Long Summer Lunch 2026 - AV1

108

Guests

180

Polaroids taken

11

Years of LSL

212

LED Panels

An offline gathering on Sydney Harbour

AV1’s Long Summer Lunch 2026 marked the 11th edition of the company’s annual invitation-only industry event - a long-standing tradition designed to thank clients and partners while setting the tone for the year ahead.

Held for the second year in the MCA’s Foundation Hall, the event welcomed 108 guests from across the events, arts and creative industries. More than a celebration, Long Summer Lunch has become a statement of how AV1 approaches event production: thoughtful, human and experience-led.

This year’s theme, Endless Afternoon, drew inspiration from analogue, offline summer moments - the kind that stretch gently, invite presence and encourage genuine connection.

Attendees
AV1’s clients and supporters
Event
AV1’s Long Summer Lunch 2025
Theme: Endless Afternoon
Date
23 January 2026
Venue
Foundation Hall, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

The 2026 Direction

The idea was simple but deliberate; create an event that felt unhurried, tactile and deeply human, while using the platform to champion emerging Australian talent - not just on stage, but behind the scenes.

The focus was on pacing, atmosphere and restraint. Every element needed to feel intentional, allowing guests to settle into the experience rather than move through it.

Concept & Production

AV1 delivered the event end-to-end, driving concept development, creative direction and all technical production.

A large-scale LED screen canvas was positioned as the visual anchor of Foundation Hall, installed prominently at the front of the room and extended into each wing to create a fully enveloping visual display. Rather than concentrating the LED into a single “stage moment”, the design deliberately distributed the screens across the space - using 2m x 4m LED pillars as repeated vertical markers, with a 4m x 4m centrepiece grounding the front of the hall and drawing the audience’s eye forward.

The placement worked with the room’s layout to create depth and balance: the central screen delivered a strong focal point, while the wing installations helped carry the visuals laterally, ensuring the experience felt immersive from every angle of the room. This created a sense of cohesion across Foundation Hall - as though the space itself was gently “holding” the content, rather than simply presenting it.

To soften the technical structure and elevate the atmosphere, the entire LED canvas was layered behind sheer draping. This treatment diffused the brightness, softened edges, and added a tactile, almost cinematic quality to the visuals. The LED became less of a screen and more of a glowing environment - an architectural light feature that transformed the hall into something dreamlike and transportive.

On-screen content featured a sun moving slowly across a seascape throughout the afternoon, subtly shifting in colour and tone before settling into warm sunset hues. With the screens positioned across the front and wings, this motion and colour progression felt expansive - like the horizon stretching across the room - mirroring the rhythm of the day and reinforcing the sensation of time slowing down and stretching on.

The event was organised by Andrew Crook, AV1’s Marketing & Communications Manager and Chairperson of the ABEA Emerging Leaders Council, while technical production was led by Connor McEwen, AV1’s Technical Director, who stepped into a full producer role for the event. The approach reflected AV1’s commitment to developing talent from within, providing opportunities for emerging leaders to grow with the support of senior mentors.

Sharing the Stage with Emerging Talent

Little Green: An Untamed Sound from Western Sydney

Emerging from Western Sydney, Little Green is a prolific songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music feels as organic and untamed as the landscape that shaped her.

Her songwriting balances honesty and imagination, creating songs that feel deeply personal while resonating far beyond the stage. It’s this authenticity that makes her such a compelling live performer.

Little Green opened Long Summer Lunch 2026 with a stripped-back, reimagined version of Men At Work’s Land Down Under, transforming the iconic anthem into something intimate and reflective. Alongside the classic, she performed two original tracks - Mary Poppins and Tea Tree - offering a glimpse into her songwriting world and grounding the afternoon in a distinctly Australian sense of place.

Her performance embodied the spirit of the event: thoughtful, present and quietly powerful.

Mina-Siale: Soulful Storytelling

We think that sharing the stage with artists shaping the future of Australia’s music scene is a priority - and Mina-Siale is exactly that kind of artist.

A singer-songwriter with deep roots in jazz, soul and R&B, Mina-Siale brings a smooth, sultry vocal style and a natural sense of storytelling to every performance. Music runs through her family history, shaping both her sound and her confident stage presence.

At Long Summer Lunch 2026, Mina-Siale delivered a soulful, intimate set that captured the room. Her performance perfectly complemented the relaxed energy of the day, reminding guests why live music remains such a powerful part of shared experiences.

Forever Grooves: Spinning Vinyl, Setting the Vibe

After lunch, as the afternoon sun hit the terrace at Foundation Hall, Remy Brooks, or Forever Grooves, took the reins and the room shifted into cruise mode. His vinyl set didn’t just provide background music - it became the analogue theme in action: warm, tactile and unmistakably human.

Playing strictly on wax, Remy’s style leaned into the day’s “Endless Summer” concept perfectly - nostalgic without feeling stuck in the past, relaxed but intentional. You could hear it in the vinyl crackle, the unhurried transitions, and the way each track flowed like it belonged there.

Blending hidden gems with familiar classics across soul, disco, Latin, Balearic and beyond, Remy shaped a soundtrack that encouraged guests to stay longer, talk louder, and settle into the moment.

Sometimes, the best way forward… is analogue.

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