Sculptures by the sea is back for another year with more weird and wonderful sculptures. We went last week for a walk along the sand to see what was on offer. It also happened to be the windiest day and we were whipped and scoured by the sand. The sea was churning and the waves were slapping against the Groyne, soaking us when they came over the top. Anyway we managed a good 45 minutes walking in the softest sand. All of our eyes were watering and sore, I’m not sure how I managed to take any photos.
This is an annual event at Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia and is also held at Bondi Beach, NSW. It is a sponsored event and free to the public. The artists get a chance to exhibit their latest creations and prizes are awarded. Cottesloe Council often purchases one of the sculptures and these can be seen on the seafront.
Daring the waves to splash them
SOMA – Drew McDonald
Taking a rest
Love U – Jason Hirst
Homage to the Cube – Andrew Farmer
I like the way the above photos turned out with the iconic “Indiana Tearooms” reflected in the mirrored cube.
Ode to the Ancestors – Dr Jason Christopher
Artificial Real Time – Erica Zaino
Click on the photo to read the caption
Sun Dial – Tanya & Evi Ferrier
Time to go yet? It wasn’t quite accurate but close enough.
Emperor of the Abrolhos Tim Storrier Love Jimmy Rix Reef Reverie – Jonathon RockefellerSway – April PineSwan Theory – Fiona Gavino
Heaven – Vaughn Bisschops
My favourite sculpture this year is the silver pelican sitting on a shiny suitcase. It looks like postcards have been attached to the suitcase.
The Summer school holidays finally came to an end here in Perth. Master Lachie would be starting year 2 and Miss Rosie would be entering kindergarten. Time for new shoes. I took both munchkins to our local shopping centre to have their feet measured up for new shoes. Everything is so sophisticated these days, and feet are measured electronically. Back in the day your foot was put into a wooden contraption with a slide bar.
Rosie was going two and three days a week, so I can still have my days with her.
Larger than life Sylvanian Rabbit
Out shopping for her favourite toys.
We had some extensive tree cutting and bush pruning performed by professionals. Although my dear hubby said he would do it all – eventually – it’s the removal of all the debris that is a problem. Now I have an empty flower bed to replant, which I’ll be getting advice about.
I’m looking forward to discussing ideas with a lady I found locally.
The weather is turning slightly cooler in the mornings and evenings which is a relief. I’ve been able to sit out in the mornings with my coffee. This little guy has been visiting every morning and having a morning feed. Luckily Zac and Rufus didn’t notice.
Hubby and I had a lovely lunch in Fremantle last week. We tried a place that was new to us but I’d heard good reviews. It was such a beautiful day, we managed to get a table outside.
A couple of sculptures caught my eye. The dog is so cute.
Say hello to Dwert (noongar for dingo). Created by sculptor – Martin Jaine.
The above is a life size sculpture of a memorial to the migrant children. Between 1947 and 1953 over 3,000 children (many unaccompanied) from UK and Malta migrated to Western Australia. They went to voluntary and religious organisations. Many of these children we now know were little more than unpaid workers. They suffered untold abuse which has only come to light in the last ten years or so. The children were told they were orphans. Some of them were. Others had mothers who, due to extreme hardship, had no choice but to let them go.
We stopped at a local delicatessen to pick up some goodies and this exotic lady was posing in the middle of the shop.
Please don’t touch. I am very fragile. My name is Caffe’tina. I was made in 12 days. Arrived 8th January 2023. Multicycling in Brazil. Coffee beans used on me __ kilo ___ grams.
I thought this was so clever and must have taken ages to put together. I wonder what the answers were?
Well that’s February done and dusted already. Have a lovely March everyone.
I’m joining in with a few challenges. The Changing Season hosted by Brian and Ju-Lyn and also Dan’s CFFC – Blue and… PPAC by Natalie
The apartment I had booked for our stay in Melbourne was in St. Kilda, even though it was from Booking.Com, it was just an Air B n B. As we drove into the carpark I realised it was a stacker park and Anthony was concerned that his long car wouldn’t fit! Luckily a lady who had just finished parking her car said she would help guide the car in. It was a very tight and tricky fit and I would definitely never book a place with stacker parking again. She even tested the elevation to check the fit. All the while with Anthony in the driver seat. The apartment itself was fine with a fantastic view from the large balcony. This would be wonderful in summer.
