Sydney Festival has officially opened its doors in Hyde Park.
Set against the backdrop of St Mary's Cathedral, a free two-storey art installation, Higher Ground, will tempt people to step into its hyper-coloured, Escheresque corridors.
The setting is sure to lend itself to some interesting Instagram selfies this summer.
"Take ownership of the space," encourages the creator, Maser, who admits that the sharing of his work via social media would not be unexpected.
The Dublin-based artist drew on his graffiti art background to come up with a structure which would "interrupt the public space".
"I wanted to create this hyper-reality space for the public, especially in a park area like this where the colours would really dominate," he told AAP.
While the adventurous are exploring, more delights are to be found at the other end of Festival Village.
From fire-eating acrobats to sultry chanteuses, acts of magic, acrobatics, cabaret, song and dance abound in the two Spiegelman tents.
Pop-up eateries from big names in Sydney's culinary scene, including Gelato Messina and Porteno will also be present throughout the balmy summer evenings.
Up to 10,000 Sydneysiders are expected to flock to the village hot spots nightly throughout the festival's three-week run, with help booths, sunscreen and water stations dotted throughout.
Sydney Festival 2015 officially opened on Thursday.
