In talking about the arts with a friend once, he reminded me that ‘… just as a palate can be educated to appreciate fine wine so too can both the eye and the ear be educated to distinguish the rare from the ordinary, the exquisite from the mundane’* So it is also with any visual and performance art forms.
Discussing my favourite movies released in Australia in 2016, I should point out that they don’t necessarily fit into international award seasons. I thought it best to
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My Favourite Movies 2016 – A Reflection by Carolyn McDowall
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Fences – Spiteful Meanness, Abuse in Many Forms, Words Hurt
Humans seem to have a propensity for building fences, which I have never really understood. Although many of them are physical structures, there are also the fences that are built in the mind. These are possibly the most dangerous.
Such are the Fences built by African-American father Troy Maxson as played proficiently by Denzel Washington in the film Fences, which proves that nurture will win out over nature, especially when a family is subjected to prolonged daily verbal abuse that is never red
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Art & Travel Across 3 States – Rose Niland, a Summer Journey
Boarding the Indian Pacific at 3:00 pm was reminiscent of childhood excitement about the wonders of travel and the possibilities of new artistic experiences.
After a night of clicketty clack clicketty clack and the rhythmic motion of the train’s constant movement I was woken at 5:30 am with a comforting cup of tea.
Route of the Indian Pacific, across Australia
The train was soon to arrive in Broken Hill, known as the Silver City, Australia’s longest-lived mining city. Two legendary O
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Ties – Telling Tales of Men & Modish Life at the Top
One of my favourite portraits in history was painted by the very talented American artist John Singer Sargent (1856-1925). It is of Thomas Lister, 4th Baron Ribblesdale, which is now in the National Gallery of Australia.
Painted in 1902 it reveals the public face, rather than the private life of a man we are invited to ponder. History tells us that his lordship was an Edwardian aristocrat, a landowner, soldier, sportsman and a courtier. There are many indicators in this portrait that tell us a t
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The Dancer (La Danseuse) – Soko, Illuminating as Loie Fuller
Since 1990, the Alliance Francaise Film Festival has enthralled Australian film lovers on an annual basis with their delightful mix of French movies each year, and it is now the largest French film festival outside France. This March, a wonderful collection of 45 French films will be on show in Australian cities at Palace Cinemas, and will be sure to charm audiences, as only the French can.
Jules Cheret (1836-1932), Poster of Loie Fuller dancing, Folies Bergere, 1893
The Culture Concept Circle w
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Les Arts Florissants: Monteverdi Madrigals, Sydney Exclusive
Among my favourite and most joyous recordings downloaded to my computer list over the last decade or so are those by one of the most renowned and respected music groups in the world Les Arts Florissants. Before that I purchased CD’s, which all had to go when I moved to Melbourne.
Named for a short opera by French composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704), Les Arts Florissants has played a pioneering role in the revival of playing and appreciating Baroque repertoire around the world now
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Hidden Figures: Proving Racism & Prejudice Must be Overcome
L – R, Janelle Monáe as Mary Jackson, Taraji P. Henson as Katherine G. Johnson and Octavia Spencer as Dorothy Vaughan in Hidden Figures
American Congress created the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA) in 1915 and its Virginia lab at Langley Field established in 1917, gradually became an important hub for creative ideas, helping to fuel the aviation boom of the early twentieth century.
The real facts behind those integral to winning the race that put the first American
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NGV Festival of Photography – A Plethora of Picture Makers
Danny Singer, Gainsborough winter sky 2015 (detail), from the Big sky series, Canadian born 1945, inkjet print, ed. 4/5, 112.0 x 190.0 cm, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Purchased NGV Foundation, 2015
Fans of photography – the still image are advised to book a trip to Melbourne, Australia, pronto!
Melbourne is the place to be in March, with the opening of the NGV Festival of Photography. The festival will include an expansive series of contemporary photography exhibitions, featur
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Pantone Colour of the Year 2017 – Greening Life’s Landscape
Contemporary fashion across all areas of art, design, fashion and style today includes having an active sensitivity to colour and its many nuances and textures. They range from complexity to simplicity in reaction to the stresses imposed on our 21st century technologically driven western culture.
A design style from the past, as well as of the present if successful in its aesthetic, favours a colour that has usually conformed to the ‘rule of taste’ of its time. Governed by fashionabl
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Van Gogh and the Seasons: NGV Melbourne, Winter Masterpieces
Vincent van Gogh, Dutch 1853–1890, Wheat Field with Cypresses, Saint-Rémy, early September 1889, oil on canvas, 72.5 x 91.5 cm, courtesy The National Gallery, London Vincent van Gogh Dutch 1853–1890 Wheat Field with Cypresses Saint-Rémy, early September 1889 oil on canvas 72.5 x 91.5 cm The National Gallery, London
The coming of Winter is, once again, something to look forward to in Melbourne, with the announcement that ‘Van Gogh and the Seasons’ will be exh
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Republic vs Democracy – Are Star Wars Closer Than We Think?
