Inspiration comes from many places. Sometimes an object’s story is much bigger than simply what it is or did. Hinting at what inspired Headlie Taylor’s (1883-1957) innovative agricultural inventions, this comb also reveals the story of the dynamic Henty community the designer was a part of. This comb is known as a short comb, most […]
Standing on the deck of the Orpheus as it rounded into Port Jackson, Cambridge-born Lieutenant Jonathan Warner (1786-1843) first saw his exotic new posting. It was a Spring day in 1826, and as the Sydney weather was not yet too hot, he may have felt quite comfortable in the full military uniform he was wearing. […]
Seated at this elegant desk, Irishman John Hayes (c. 1861-1934) shuffled his papers, dipped his pen into his inkwell and meticulously inscribed his accounting records in his ledger books. In 1907, Hayes had been appointed as auditor to the Morpeth Borough Council and quickly proved to be thorough and reliable, spending countless hours at this […]
Each time the last few drops of tacky, golden liquid dribbled out of this one-gallon (3.8 litre) copper jar, the French polisher at J.G. White’s furniture manufactory in Morpeth filled it again with methylated spirits. Then, carefully measuring out a pound (450 grams) or two of dry amber coloured shellac flakes, he emptied them into […]
This 3D mixed-media assemblage, made from wood, fabric, paint, resin, paper, and aluminium, was created by identical twins known as The Strutt Sisters in 2012. Depicting a large group of musicians performing on a stage with a city backdrop, the colours, images, and design is reflective of the sisters’ fascination and interest in the aesthetics […]
After returning home each evening, weary from work, Morpeth furniture craftsman Joseph George White (1822-1912) probably followed the fashion of his fellow Victorian era gentlemen. Retreating to a quiet room in his home after dinner, he probably put on a smoking jacket and this smoking cap. But did he then light up a pipe and […]
You see some of them get up there now and they’ve got holes in their jeans! Argh. —Zeta Burns For this yodelling cowgirl, it’s no secret that looking her best on stage is almost as important as sounding good. Zeta recalls a teacher’s advice to, “Always dress the part, always dress nicely. Even if you get […]
The steam engine hummed and clanged to a steady beat and the machines buzzed and whizzed. Fine sawdust scented the air and coated every surface. From the 1860s, J.G. White’s furniture factory in Morpeth was equipped with all the newly invented, thoroughly modern power tools, saving countless hours of laborious hand sawing and carving. It […]
By the age of ten Rocky Cameron (1944-2016) was already an experienced performer. He had ‘cut his teeth’ on the greater-Sydney radio circuit – 2UW, 2KY, 2GB & 2KA – but even with those successes he still felt his nerves swell. Following the introduction of television to Australia, Rocky made it to the stage of […]
It may surprise you to learn that dollhouses were not originally intended as childhood playthings. The first examples of European dollhouses, or dockenhaus in German, come from the seventeenth century. Meaning ‘miniature house’, these were intended for adults and served as a physical display of wealth, class, and privilege. In Mother (Dolls House), artist Michael […]
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