THE stage is set for the Wasawasa: Festival of Oceans as the national fine arts exhibition and awards starts today at the Fiji Museum.
Fiji Arts Council director Letila Mitchell said the festival was about connecting and engaging communities by bringing the arts out of formal, elite spaces.
Wasawasa 2009 aligned itself with the Miss South Pacific Pageant to celebrate the power and beauty of the Pacific woman.
"This is an urban Pacific festival set against a backdrop of the contradictions of an urban city," she said.
"It has at its core, the voices of artists and the creative community. It is about entertaining and inspiring to bring about real changes.
"There is an underlying environmental theme at the heart of the festival and Wasawasa draws upon the artists."
She said conservations include issues such as the need to clean up the city, recyclable art, climate change, ocean noise and conservation.
She said the festival challenged everyone to respond and react to the environment.
