The Archies 2014

The Archibald Prize for Portrait Painting is the biggest, most well-known art prize in Australia.

This year's nominees have been hanging in the Art Gallery of NSW for several months. 

At the end of this month they begin their travels around the country, visiting regional galleries, for all to see.

Below are some of my favourites.

Tom Uren by Mirra Whale
Both subject and artist are local identities in my suburb.

Nick Cave by James Powditch

Cate Blanchett by Tim Maguire

Yang Li by Qiang Zhang 

Tam Do by Ahn Do

The Winner!
Penelope Seidler by Fiona Lowry

The Wynne Prize is awarded annually for 'the best landscape painting of Australian scenery in oils or watercolours or for the best example of figure sculpture by Australian artists’.

The prize was established following a bequest by Richard Wynne, who died in 1895, and first awarded in 1897, in honour of the official opening of the Gallery at its present site.

Gunther at Ease by Tim Kyle

Gum Tree Triptych by Fan Dongwang &
Charcoal (UK Maralinga) by Kate Shaw

 Sir John Sulman Prize.

The Sulman Prize is awarded to the best subject/genre painting and/or mural/mural project done by an artist resident in Australia.

The Pleasure of Finding Things Out by Cameron Potts

The Final Pieces by John Rea

I'm going through a bit of a blogging slump at the moment, but fortunately I have a few draft posts sitting in the wings for just such emergencies! Please forgive me if I slack off from leaving thoughtful comments in a timely fashion. I will return to normal transmission soon....

This post is part of Saturday Snapshot.

Spring Blossoms

Blossoms in the park.

Wisteria

 Today's post is part of Wordless Wednesday

City Recital Hall, Sydney

City Recital Hall, Angel Place

"The first specifically designed concert venue built in Sydney since the Opera House, the 1973 City Recital Hall is an uplifting space, ideal for acoustic music. The quality of the sound has attracted Australia's leading companies, including the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Musica Viva and the Sydney Philharmonic Choir."

This photo is from a 2009 school concert that my eldest stepson performed in.

 Forgotten Songs

by Michael Thomas Hill

completed 2011

Forgotten Songs commemorates the songs of fifty birds once heard in central Sydney before they were gradually forced out of the city by European settlement. The calls, which filter down from the canopy of birdcages suspended above Angel Place, change as day shifts to night; the daytime birds' songs disappearing with the sun and those of the nocturnal birds which inhabited the area sounding into the evening.

During the day, you may hear the calls of the Eastern Whipbird, Rockwarbler, Regent Honeyeater, Grey Shrike-thrush, Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Spotted Pardalote, Brown Gerygone, Jacky Winter, Scarlet Robin, Golden Whistler, Leaden Flycatcher, Dollarbird, White-eared Honeyeater, Superb Lyrebird, Brown Thornbill, Varied Sittella, Brush Cuckoo, Dusky Woodswallow, Eastern Spinebill, White-throated Treecreeper, Little Lorikeet, Mistletoebird, Pallid Cuckoo, Red-browed Finch, Rufous Whistler, Brown-headed Honeyeater, Scarlet Honeyeater, Eastern Yellow Robin, Shining Bronze-Cuckoo, Southern Emu-wren, Spotted Quail-thrush, Striated Thornbill, Superb Fairy-wren, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, Grey Fantail, Variegated Fairy-wren, Whistling Kite, White-browed Scrubwren, White-browed Woodswallow, White-naped Honeyeater, White- throated Gerygone, Wonga Pigeon, Yellow-faced Honeyeater and Yellow- tufted Honeyeater.

At night, you may hear the Australian Owlet-nightjar, Powerful Owl, Southern Boobook, Barn Owl, Tawny Frogmouth and White-throated Nightjar.

Fertilizer Friday

We're still in the throes of the wintry weather in Sydney.

My Fertlizer Friday this week highlights the winter trees in my neighbourhood.

Magnolia

Jacaranda

Maple

One Central Park, Chippendale, Sydney

Wordless Wednesday

If you'd like to know more about this amazing new structure, click here to read my recent post.

Central Park, Chippendale, Sydney

For as long as I can remember there has been a great big old brewery falling to bits tucked in behind Broadway & Abercrombie Streets in Chippendale. 

In 2007 colourful signs sprung up around the perimeter announcing 'Central Park'.

Over the past few years signs of development began to appear at the site.

The result - the first set of shops, accommodation and park land have been completed and are now open to the public. The rest of the grand plan is expected to take another 6-8 yrs.

I've included a link to their main page above if you'd like to know more about the 'world- leading team of architects', their community consultation process or what's next.

For now, this is what I saw on offer this week at the brand new Central Park.