Meeting Archie
We spent the next two days wandering around Melbourne, eating, drinking and shopping.
I wanted to have a look at the Three Fates displayed at The Hellenic Museum in Melbourne. They were painted by Ox King (Steven Nuttall). They are called Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos.
Clotho (left) chose when and whether a person was to be born, spinning the thread of human life. Lachesis (centre) chose the length of a person’s life and measures the thread. Atropos (right) chose when and how a person would die and cuts the thread.
The mural on my left caught my eye as we walked down the street and I had to backtrack to take the photo. A comic book mural featuring Gordan Ramsay, I noticed at the bottom. The sculpture on the right is titled “Creative Brilliance” by Ngardang Girri Kalat Mimini. It is located outside the Queen Victoria Women’s Centre.
A few from our evenings out wining and dining
Hall’s Gap and The Grampians
I had planned a two day visit, overnight in Ballarat and then onto The Grampians. Anthony said he wanted to experience really cold weather. It looked like his wish would come true as the temperatures were hovering around 0 to 3.
We had to make the most of our time away as it was so short, so on arriving at The Grampians Motel, we checked in and made our way into the picturesque town of Halls Gap. The motel was situated outside of the town and in a beautifully landscaped area. Complete with its own troupes of kangaroos.
I made my way over to a very large one and froze on the spot when he got up and I started walking slowly backwards.
Views from our room
Infinitely more friendly!
We did just a couple of small walks around The Grampians, there are some wonderful trails for the more serious hikers, sadly I’m not one of those.
A zoomed in shot of some climbers up in the rocks on the right.
The Grampians are a range of quartzose sandstone mountains that were a million years in the making. There are five spectacular sandstone ridges running north to south with steep and craggy slopes on the eastern side and gentler slopes to the west. They are the result of earth movements lifting and tilting the hard sandstones to create an impressive landscape of peaks and valleys. Source: The Grampians
I thought at first the markings on the trees above were some kind of symbolic carvings! The patterns are so intricate and look like ancient configurations. It’s just where the bark has fallen off though or maybe some beetle borings.
On our drive back to Melbourne we stopped at a winery in Ararat called Montara. We shared a delicious charcuterie platter and sampled the wines.
As you’ve noticed I do take quite a few selfies, I enjoy posing everyone, so when a stranger offers to take our photo I never object. It’s the awkward moment after, do you check it straightaway, look later or just take your own anyway. I’ve yet to decide how to deal with this. They do generally come out okay but if not you’ve lost that opportunity. Also they take so many! It’s the control freak in me.
All too soon our mini trip away was over. The next day we would be heading over to Sydney. with another overnight stop on the way.
It’s that time of year again for all those innovative sculptors to exhibit their wonderful creations upon the shores of Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia. I went with a friend yesterday to walk along the beach and upper grassy areas to view the fantastic pieces on offer. Many of the photos also work well with John’s Lens Artist Challenge this week too, which is all about light, shape, texture and form.
We started along the top grassy area and then walked to the end of the groyne. We both had swim suits on under our dresses and the water looked so good, we had a swim before proceeding to see the rest.
“Blanket”“Brood”“Woman wears Trousers”
The focus on the photos above are circular shapes and different textures. The name of each piece did not seem to correlate with the sculpture and seemed to be random words selected from a hat! Everytime I tried the last photo a small boy kept looking through and saying hello!
“The Approach”“Silver Lining”
A view through the sculptures
“Human Vessel”“Little and Large” – my own title!“Fortitude”
Tall and skinny ones and mirrored images
All the pieces looked completely different depending on which angle you shot from, making them all the more interesting.
“The Top of the Balance”“Gumnut Cap Quintet”“Florb”“Petal Driven Fairy Motor”
My favourite out of the four above would be Florb, the texture was amazing to touch. Some of the sculptures allowed for touching. There were hoards of school children swarming around, some too young to read, so therefore lots of touching going on!
