fleur

Community Consultants and Creators of Memory Tree Elements - the Stitch & Bitch craft group from Ferncourt Public School.

Video Documentation - Sam James and Emmanuella Prigioni

Photography - Mayu Kanamori and William Yang

The Picnic Among Friends 2010 project was assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.