One Central at Central Park

Designed by French architect Jean Nouvel & French botanist/artist Patrick Blanc, One Central contains shops & living spaces. 

The "public park" is a vertical garden that "climbs the side of the floor to ceiling glass tower." Blanc has used 250 native flowers and plants, the "vines and leafy foliage spring out between floors and provide the perfect frame for Sydney's skyline."

Nouvel has said, "we have created a continuity so the façades extend the park into the sky."

Perched on top is a hovering cantilever section that houses luxurious penthouses.

The Heliostat Sea Mirror is a "beguiling assembly of motorised mirrors that capture sunlight, and direct the rays down onto Central Park's gardens."

Yann Kersalé's LED art installation brings the building to life at night (every Th, Fri, Sat & Sun night until 10pm) with a "shimmering firework of movement in the sky." It contains 2880 coloured, programmable LED lights & 320 mirrored panels.

Part of the Central Park design allows for a "commercial campus" for students that will sit on the corner of Abercrombie & Broadway. UTS and Notre Dame Uni are both situated opposite and Sydney Uni is just a couple of blocks up the road.

The heritage listed Abercrombie Hotel on the corner will be maintained. 

The rest of the building will "float" above & around it.

According to their website the vision for Central Park includes "a green oasis", which will become "the green heart of Chippendale." 

It will "wrap around" the east & south facades of the Brewery & include public art and a "place to get your feet wet."

A "series of landscaped terraces" will connect the various buildings to each other and the Park.

"Halo is a wind activated kinetic sculpture by two of Australia's pre-eminent public artists, Jennifer Turpin and Michaelie Crawford....According to Michaelie, 'the inspiration for Halo came from the history and industrial forms of the old brewery combined with a dynamic response to the natural and built environment of the new precinct.'"

The day I visited was VERY windy & Halo spun beautifully, even poetically in the space!

Turpin & Crawford also designed the wonderful Tied to Tide in Pyrmont, that I featured a number of weeks ago.

The old Kent Brewery was built in 1835 & acquired by Carlton United in 1983. It covered an area of 5.8 hectares. 

To preserve the legacy "archaeologists, heritage consultants & architects specialising in urban conservation" will transform "the site's flagship brewery building and yard into a public venue of spectacular dimensions." It will combine "new and old technologies".

This is still one of the 'works in progress areas'. 

The plan is to create "a dining, entertainment and community hub" called the Brewery Yard.

Beautifying construction 

 A temporary 'artists in residence' public art project has been put in place during the construction phase.

Caroline Rothwell installed Symbiosis in 2012, a red nylon inflated tree fed by white PVC pipes to symbolise 'the artificial, technological and the human circulatory system."

It was fascinating to see how this old urban landscape is being transfigured into a modern hub.

I will return to check on progress over the next few years, and hopefully, to use some of the new entertainment & dining facilities!

This post is part of Saturday Snapshot & Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday P (is for Progress) post.

Blackpool, UK

Last week, I mentioned that the London Eye was operated by the same group who also manages the Sydney Tower & Blackpool Tower, so I thought I'd finish this little series with my photos from Blackpool 2007.

Blackpool Tower was first opened in 1894.

It's 158m tall and was intended to be a replica of the Eiffel Tower.

Unlike the Eiffel Tower, though, it is not free-standing. Instead, the Blackpool Tower base is enclosed by the Blackpool Tower Circus.

The top of the tower was painted silver in 1977 in honour of the Queen's Silver Jubilee.

In 2011 the entire Tower area was renovated.

I wonder what it looks like now?

In the 18th century Blackpool became a fashionable spot for the wealthier classes to "take a cure". 

By the 20th century, however, it was the nearby factory workers of Northern England who came to Blackpool en masse for their "wakes" week.

Walking along the Promenade didn't quite live up to the high expectations promised in this poster!

Blackpool is famous for it's Illuminations.

When we realised we were going to be in the area during Illumination season (66 days from late August until Nov) , we knew we had to make the detour.

They run along a 10km stretch of the Promenade.

The Illuminations first shone in 1879 - just 8 arc lights to try and extend the summer.

As you can see they have grown somewhat since that time!

Things look a little duller the next day...

...until we get to Pleasure Beach, that is!

Pleasure Beach has been offering fun & excitement to holidaying Brits since 1896.

According to TripAdvisor 2014, it was voted the most popular theme park in the UK.

We obviously came at the wrong time!

The Promenade is lined with row upon row of B&B accommodation.

Fern Royd was cheerfully basic.
Every piece of furniture was covered with doilies and/or bric-a-brac.

We had a birdseye view of the Illuminations outside our bedroom window.

One night was sufficient!

This post of part of British Isles Friday.