“The Top of the Balance” edited by me!
“Dave”“I Put a Moon on the Table – Someone is Living in it”
The above are also two of my favourites. How cute is the “Moon” and look at the intricate detail. I also love “Dave” standing loud and proud.
“Love Aus”“A Bridge too Far”
Textures, shadows and shapes
“Macrame Boab Tree”“Trash Can Mountain”“Ceramic Tree Ants”“Giant Toe Nails”
I made up the above titles!
“Seated Man”“Hush” Soaking up some rays
I hope you enjoyed this walk along the sands with me to view these wonderful sculptures. This is one of my favourite events of the year.
Also joining Restless Jo for Monday Walk – although my walk was Wednesday!
Continuing with my photos of Hong Kong. Hong Kong Airport is a place where you can easily while away an hour or two, there’s always something different on display. As we were walking towards our gate I noticed several new sculptures that caught my eye. I would have like to linger longer on these but it was nearly time for boarding. I’ve had some fun editing these and framing them with Ribbet, a photo editing website.
Buzzing with Excitement – Artist – Man Fung-yi
“The group of artworks themselves own an interactive energy which can energize the place with laughter, vigor and warmth”
Raise Me High I Artist – Li Wei-han Rosanna
“Kite flying can be seen as a journey in the sky, a way to go free. It brings joy and excitement and endows with boundless imagination”– Li Wei-han Rosanna
Raise Me High II Artist – Li Wei-han RosannaThe Other Side Artist – LAAB Architects
“An airplane window that obscures the view with stainless-steel origami mirrors and a dichroic glass. As passengers look out the window, they become part of the illusions”
Blooming Artist – Pang Kam-yau Raymond
“Abstractly shaped artwork with a collage of colourful mosaic tiles. The back is copper plate. Passengers are encouraged when looking to relax their minds and forget about their troubles before they go on their wonderful journey”
About to Board Artist – Li Wei-han Rosanna
“Whether it is a journey heading home or out to the exotic, travelling is often marked by moments of wait longing and yearning. Upon reaching the destination, it is the sense of relief mingled with joy and fulfilment that makes travelling an exciting adventure”
I have taken the liberty of copying the words with some editing that accompanied these wonderful works of art. Studying them definitely made the wait for boarding thought-provoking and diverting.
The time had come for our visit to Melbourne again. We had planned five days with Laurence and Maddy. They were both still on their Christmas break from work so it meant we could spend every day together.
Our trip didn’t start too well with our late night flight delayed for one hour (at least we were on time!). This meant it would be too late for Laurence to pick us up. When we arrived we found the taxi queue to be too long for us to wait, so decided to book the hotel opposite. Any sensible person would walk across the road and ask for a room, but thinking I was being clever I booked online while on the side of the road. Booking.Com didn’t allow me to book for the day before, so I went ahead and booked for that day, which meant that we couldn’t check in until 3 pm, which I found out when we went to check in! By now it was 2.30 am and we were desperate for a room. Fortunately I managed to get through to Booking.Com and convey my mistake! Hoping that the hotel would waive the cost as we now had to book direct through them. Anyway I didn’t get charged otherwise it would have been a very expensive mistake. Although I had to explain all this to the staff as they kept saying they couldn’t refund me. Lesson: Do not book online at the side of the road.
For the next five days we ate and drank our way around Melbourne’s fine restaurants.
We stayed in a one bedroom apartment just across the road from Laurence and Maddy which was ideal.
It was hot and humid one minute and cold and rainy the next. It’s true what they say about Melbourne – Four seasons in one day.
We had a quick trip to St. Kilda for happy hour followed by dinner at Bistro Thierry – no points for guessing it was French.
MatchingMy Handsome MenEpaule d’Agneau BraiséeBraised RabbitBœuf à la Bourguignonne en croûteTarte Tatin
No trip to Melbourne is complete for Anthony without a shopping day, so it was into town for that.
We had lunch in a very popular Vietnamese restaurant, cocktails on a rooftop bar and dinner at a Korean BBQ restaurant.
