Enter the Void in MONA's underworld loungeTasmania, Australia
Whirl down a jutting, spiral staircase and into the Void (Bar). You’ll find this subterranean establishment lurking on the lowest level of Mona; Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art, which hosts a rather unusual collection including a robotic digestive system that presents museum-goers with a Petri dish of poo daily.
Dwarfed by the vast slab of Triassic sandstone against which it rests, the sleek bar is the perfect place to sip on a brew and wax lyrical about your love of curious art. And booze – Void claims to serve the best cocktails in all of Tasmania. Indulge in a Poltergeist Bramble 20, made with locally crafted gin and house-made wild blackberry liquor, before plunging into a Modern – a delicious mix of whisky, sloe gin, absinthe and citrus.
If you’d prefer something more simple, beers from the on-site brewery, Moo Brew, are on tap, and you can admire the legs on a glass of Moorilla (from the winery next door) as you sink into an Edwardian armchair. Once you’re suitably sauced you’re ready to tackle the 6000 square metre labyrinth of provocative art.
A shot of absinthe helps the colours pop, but indulge in a second and find the museum’s wall of porcelain vaginas, or the working set of bowels, really speak to you – really. And if you need a trip to the porcelain yourself, there’s a surprise waiting in the third cubicle to the right. Be warned.
Travel from Melbourne to Hobart on the Spirit of Tasmania, with passenger tickets from US$80.
spiritoftasmania.com.au
MONA
mona.net.au
Prep for your adventure the right way – it’s time for absinthe.