The President of America (1961- 63) John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917 – 1963), spoke to the nation after a close, divisive election held at a time when the American people were growing increasingly fearful of a long, drawn-out cold war.
Instead of reassuring his audience by minimizing the dangers, Kennedy warned citizens of the long, difficult struggle ahead and about the dangers of complacency and isolationism in a modern world.
A gift of an acre of land at Runnymede in England handed to the
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Kings Queens & Courtiers – A New Exhibition at TDRF Adelaide
Philanthropist David Roche AM (1930-2013) formed during his lifetime, an extraordinary collection of fine art and antiques of the highest quality in both terms of materials and craftsmanship.
It is one of the greatest decorative arts collections in Australia, which is stylishly presented for public viewing by The David Roche Foundation (TDRF).Located on Melbourne Street, North Adelaide, access is only made available by booking a private tour Online.Open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, th
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Alliance Francaise French Film Festival 2017 – Giveaway
ENTER OUR GIVEAWAY
WIN! WIN! WIN!ONE X TEN Double Passes*Alliance Francaise French Film Festival 2017
Enter Your NAME, POSTCODE & EMAIL to WIN
NB Giveaway ENDS Friday Monday 27 February 2017 at 5:00 pm
The Festival commences in Sydney on March 7th, Melbourne March 8, Canberra March 9 and in Perth March 15, Brisbane March 16, Adelaide and Hobart on March 30 and regionally in NSW at Parramatta April 6 and Casula April 8, 2017.
Brimming with highlights, the 2017 event will present 45 films, unv
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AF French Film Festival – Celebrating a Good Year in Film
The 28th Season for the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival will commence in all the capitals of Australia in March, 2017 featuring documentaries and contemporary movies; landmark films in the genres of romance, adventure, comedy, historical tales, thrillers and drama, celebrating a good year in film.
The AF French Film Festival starts in Sydney on March 7th, in Melbourne on March 8, Canberra March 9, Perth March 15, Brisbane March 16 and in Adelaide and Hobart March 30, it will also have a
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A Day Trip to the Dandenongs – Belinda’s Perfect Day Out
The towering Mountain Ash Gums of the Dandenong Ranges
Less than an hour from Melbourne by car lie the Dandenong Ranges, a beautiful area of low mountain ranges with a unique variety of picturesque towns and villages, homesteads and gardens to visit, the perfect destination for a day out from Melbourne City.
The first time I visited the Dandenongs, I quickly declared that it was ‘my favourite place in the whole of Australia’. This feeling has not changed. Every time I return my opini
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Manchester By The Sea, Reluctant Guardian Reflecting on Loss
Casey Affleck in a picture by Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea
Golden Globe Award Winner for Best Actor and nominated for an Academy Award in the same category, Casey Affleck plays Lee Chandler, a 40-year old janitor working and living in the basement apartment of a group of traditional historic apartment blocks in Boston when we first meet him, in the Academy Award nominated independent film by writer-director Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea.
Lee Chandler suffers constant abuse f
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Sovereignty at the ACCA – A Vital Australian Exhibition
ACCA, Melbourne photo by Belinda McDowall
Sovereignty is the current exhibition at the Australian Centre of Contemporary Art (ACCA) in Melbourne, and centres on the contemporary art of the First Nations Peoples of South East Australia. Curated by Paola Bella, a Wemba-Wemba and Gunditjmara woman, and ACCA’s Max Deveny – (his first as Artistic Director at the gallery), the exhibition brings together over 30 artists celebrating the continuing vitality of First Nations’ communities
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Moonlight – A Raw, Emotional & Agonizing Award Winning Movie
Moonlight, the American Golden Globe award winning best movie of 2016 is one that you may truly not want to see, because it is a raw, emotional, truly agonizing tale of one man’s search to find out who he is.
A first release for 2017 in Australia, to say the least Moonlight is emotionally complex and challenging, helping us to understand difference.
A movie in three parts entitled “Little,” “Chiron,” and “Black”, the attitudes and prejudices Moonlig
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Under the Sun: Reimagining Max Dupain’s Sunbaker NSW Library
The Australian summer is renowned as scorching, with the hot sun beating down on the parched earth and Eucalyptus trees for weeks at a time. The beach is the ideal place to be during those searing summer months, but occasionally respite from the heat is required.
The perfect exhibition to escape this year’s sweltering Australian summer will open at the State Library of New South Wales on 18 February 2017. Under the Sun: Reimagining Max Dupain’s Sunbaker is a new exhibition prese
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The Marais Project 2017 – It Takes Two: A Viol Spectacular
Jenny Eriksson, courtesy The Marais Project
To start their season in 2017, the Sydney based group The Marais Project will present their founder and leader Jennifer Erikkson playing both acoustic and electric viola da gambas.
They are to be paired for a stellar concert, providing Sydneysiders with the perfect Sunday summer afternoon outing that of joyous music, accompanied by a delicious high tea on January 29, 2017.
