“Water is life, isn’t it? If you don’t have water, there’s no life of any sort.” So says Bernadette Guymer, a farmer in the South West Queensland town of Texas. Guymer is one of several people interviewed in Drought Stories Texas, a new multi-media work from Brisbane-based quintet Topology, which premieres online tonight.

Topology is known for its inventive approach, collaborating across art forms. Drought Stories Texas is the first instalment in a seven-part, multi-media project called Drought Stories, which will examine the hardships and challenges faced by regional Queenslanders as a result of the drought that has lasted for five years now.

Running six-and-a-half minutes, Drought Stories Texas features video and audio clips recorded in Texas. The footage unfolds to a new score by Topology composer and saxophonist John Babbage. Serving as an introduction to the full, seven-section work, which will run around 45 minutes, Drought Stories Texas was to have premiered at Queensland Art Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) in March as an after-dark event at the Water exhibition. However, COVID-19 put paid to that. So instead Topology is premiering it tonight as a Facebook event. It will then be available...