A moving sculpture
Legacy Anzac Centenary Mural
Rabbit Yin Yang
Her Bar
Bornja Restaurant
The Gang of Four
Thursday it was my day to choose somewhere to go. So we drove to Williamstown around 30 minutes drive from St. Kilda. It was a beautiful sunny day and the beach was packed with umbrellas and cabanas. We had a seafood lunch overlooking the bay and wander around after.
View of Melbourne Skyline
Williamstown was Melbourne’s first port settlement and named after William 1V in 1837. Of course there was an indigenous settlement long before this. The Yalukit-willam clan of the Kulin nation were the first people to call this town home.
Nowadays it is a popular place for family holidays with gorgeous sandy beaches and many restaurants and cafes. It reminded me of an English seaside town, without the weather to go with it though.
We had a dinner at their place one night with Laurence grilling steaks on his Weber.
Too soon and it was our last day and it was pouring! Maddy had mentioned she wanted to see the Triennial exhibition at the National Gallery so we caught a tram to the city for a visit. The exhibition is free and hosts many different exhibitions throughout the year.
Taking photos was allowed so I took a few of the ones that I liked or intrigued me the best!
Larger than life sculptures by Thomas J Price
Walking into the room above, I asked myself what constitutes art? I said to Laurence I could do this, looks easy. To which he answered “aah but that’s the trick to make it look easy but in reality it’s very difficult”. I’m still not sure I would put this on my wall though.
Paintings by Farrokh Mahdavi an Iranian artist. InUntitled,pink is the universal colour of our flesh; it transcends politics, race, nationality, territoriality and gender. Source – NGV
Comedian Maurizio Cattelan – Italian born artist
Well I could definitely do this. My thoughts: ”The Emperor’s New Clothes”. I have cropped this as much as I could but it was in a room with nothing else.
In 1999, Cattelan duct taped his art dealer, Massimo De Carlo, to a wall for the opening of his exhibitionA Perfect Day.
Mound of wollen yarn Real strawberries preserved foreverHanging on for dear lifeA photographer is always trapped behind his lens
I loved the ones above as I found them profound and moving.
Displaced along with members of his immediate family during the Kosovo War (1998–99), Petrit Halilaj’s Very volcanic over this green feather explores his experience as a thirteen-year-old refugee living for more than two years in Kukës II camp in Albania. Art materials were distributed to children at the camp by visiting Italian psychologist Giacomo Poli. Poli encouraged the children to externalise and process their experiences through drawing. Spotting his talent, Poli would much later arrange for Halilaj to attend art school in Italy. Source – NGV
I enjoy looking at old paintings of Royalty and Noblemen and Women and one floor was showing these, although not part of the Triennel exhibition.
Anthony’s family has a family tree dating back to Louis XIV by one of his mistresses and above is Louis XIII. Is there a likeness? He would have to shave his beard to be sure! On that note I will close this lengthy post.
Thanks for joining me on our recent trip to Melbourne!
To live in Montmartre would have been any artist’s dream place to stay. Most lived in hunger and poor accommodation but they were living with hope and passion and wouldn’t be anywhere else. Fuelled by their love of art and the camaraderie of their fellow artists, they struggled on regardless.
It is one of the places I’ve always wanted to visit and so it was on my last day we headed out to walk the cobbled stoned streets and climb many stairs to the top.
We took the metro to Abbesses, one of the most beautiful metro stations in Paris. 144 steps to the top! There were fantastic paintings on every level, I wish I had taken more.
To start with we tried to follow the walking map as to what to see, but soon gave up as everywhere you looked there was something to see or a little alleyway to walk through.
~ Wall of Love ~
A wall dedicated to love in the garden of Square Jehan Rictus. The work of Frederic Baron and Claire Kito, is a meeting place for lovers from all over the world.
Situated outside the Galerie Montmartre, a moving mural with the faces of hundreds of famous people. Can you spot Mona Lisa?
“Love is all around”
I did like the detail in this little critter
By the time we had climbed to the top to look at the The Basilica of Sacre Coeure, the rain had started and as we didn’t bring umbrellas or raincoats, we were forced to buy one. It was well worth the climb to see the astounding views from the top.
My first view of the Basilica, quite awe inspiring after climbing up along those tiny staircases to see this great beauty.
