I begin this opinion piece about the National Capital Authority (NCA) by going back about 20 years to comments made during a parliamentary committee looking at the NCA.
Continue reading National Capital Authority specializes in being patronising
Earlier this month we ventured out for the day to meet a friend at Braidwood. She was from the south coast and so Braidwood meant we both travelled just over an hour.
Attention to a significant piece of national land is being overlooked among the misinformation used to justify the demolition of West Basin.
Sometime during the last election, a candidate said something about revising the public sculpture program initiated by Jon Stanhope when he was chief minister.
In 2015, the now disbanded Land Development Agency announced the follow up to its 2011 master plan with the go-ahead for the Kingston Arts Precinct.
It is all happening again in Kingston and, as with other locations throughout Canberra, Floriade Reimagined saw locals planting more than 8000 bulbs and annuals in May.
A Reminder: the Australian War Memorial is about people
There’s a plaque in the Dickson Library that marks the site of Canberra’s first aerodrome.
When in Civic around 10pm on Wednesday last week we were confronted with what the ACT government now defines as a Christmas tree.
Is there a more significant way of celebrating Christmas than with a tree?
Yes, with lots of trees! How about a suburb of trees? This is what the Yarralumla Residents Association is doing for Christmas this year.
Good journalism is welcomed and embraced. Journalism that is written to promote bad decisions by government must be called out. Here’s an example of the latter. The author, Tom Greenwell, starts well by making some points about Walter Burley Griffin’s planning for Canberra. But then he commits the crime of using Griffin’s name and visions to justify some outrageous developments being planned by the ACT Government (Urban Renewal Authority again!) that will destroy a wonderful part of the foreshore of Lake Burley Griffin. Click here for the article in City News.
and for more about West Basin alternative facts – click here; includes letters from Richard Johnstone of kingston – a supporter of West Basin developments.
And for more on the arguments against what Tom Greenwell has written – click here for a very well informed piece by Penny Moyes, one of the Lake Burley Griffin Guardians.
There’s a lot to be seen at the exhibitions at the National Gallery of Australia this summer – so it’s time to get thee hence – – –click here.
All cities have their city square or equivalent.
It has been many years since I have wandered amongst the tulips of Floriade.
There are many reasons why people trek out to the Canberra Regional Farmers Market on Saturday mornings.
The Cultural Landscape Foundation wants to connect people to the places of culture around them. click here
draft 9 August
There’s been an increase in conversations about avoiding the use of plasticized mugs for take away coffee.
Click on the image above
Have you taken a stroll around the Parliamentary Triangle recently?
Walking in on an artist’s install of their exhibition can be an interesting way to learn more about an artist and their work.
GANG GANG arrives in Downer
Always good to celebrate when a suburban centre rises again.
the Rijksmuseum is presenting a major retrospective of 19th-century photography – click here
While Australia is a great country – it has been a long time since we have experienced a government that was actually committed to its culture.
click on the banner – and bookmark the page by Jan Bridges.
There is no doubt that Anzac Parade is very special.
There’s an article in Straits Times about photographer Koh Kim Chay and his decades of photographing the ubiquitous government flats of Singapore.
Nice online exhibition of photographs – from The Washington Post – click here.
To link to a review of The National at the Art Gallery of NSW – click here.
Back in 1996, Philip Bentley, Melbourne historian, wrote a thesis on the history of the Melbourne photographers, Group M.
Martin Kantor Portrait Prize EntryApplications close: 31st May 2017
click on image for more….
click on the image
A selection of photographs taken from one of Frank Hurley’s books…
one of the pleasures of life – relaxing and watching the birds..
They have tried before and have failed–but this time they have got their way.
A very good piece by Jack Waterford about Canberra. Click on the image
Click on the image to see the point being made – it’s a good one!
The visual arts in Canberra is a very active scene. It has been thus for several decades.
Usually at this time of the year, I am looking forward to the coming visual arts exhibitions at the National Gallery of Australia (NGA).
Continue reading Versailles at the NGA–a summer of glitz, cake and unsettled staff
National Trust of Australia (ACT) hosted a public Heritage Election Forum at St John’s church hall in Reid last Thursday night 22 September.
click on image for story
More news about Canberra’s new public art festival – to run Friday 21st October to Sunday 13th November 2016. Continue reading contour 556
An update on the issue of a misleading article in The Art Newspaper. Click here and scroll down the page to see the latest on this story
An open letter to The Art Newspaper( 29 July) plus correspondence (5 August 2016)
Over many years I have accessed the Art Newspaper and when appropriate have either passed on links or have posted articles online that have links back to the Art Newspaper.
Continue reading The Art Newspaper – Wrong about The Bishop Museum
Click on the image for a piece on Turnbull avoiding a question about his destruction of the arts
There’s a wonderful exhibition at the NGA till 30th October 2016 – Diane Arbus: American portraits.
Apparently the residents of Gungahlin have had enough of being a lower priority to other areas of Canberra.
Malcolm Turnbull as Prime Minister is overseeing the vandalism of this country’s national cultural institutions. And he smiles so patronising while this is happening!
click on image above for the story about this very successful new national gallery.
Advance notice for a Canberra Public Art Festival for later in 2016.
Contour 556 is to be a three-week public art festival in Canberra 21 October – 13 November 2016 on the foreshores of Lake Burley Griffin (and other locations). Continue reading Public Art Festival – Contour 556
When reading the latest thought bubbles from the property lobby, it was difficult to avoid laughing out loud. In their quest to improve Civic business activity, the Civic property lobby has recommended that the ACT Government should hand over money to assist in the refurbishment of the Melbourne and Sydney buildings.
There is talk in the art world about the National Gallery of Australia’s (NGA) changes to their permanent collection galleries and how this has included the movement of the famous Jackson Pollock painting, Blue Poles, from its long historic position downstairs to the upstairs galleries.
