Doesn’t it make you want to be a kid again?
Thomson Street Foodstore Mural
Community, connections, conversation.
Wominjeka. I stopped for a coffee at Thomson Street Foodstore while I was out walking for my daily exercise and had a chat with Simon who was adding to the Mural on the side of the building. Simon is Indigenous but his family is part of the stolen generation and he was brought up just about as white bread as I was. His has been a journey of learning about his history and making connections to culture. Mine has been a process of unlearning the racist, sexist, homophobic culture I was raised in in a Queensland country town.
Simon works at the cafe as well as being an artist involved with Cork and Chroma in Collingwood (when there’s isn’t a Pandemic mucking things up). The mural was originally inspired by Ailsa who lives close by and who is also responsible for a lot of the native gardens surrounding the cafe as well as the bushfood that grows in the courtyard (again, when there isn’t a pandemic in the way). I didn’t meet Ailsa but will keep an eye out for her on future walks.
More familiar with a canvas, this is Simon’s first in situ art work. His contribution on this day is a version of the Three Wise Monkey’s - Hear, See, Speak. We need to hear what our First Nations People have to say. We need to see them, their history, their culture. We need to talk with them, to understand. The overall message of the mural seems to tie in nicely with the recent Black Lives Matter protests. I’m sure Simon could give a more detailed explanation and if he stops by the blog he might leave some info in the comments? Or better still, if you’re in the area, stop and day g’day, he’s more than happy to have a chat and explain the many facets of the work and the symbolism . One word that stands out is VOICE and the power of art in communicating is evident in this work.
The colour palette was chosen in part to depict the many colours of skin and to not judge a person or their history, heritage or culture, based on the colour of their skin. As a white skinned indigenous person, Simon’s experience of his Aboriginality is an ongoing journey to connect to his history and culture.
The youth in the area have been invited to be part of the mural by adding their hand prints and this was an important part of building community and education.
The mural is on the corner of Thomson and William St in Northcote (it’s actually in between Fairfield and Dennis stations but technically it’s Northcote). If you’re out exercising in these Covid times, put this on your route and call in for a coffee and check out the artwork.
PS. The coffee’s good too.
(Note: If I’ve said anything inappropriate I’m happy to be corrected so I can learn and make changes. Please let me know in the comments or send me a message via the website. Thanks)
While I was walking...
A new neighbourhood, on the other side of town, in the middle of winter.
Late one sunny winter afternoon, after being holed up inside working all day at my mates house while cat sitting, I set off with the camera to see what I could find.
While I was walking...
Late one afternoon on a cold and gloomy day, I was at home feeling tired and snappy. I donned a coat and grabbed the camera and walked around the block. I moved to Fairfield earlier in the year and walk these streets often, but always on my way to a destination. This time, I had no goal other than to clear my thoughts. The first thing I noticed was the house number on the dilapidated fence a couple of doors down. 41. I don’t know if I’d call it a lucky number but it’s a significant number for me, and whilst I’d always been aware of the fence (in an otherwise orderly street its precarious state and the ramshackle yard it fronts is intriguing), I’d never noticed the number before. It was somehow reassuring.
I kept walking and looking around. Front yards, letter boxes, rusty gates, fences, trees, flowers, leaves, bark, porticos, arbours and architectural features.
The light was fading. I made it home just before the rain came down.
I can’t do mindfulness, but I can do this. I think it works just as good.
Have you been for a walk around your neighbourhood with a camera lately?
Hey guys.
“Guys.”
“Hey guys”
“I need some help”
“GUYS!”
“ANDREW?”
“BRYCE?”
“HELP!”
Nothing but the swarming buzz of Andrew’s drone.
I survey the situation.
Flat on my bum. My legs wedged either side of a large rock. An ominous looking thistle peering over my right shoulder. A spider web that I’d been dodging not too far in front of me. Camera and tripod safe in my right hand. My left hand positioned at an odd angle to my arm. That’s the end of this morning’s sunrise shoot we’ve been waiting two years for.
Sorry guys.
I negotiated with the thistle and eventually wriggled, pulled, pushed, slid and manoeuvred myself into a standing position, got Bryce’s attention to round up Andrew and the drone, and then very carefully, using the tripod as a splint and long ago memories of breathing exercises to manage pain, I walked past the beautiful golden morning sun lighting up the reeds and grasses framing Lake Burumbeet, and headed for the car and onto Ballarat hospital.
I have a lot to be grateful for. The broken wrist bones didn’t need to be pinned. Just manipulated back into place and then plastered. It’s summer, so I don’t have to deal with jumpers and skivvies and jackets over a plaster cast. I broke my left wrist and I’m right handed. My workload at the moment is manageable. I only missed one day of work and successfully (I think) completed a 6 hours class yesterday. I don’t think it will interfere with any bigger plans. I can manage most things so far but I do have wonderful people around me to help. I have plenty of painkillers. You get lots of attention and sympathy when you have an obvious malady. I did manage to get a couple of photos before I fell. And the camera lives on.
But it’s been 3 days now. And I’m over it. Can I take the confounded thing off now? It’s fucking itchy!
(39 days to go)
While I was out walking... Darebin Parklands
I've been staying in Carlton North for over 7 years now and last week I discovered a new parklands just a hop, skip and a jump away from me. Darebin Parklands is a hidden gem. Melbourne never ceases to amaze me with its abundance of parks and nature reserves. You can easily forget you are living in a major capital city and imagine you're out in the bush in the middle of nowhere.
So this morning, before the 42degree temps hit, a mate and I grabbed our dirty great big lenses (70-200mm) and hit the track to try our hand at a bit of bird photography. Neither of us are particularly keen on bird photography, but we figured it would be good practice. And we were right. It's bloody hard!
You need a lot of patience, some pretty good camera skills, a bloody long lens (I had a x2 converter on the 70-200), some good light and a nice background. And did I mention lots of patience? Oh, and a good bit of luck too.
My mate got some cracker shots. But she's one of those uncannily gifted people that can easily make the rest of us think we should hang up our camera's right now.
I kept getting distracted by bugs and berries and the light on the grasses and things other than birds. It's a great place to go for a walk. Straight down Separation St and you're there. Check it out.