We didn’t venture in as you can see the queues were long! Also I imagine you would need booked slots.
View from the top
Heading back down into the main square and walking very gingerly on these slippery wet cobblestones we agreed it was time for lunch.
La Bonne FranquetteLa Maison Rose – The Pink HouseLe ConsulatViews down every alley
Inside La Boheme Montmartre with a steaming bowl of French Onion Soup and a glass of chilled white wine.
With so many choices we took pot luck and chose one that looked relatively busy. Deciding to sit inside as it was too chilly and wet for outside (Paris in the Summer, who would have thought!).
There are so many famous buildings and restaurants in Montmartre and have written some potted histories below.
La Maison Rose – The Little Pink House was originally bought byRamon Pichot in 1905. It was first a painting studio and visited by Pichot’s friends Dali and Picasso. He turned it into a restaurant and painted it pink in 1908. It is believed that La Maison Rose became famous because of Utrillo paintings. But Élisée Maclet (sadly forgotten) painted La Maison Rose and Montmartre long before Utrillo. Source: La Maison Rose
There is much more history on the link above about what has happened to this house over the years.
Le Consulat – Another famous cafe frequented by world renowned artists, Picasso, Sisley, Van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec and Monet. The building dates back to the 19th century. It is still serving delicious home cooked food.
La Bonne Franquette – A 16th century house in the heart of Montmartre. The name was given in 1925 by Francisque Poulot. The motto of this restaurant is “Love, Eat, Drink and Sing”. This is the place where Van Gogh painted the famous “La Guingette”.
We then went looking for the “Man in the Wall”, something I’d never heard of but my friend wanted to see.
Le Passe-Muraille
M. Dutilleul, a fictional character by Parisian writer Marcel Ayme, who discovers he can walk through walls. He uses this power to commit crimes and carry on an affair. On his last visit to his mistress, he suddenly loses this power and becomes immobilised inside the wall.
It seems that this was not well known enough for other tourists as we were the only ones there.
Next up was the Windmill and of course last but not least, Moulin Rouge.
Moulin de RadetMoulin Rouge
There were once thirty windmills in Montmartre dating back to the 16th century and now only two remain. The other is Blute-Fin. Before Montmartre became a place known for its artists it was just a humble village populated by peasants. The windmill that sits atop the Moulin Rouge is just a tribute and not an active one.
I loved exploring Montmartre and would have liked to wander more, but time was pressing on for me to venture back to Gard du Nord for my trip back to London.
Montmartre is well worth a visit and you could easily spend a whole day here. It’s not easy walking and you would definitely need a good pair of walking shoes!
After getting over our initial disappointment with the accommodation and realising we had to stay or spend more to move, we got on with enjoying Melbourne. There were lunches and dinners, mixing it up sometimes about who went out with whom, but mostly having fun family moments.
One thing I enjoy about Melbourne is the fantastic murals and artwork and the fabulous sculptures on display.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder“
These two paintings were next to the beautiful eye mural, so I looked up “My Dog Sighs” and realised that is the name of the painter. Click the link to find out more about this wonderful painter, who gave away his work free for ten years, but is now a world-wide renowned painter.
I had to cross the road to get the full impact of this mural, absolutely stunning.
Found in Gertrude Street, Fitzroy, Victoria
Quirky paintings on meter boxes
St Kilda, Victoria
There were many of these steel sculptures along the Yarra River, they look brilliant when lit up at night.
Walking around Melbourne and its suburbs is like being in a gigantic art museum, but outside. I much prefer looking at art outside than in a museum.
Views of the Yarra River
Lunchtime tipples
Below are five carved-wooden figureheads representing a dragon, woman, bird and man and lion.
They are placed where the river created a natural widening for the boats in the 19th century to turn around after unloading their wares.
Constellation Sculptures by Geoffrey Bartlett and Bruce Armstrong Enterprize Landing
We finished our five day trip with a drive to a winery in Werribee, called Shadowfax. There wasn’t a table available inside so we made do with outside and a heater. This was good news for the munchkins as they had the run of the garden and we could see them from our table. The food was delicious and the wine was flowing.