Sometimes a visit to the National Gallery of Australia can deliver a very nice surprise.
There’s was a recent announcement that the government is calling for developers to put forward proposals to develop part of the Kingston Foreshore site as an arts precinct.
One wonders what their perception and concept of what is art precinct. Then there will be the issues that the government is looking for a commercial entity to propose an arts precinct.
There’s been quiet a bit of writing online about Bansky’s latest project – Dismaland.
I am not sure what to make of it as theme parks would be something I would not even contemplate visiting. But yet, when irony is the theme, would I go. Still not sure. Meanwhile here’s a bunch of reviews and comments:
First the Guardian has a couple – one here and then another here.
The New Yorker writer writes from her own experiences of her holidays on the coast. click here.
The UK Telegraph liked it – click here.
and after reading all this – and looking at the videos and pictures – I am still not convinced.
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Paul Costigan
There have been inaccurate media statements and comments online by the bureaucracy and others about the actions of residents to save the Dickson Parklands.
I enjoy the drive between Sydney from Canberra. I do it reasonably often. The mood of the country changes according to the weather, the drought, the latest rains and the time of the day.
Good to see the work by locals, Harris Hobbs Landscapes, being recognised.
click on the image.
Over the years I have wondered about the placement of public art and memorials in and around the parliamentary zone. Here are three stories.
Continue reading Mysterious placement of public art and memorials
There’s an announcement online about a new art fair to be held in January at the same time as Art Stage Singapore, Click on the image for more on this.
Canberra does not have a history of food carts. The nearest would be a double decker bus that opens at night time at the top of Braddon. Another would have been the now closed Brodburgers that was a very popular red caravan packed on the side of the lake. That was its problem – it was parked on land overseen by the fairly useless National Capital Authority (NCA).
I have been to London many times. Somehow I had not managed to find my way to the Sir John Soane Museum London until my most recent trip.
A few travel photographs from not quite the usual tourist destination. This time we were in Maidstone in Kent. The image above is from within the local museum.
There was much ado amongst the Australian arts heavies with their announcement of a new pavilion for the Venice Biennale.
One of the local manifestations for Centenary of Federation in the year 2001 was the building of Commonwealth Place down on the side of the lake in the axis between Parliament and Mount Ainslie.
There’s a special exhibition at National Portrait Gallery in Canberra. This is this institution’s contribution to the Anzac centenary.
I enjoy the exhibitions at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA). However ever since they completed their renovations and now attract more people, something has happened in how some visitors behave.
Anne Summers in Conversation with Elizabeth Broderick: an evening of appreciation and gratitude.
Thursday, 7 May, 2015 6:30PM
City Recital Hall Angel Place, Sydney. Click here.
A visit to the Art Gallery of New South Wales is always worth the trouble no matter what exhibitions are on. I have often said, that this would be one of the easier jobs in the country as the audience comes no matter what the exhibition. But
This is a re-posting of a review I posted to RiotACT last week.
Architecture owns the story. That’s not necessarily a good thing!
The Bendigo Art Gallery is one of the stars of Australian public art galleries. The gallery has built a great reputation through ongoing successful exhibition programs. We visited in March and were very impressed.
ANU Australian Centre on China in the World till 3 April 2015 
This is a highly recommended photography exhibition. It closes 3 April 2015.
The fun things you see as you drive through middle Victoria. A town sign designed by Michael Leunig. (click on image to enlarge)
to quote from a Guardian article: There are more men named Peter in the chief executive and chair positions of companies in the ASX200 – Australia’s 200 largest listed companies – than there are women. click here for the article. and..
click on the image for this great story – we wish them all the best!
click on image for link to UN Women website
A sad story indeed about the woman in the famous Steve McCurry/National Geographic photograph. The original photograph was a 1984 cover for National Geographic.
Sharbat Gula, the subject of the original photograph, is in trouble because she remains a refugee from Afghanistan, but was carrying a Pakistan identify card.
Please click on the image to the right for the link to the story.
A sign of activity by the revolutionary arm of the Dickson Residents Group
The National Gallery of Australia (NGA) is always worth the visit to see the collection exhibitions. Right now with a major exhibition on, the other galleries are reasonably quiet which is perfect for sitting and contemplating. If you can find a seat.
This film has been released and I have read numerous positive reviews and much commentary about its making. I have noted the release as I consider going to The National Gallery in London as one of the great joys in life.
A Bite To Eat in Chifley Shops
Another Canberra breakfast venues. Watch this space as the list grows!
It seems that Australia is not the only country where conservative government are carrying out endless cuts to services that result in all manner of upsets to people’s lives.
I suspect that most people have a fair idea of the individual function of our main national cultural institutions.
This is the second of several posts on planning and development issues effecting the local residents of Dickson in Canberra. The issues are not unique to Dickson. Residential groups around the country share similar frustrations, dilemmas and challenges in dealing with planning and development bureaucracies.
click on the image for details – and best of luck!
Just before Christmas the ACT Planning Authority (ACTPLA) had uploaded for comment the Development Application for the Dickson supermarket development. The original response deadline was the 27th January.
click on image above
Being the best state Art Gallery in Australia, the Art Gallery of New South Wales looks to become even better.
I always enjoy a visit to this gallery. It doesn’t matter what special exhibitions are on. There is plenty to see and to engage with.
and how the government is squandering significant urban design opportunities
The debate continues on this significant lost opportunity to deliver good urban design in Dickson. Click on image above for a posting on RiotACT.
Walking through a side street in central Vienna late last year, we came across a group of people totally captured by something out of our view.
No country in the world can yet say they have achieved gender equality. The UN has invited men to sign up to assist with achieving gender equity.
