On the evening of 31 July 1915 the tiered seats of the Sydney’s premier boxing stadium were crammed with 17,000 spectators, and thousands more stood outside. All were impatient for the anticipated Darcy v. McGoorty match to begin. Les Darcy (1895-1917), a 19-year-old blacksmith-turned-professional-boxer from Maitland, was the local drawcard. How did Eddie McGoorty, the […]
When Maitland’s middleweight boxing champion Les Darcy (1895-1917) convincingly knocked out the world heavyweight champion Eddie McGoorty, at the Sydney Stadium in 1915, his fast-growing fan base was elated. In celebration of this victory, Ernest Card, founder of Sydney’s Gold Brick Society, gifted this miniature gold brick to Darcy to wear as a watch chain […]
Despite his spectacular rise as a world-class boxer, there were things that the unbeatable Les Darcy (1895-1917) still looked to learn. His trainer ‘Gentleman’ Dave Smith showed him the ‘art’ of boxing and tips like wrapping ones’ hands before putting on gloves. He also focused on ‘finishing touches’ like dressing-up for a formal reception. Soon […]
Drought is not a foreign concept in Australia, particularly for our outback communities. The lack of rain and water leads to more than just issues for the land. Societal, communal, and personal conflicts arise, and are often left unresolved, leaving the taste of dust in the same way that a hot wind during drought does. […]
Music, storytelling, ugliness, and love. These are the things Newcastle-based artist Sally Bourke (1973-) notes among her largest influences. In the portraits The Quiet Light and I am a ghost of you, you are the ghost of me, Bourke avoids her subjects’ external features or appearance. Painted ‘from the inside out’ as one curator puts it, ‘her […]
Walsh Bay, on Gadigal land, is today a bustling, vibrant arts precinct. But on 26 June 1917, as the ship carrying the body of ‘The Maitland Wonder’, Les Darcy, docked in Sydney Harbour, the silence was loud enough to rival the busy wharves that groaned under the weight of wool for export. Several days later, […]
In small communities, multi-use spaces are common. Fields become sporting ovals on the weekend, town halls host markets and meetings, and basketball courts double as a learning ground for bike-riders, scooters, and skaters. Art photographer Michael Cook (1968-) has managed to capture this balance of order and chaos in his image Mother (Roller Skating), combining […]
Iconic images of the Australian outback or bush conjure up dust, heat and the thunder of wild brumbies. The strike of their hoofs echoing across vast plains and down mountain sides, the epitome of true freedom. In Mother (Rocking Horse), artist Michael Cook (1968-) evokes this same feeling in a comment on family, connection, and […]
Herbie Watkins heard rumblings below ground that made him run for his life. It was 5.15 am on 7 December 1910 and he was alone on site maintaining the temporarily closed West Wallsend-Killingworth Colliery. Luckily, Watkins was at a safe distance when the catastrophic explosion punctured the early morning silence, waking residents of the surrounding […]
Conceived in 1995 as part of Tamworth’s Australian Country Music Festival, the city’s annual exhibition It’s a Guitar Shaped World invites artists to create a work in response to the exhibition title. Each year, since its inception, twenty artists have created works that are humorous, bizarre, and made from nearly every conceivable medium. This work […]
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