Shadowfax Winery“if only!”
Thanks for coming along for the trip to Melbourne with us!
It was our last day in Bali and after a wonderfully relaxing facial for me we walked to the nearby Agung Rai Museum of Art. It takes approximately ten minutes to walk from our hotel along the busy main street to the hidden museum. There is also a hotel located at the back of the museum which was a surprise to us.
Intricately carved sculptures set amongst the tree roots of a large banyan tree.
ARMA is more than just a museum, it is a centre for performing and visual arts and it holds many theatre, dance and music performances. There are art classes for all ages, workshops and demonstrations.
As we entered the museum itself, this is the first thing we saw. I just took a quick glance before going to look at the paintings behind. It was only when I turned around that I realised the person was also a sculpture! So glad we were the only ones in there as I jumped back in surprise.
“Painting is just another way of keeping a diary.”– Pablo Picasso
This particular painting was amazing, as it was made up of tiny grains of painted golden rice.
Painted by Stephen Bennett, an American Portrait artist. Over the last twenty years he has travelled to over thirty countries seeking out indigenous people.
Javanese Nobleman and his Wife
I did have to stop myself from going to give him a pat, beautiful wooden sculpture.
The Story of Agung Rai
Agung Rai was born into a poor family which led to a difficult upbringing. Even so he loved art and found a job selling paintings to foreign tourists on the beach. It took a while but he eventually managed to accumulate enough money to convert three rooms of his home into a homestay. This allowed him to offer rooms to tourists in Ubud. In 1978 he was able to open the Agung Rai Fine Art Gallery. ARMA was opened in 1996 and has many paintings not just by Balinese painters but also famous foreign artists.
A literal work of art that has been two years in the making. It will soon be ready to hang and view. The artist showed me minute details in the painting of weddings, funerals and other kinds of ceremonies.
“An artist is not paid for his labor but for his vision.”– James McNeill Whistler
I enjoyed our visit to this museum, it’s a wonderful place to escape the noisy streets of Ubud.
On a hot sunny Monday, a public holiday here in WA, we set off to find some of the Giants of Mandurah. Checking the website for these huge wooden trolls, offered no clues and it stated that we could grab a map from the tourist office to walk the trail. It also said “please do not reveal the locations to others”. However, being the cheat that I am – sometimes – I did a quick google and found some of the locations. They are all fairly far apart, so not sure about walking these great distances.
First though we found a waterside restaurant and had lunch and a drink. As you can imagine everywhere was busy and the boardwalk was humming with people. We sat and watched a bunch of youngsters jumping from tiny wooden posts into the water below.
Mandurah is just over an hour’s drive from Perth and it’s a wonderful place to spend an afternoon. Walking around the canals that form part of the town or along the estuary to see if you can spot a dolphin.
It was around a ten minute drive to the first Giant, and at first I thought we had gone wrong somewhere! We ended up in a cul de sac with a small garden in the middle, that was chockablock with cars parked, it must be so annoying for the locals. Seeing everyone walking down a small pathway, we just followed and hoped for the best.
The Giant below is called “Santi Ikto”. He was at the top of a large sand dune and I suppose ten to fifteen minutes from the car.
These figures are all the work of Danish artist Thomas Dambo and were created to celebrate the diversity, beauty and importance of the natural world, with his works handmade using recycled and locally sourced materials.
Santi Ikto
I didn’t have to wait too long before all the kids and even adults had stopped climbing over him to get a decent photo.
Views from the top
Our next one was also off the beaten track and had to follow google maps very closely to find him!
I wasn’t brave enough to clamber down onto the rocks to see the face. This one is called “Seba’s Song”.
We were also lucky enough to see a dolphin, only the one though. A short video for you. Warning – turn sound down!
One lonely dolphin!
On our way back to the car we stopped and watched the kite surfers jumping over the white horses that were being whipped up by the wind, then skimming back towards the shore. Perfect weather conditions for them today.
By now Anthony said time to head back, the other Giants will have to wait for another day. Happy that we managed to see two of them as I thought they were very impressive. Sadly one has already been destroyed deliberately by fire. Some people just can’t help themselves.