For this concert, which is part of The Independent Theatre, North Sydney’s
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Australian Brandenburg Orchestra Presents: Handel’s Messiah
Paul Dyer with members of the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and Brandenburg Choir, Elisabeth Murdoch Recital Hall Melbourne, Xmas 2016, photo by Steven Godbee
Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and Brandenburg Choir, under the direction of artistic director Paul Dyer AO, along with guest singers Lucia Martin-Carton, Nicholas Spanos, Kyle Bielfield and David Greco, will present for the first time, the Baroque music era masterpiece The Messiah by George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) to commence the
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Rare Books Have Remarkable Stories to Tell says Derek Parker
“Every house has a bookcase,” says Douglas Stewart, the principal of Douglas Stewart Fine Books, “and every bookcase should have some rare, special, meaningful books.”
Douglas is proud of a first-edition of the well-known artist and author Australian Norman Lindsay’s The Magic Pudding: Being The Adventures of Bunyip Bluegum and his friends Bill Barnacle and Sam Sawnoff, which is in near-mint condition.
He speaks as someone who has been buying and selling books
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Ma Xiaohui – QSO presents Year of the Rooster Concert, QPAC
The Australian Centre of Chinese Culture & Arts (ACCCA) has advised that China’s acclaimed number one Erhu composer and virtuoso player Ma Xiaohui, will be visiting Australia again soon. She will join with her Chinese and Australian musician colleagues for a spectacular evening concert to celebrate the Chinese New Year, which starts Saturday January 28 and lasts until February 15th, 2018.
The ACCCA are offering a Special Price – Buy Tickets
Honouring the meeting of Chinese and Au
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Hokusai: Beyond the Great Wave – The Great Master of Japan
Under the wave off Kanagawa (The Great Wave) from Thirty-six views of Mt Fuji. Colour woodblock, 1831. Acquired with the assistance of the Art Fund. On display British Museum 25 May – 13 August 2017
The British Museum has announced a new Summer exhibition showcasing the work of Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849), one of the Great Masters of Japanese art. Hokusai was a prolific artist, and the exhibition will include prints, paintings and illustrated books displaying his work.
The iconi
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Medici Concerts: International Piano Series – Anniversary 25
Ann Thompson OAM founder and producer of Medici Concerts, a series of concerts held annually featuring some of the world’s greatest pianists, will in 2017 celebrate 25 years of entertaining and enriching the lives of the piano music lovers of Brisbane.
Established in 1993, this is a series named for the dynasty whose unique achievement was for a period of sixty years , they preserved the republic at a time when other Italian states were subjected to tyranny.
Liberty’s most important
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Bouchardon: Royal Artist of the Enlightenment – Getty Center
Detail: Cupid Cutting His Bow from the Club of Hercules by Edmé Bouchardon, courtesy Musée du Louvre, Paris
Sculpture is art at the pinnacle of what is possible. Throughout history sculptors have inspired wonder, by combining creativity, beauty and mystery to create a unique and almost timeless atmosphere with their wonderful works, none more so than French sculptor and draftsman Edmé Bouchardon (1698-1762), whose name deserves to be among the greats.
One of the talented cra
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A Cabinet of Rarities: Property of The Genius You Won’t Know
Bronze statue of Sir Thomas Browne by Henry Pregram, 1905, courtesy Royal College Physicians
“With what strife and pains we come into the world we know not, but ’tis commonly no easy matter to get out of it” is a seventeenth century quote by the remarkable and elusive ‘…very distinguished man, Sir Thomas Browne, Knight, Doctor of Medicine, aged 77 years, who died on the anniversary of his birth, 19th of October in the year of our Lord 1682’.
The quote is to b
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Sherlock, Series 4: Episodes 1-3, Shadows Defining Every Day
The ghosts we make for ourselves are the shadows that define our every day, and they are growing larger with the game afoot once again in the 21st century, with our favourite high functioning sociopath detective Sherlock played by the incomparable Benedict Cumberbatch
Together with Dr Watson, played movingly by Martin Freeman as his sidekick, Sherlock (available on STAN) burst back onto our screens in 2010 with the truly masterful Study in Pink, cleverly brought back into existence by cre
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Vale James Fairfax – Unassuming Art of Giving Beyond Self
There are not many people around today who would remember how fierce passionate amateurs in both the world of sport and music were for giving of their services to the greater good. Chariots of Fire (1981) was a movie that presented that premise well, its stirring music firing up the populace with the knowledge that giving back to society is just like commercialism, integral to its health and well being at large.
One man who understood not only this concept of giving but also acted upon it was ph
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The Young Pope: A State of Grace is Fleeting, to Sin Divine!
Religion can when we take into account the many travesties committed in its name down through the centuries since the ‘Christ event’, indeed seem to be a horror story conducted on the ‘dark side’ of humanity where human sacrifice, bestiality, bullying, blasphemy, religious extremism and torture may seem the norm. But is that the future?
An Italian English-language drama television series created and directed by Paolo Sorrentino for Sky Atlantic, HBO, a
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