It started with one figure walking forward, before opening to an avalanche.
A sea of naked bodies slowly marching across Brisbane's Story Bridge on Sunday as the first rays of light hit the steel beams.
Then, with the river twisting and turning below them, the 5,500-strong crowd lay down.
Alarna Hodges said the concrete was cool to the touch this morning. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"All I could think about was how cold it was because it had been raining," Alarna Hodges, one of the participants, said.
"The concrete was freezing.
"Then they got us to roll onto our sides ... that was really interesting as your face aligned with the next person's butt."
The bare manoeuvre was all a part of a gigantic piece of public art, co-ordinated by New York-based photographer Spencer Tunick.
Spencer Tunick, pictured here alongside producers who helped bring the project to life, said it was his most diverse work yet. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"It's beautiful to see all the different types of bodies come out and participate," Mr Tunick said after the shoot.
"Different tonalities, different genders, we had trans participants and non-binary, people from the LGBTQIA+ community and their allies.
"This was the most diverse work I've ever done."
The Story Bridge project was titled RISING TIDES. (Supplied: Markus Ravik)
The shoot was the centrepiece of Melt, a queer arts and culture festival set to run in the city until November 10.
While people travelled from Sydney and South-East Asia to be a part of the historic photo, Mr Tunick said the crowd was predominantly made up of Brisbane residents.
Some travelled to participate in the artwork, but Mr Tunick said most were Brisbane locals. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"It was a Brisbane action," he said.
"Unbelievably, Brisbane is not that conservative when it comes to real humans and the body and art."
Mr Tunick's 30th anniversary of nude photography around the world was commemorated by the Brisbane-based series, called RISING TIDE. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
Mr Tunick has photographed people in the nude all over the world for 30 years.
This Brisbane-based series of works, called RISING TIDE, commemorates that anniversary.
For resident Dee Schmidt, the shoot was an opportunity just to feel more comfortable in her body.
Dee Schmidt said it allowed her to express herself "as a naked canvas". (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"And to jump out of my personal space," she said.
"I don't mind being naked in my own personal space, or on the beach … but this just [allowed me] just to express myself as a naked canvas.
"That experience, you're never going to do that again … be naked on the bridge, lying on your back."
Some participants hope Spencer Tunick will return in the future to shoot more of Queensland. (Supplied: Markus Ravik)
She said she was hoping Mr Tunick would one day return to Brisbane.
"Maybe a Gold Coast beach … or maybe up in the Great Barrier Reef would be great … just to show more of Queensland."
Brett Jiggins said he took part in Mr Tunick's 2010 work at the Sydney Opera House and that this year's event felt "absolutely normal" after that experience.
Brett Jiggins also took part in Spencer Tunick's Sydney project back in 2010. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"I just believe in everybody being the same under the skin," he said.
"So, for me, it was all about inclusivity and showing that we're all the same."
Brisbane Powerhouse and Melt Festival artistic director Kate Gould said it was "a triumph" the event ran smoothly. (Supplied: Markus Ravik)
Brisbane Powerhouse and Melt Festival artistic director Kate Gould said it was "a triumph" the event ran smoothly, as it had taken a year and hundreds of organisers to pull together.
"We had to deliver. I really think it was a very smooth result when you consider obstacles to make an event like this happen," she said.
Ms Gould said the team and participants would be "waiting with bated breath" to see the finished pieces.
Kate Gould said everyone involved is waiting in anticipation to see the finished product. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
"We never quite know when [Spencer's] ready," she said.
"The finished piece will be revealed to the public at a time in due course and we're not going to reveal yet where that's going to happen."
Participant Alarna Hodges can't wait to see final piece, as it represents the time she was "completely out of [her] comfort zone".
For some participants, it was a nerve-racking experience that ultimately left them feeling more confident. (ABC News: Tobi Loftus)
She said she had "never gotten my bits out in public before", but the event had given her confidence to expand her hobbies.
"It would have to be a little bit wilder now, a little bit crazier," she said.
"Being a nude model in a life drawing class has always been on my bucket list.
"It's very liberating. It's given me the confidence to just be myself and show myself."