Pony Express is a new collaboration by West Australian theatre-maker Ian Sinclair and Californian visual artist Loren Kronemyer.  We have developed our work as part of Next Wave’s Kickstart Program, a year-long initiative for emerging artists culminating in Next Wave Festival 2016


As Pony Express we use an transdisciplinary approach, combining Loren’s practice of social and scientific research, laboratory investigations, video and audio making with Ian’s practice of group devising theatre techniques and contemporary choreographic systems to create this immersive world. The creative team conducted research, interviews and workshops with scientists, activists, and self-identified ecosexuals to develop their understanding of the ecosex experience.

In the face of rapid environmental change and impending ecological collapse, an international crusade of contemporary artists are reconsidering their practice, ceasing to make objects or ‘things’. They are looking beyond the gallery or black box, focusing imaginations to enhance not only the creative potential but also the collective life of Earth’s inhabitants.

Pony Express share these values. In developing Ecosexual Bathhouse, we are attempting to radically shift the conversation around the pressing ecological problems our species faces. Through the participatory and sensory dimensions of this project, we hope to make an impact on an emotional and visceral level, creating an experience of climate change that differs from what political speeches and empirical data can offer.

Globally, a host of recent artworks and exhibitions have addressed issues of natural resource depletion, mass species extinction, genetic modification and neocolonial land grabs, while at the same time seeking to advance ecological discourse itself. Pony Express aim to grow and add to this discourse, offering a model of ecological living that transgresses perceived limits of sexuality.

Ecosexual Bathhouse deals with the politics and aesthetics of ecology with a personal, erotic, darkly humorous and playful sensibility. This is the artist not just as activist but as environmentalist, caretaker, and humanist. 


In marrying our artistic practices, we have attempted to develop an artistic practice that mirrors the organic quality of our subject matter, with an emphasis on seeking new methodologies of consent.  We do this by cross-pollinating rigorous scientific and social investigation with collaborative, holistic experience-making.  Working with emerging performers from different art forms such as dance, comedy and electronic music, our aim is for the project to contribute back into the communities of eco- and queer activism that we draw upon.  Combining our talents, we invite audiences to enter a new ‘post-sustainable’ world; a world where they can get lost and be inquisitive.

In Australia’s current political climate, there is a need for a safe place where people can experiment with being ‘green’; a place where new and subversive ways to love the Earth may emerge for the good of the planet.

Next Wave is the most comprehensive platform in Australia for a new generation of artists taking creative risks. Next Wave produces a biennial festival which reflects a commitment to social and cultural diversity, environmental sustainability and inclusion.