Bendigo Magazine - Issue 62 - Autumn 2020

ISSUE 62 | AUTUMN 2021 www.bendigomagazine.com.au

TRENDSETTING

people's choice

SIXTIES STYLE ON SHOW

ART WINS OVER HEARTS

ISSN 1833-1289 AUD $5.95 (Inc. GST)

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CELEBRATING 30 YEARS. HUNDREDS OF STORIES. THOUSANDS OF VISITORS.

Ph: 03 5441 5044 www.goldendragonmuseum.org

MANAGING EDITOR Dustin Schilling

dear reader, Bendigo is a vibrant place to live, offering big-city benefits alongside country comforts.

Just ask artist Lyn Raymer, who chose this corner of the world as her home on returning from two decades abroad. “When you are local, you often don’t see what’s around you,” Lyn tells Bendigo Magazine this issue, referencing the sights, sounds and serenity here that have captured her heart.

But what truly makes a place special is its people. And people are back out in Bendigo in their droves, as exhibitions, concerts, sport and social events resume (albeit at a more considered pace than pre-pandemic). Our Autumn magazine is filled with photos of people enjoying life; their smiling faces showing what it means to be free to celebrate all our city has to offer with family and friends.

PHOTOGRAPHERS Leon Schoots, AJ Taylor and Daniel Soncin WRITERS Dianne Dempsey, Geoff Hocking, Raelee Tuckerman and Marina Williams CONTRIBUTORS Beau Cook, Lisa Chesters, Alex Fisher and Ashley Raeburn PRINT MANAGER Nigel Quirk ADVERTISING advertising@bendigomagazine.com.au PO Box 5003 Bendigo, VIC 3550 Phone: 0438 393 198

We also share the inspiring tale of former refugee Paw Ku Htee, who tells of her journey from a Thai refugee camp to life in Bendigo, where she now helps other new arrivals find their feet.

Local artists Andre Sardone and Prue Wilkinson offer us glimpses into their creative worlds, while Jontee Brown describes the life-changing event that led to his career as a globetrotting basketballer.

Their stories form part of the fabric of our community and our culture. Enjoy.

FROM THE TEAM

ON THE COVER: Sculptor Andre Sardone takes writer Dianne Dempsey on a tour of his Mandurang studio, where his kinetic works of art share the space with the local wildlife.

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Bendigo Magazine takes all care but accepts no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Bendigo Magazine holds copyright to all content unless otherwise stated.

ISSN 1833-1289.

While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this publication, the publisher accepts no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions or resultant consequences including any loss or damage arising from reliance on information in this publication.

The views expressed are not necessarily endorsed by the editor or the publisher.

House of lux F Living Arts Space exhibition

FEBRUARY 15 – APRIL 11, 2021 House of Flux is an exhibition of photo-media made inside the home. Artist Nikita Hederics layers images of flow within the house as a response to confinement and constraint. In doing this, the artist reveals practices for softening, supporting and releasing movement through the spaces we inhabit.

This is a solo exhibition of works by Nikita Hederics.

Find us on

Edible gifts Unearth locally grown and produced delights from the City and region of Gastronomy. Indulge with delicious treats to take home and savour your Bendigo experience.

Can’t decide on a gift for that special person in your life? Come in and let us help you create a one-of-a-kind, City of Gastronomy hamper.

Shop in-store or online. Gift wrapping and click and collect available. www.uniquelybendigo.com.au

Make your own hamper • Local produce • Hand crafted items • Something for every budget • Complimentary gift wrapping

BENDIGO VISITOR CENTRE Open 9am to 5pm daily (except Christmas Day) 51-67 Pall Mall, Bendigo • 03 5434 6060 • tourism@bendigo.vic.gov.au www.bendigoregion.com.au • #Explore Bendigo • Find us on

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contents

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

PEOPLE & LIFE

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A fashion revolutionary - Mary Quant exhibition

Sticking to a plan - Prue Wilkinson An embarrassment of riches - Andre Sardone Revealing images - Lyn Raymer

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FOOD, WINE & HOME 74

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Flavours of autumn - Ashley Raeburn

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Mean greens - Beau Cook

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Taking the plunge - Landscape feature

The road to Eaglehawk: remember the Fifties?

- Bendigo memories Finding home - Paw Ku Htee The year of the babies - Lisa Chesters Ashlee and Andrew - Wedding feature Hayley & Ben - Wedding feature Ruling the court - Maddie O’Nial The globetrotter - Jontee Brown

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g gardenin e is w r e t Wa climate g in g n a in a ch

COTTAGE GARDEN

TALL SHRUBS (under 3m) Gold-dust Wattle Acacia acinacea Indigenous

Sticky Boronia Boronia anemonifolia Indigenous

Features include: Woven wire front fence, a brick edged gravel path flanked by English lavendar leads to home entrance.

Informal slate paving provides space for relaxation.

An open, fine-leafed shrub with a profusion of yellow flowers in spring. Grows to 2m high and wide. Benefits from pruning after flowering and makes a good, low screening plant. Adaptable to all well-drained soils.

A Bougainvillea climbs the veranda and a Blue Pacific hedge runs along the front of the veranda.

Lawn areas either side of the path are separated by informal garden beds and rambling paths. A selection of trees including Chinese Elm (rear), Cimmaron Ash, Ornamental pears and Crepe Myrtles provide shade, colour and texture.

Garden bed plantings include: Lorraine Lee and Madame Hardy roses, cistus, daffodils, iris, Round-leaved cotyledon and Acanthus mollis. Banksia roses provide privacy on side fence.

A fast-growing shrub with strongly scented leaves. A profusion of star-shaped pink flowers in spring and summer this plant an eye-catching addition to your garden. Grows to 2m high and wide. Performs best in sandy soil or a great container plant.

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Sweet Bursaria Bursaria spinosa Indigenous

SMART GARDENS FOR A DRY CLIMATE

This easily-grown plant is attractive in flower and fruit. Variable form from a rounded shrub to small tree. Grows 2-6m high and 2-3m wide.

Masses of fragrant, white flowers in summer that attract butterflies. Suits all well-drained soils.

CONNECT WITH US

Silky Net-bush

Bright red flowers in spring and summer attract the nectar feeding birds. An evergreen shrub with pine-like foliage. Grows to 2m high and Native wide. Makes a good screening plant. Tolerant of www.coliban.com.au a wide range of soils, but loves sandy soil.

Calothamnus villosus

1300 363 200

DESIGN VISION

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Bendigo’s Creative Industries Coworking Community

Join Bendigo’s first dedicated creative industries coworking community.

E

mporium Creative Hub is open for business! Now accepting

bookings for our exclusive coworking, meeting, workshop and studio spaces.

Act now: places are limited.

Emporium Creative Hub is an initiative of Learn more at emporiumcreativehub.com.au

CELEBRATE EASTER WITH ELLIS WINES Chocolate is synonymous with Easter, and this year Ellis Wines suggests enjoying some with a sip of wine.

Throughout the Easter long weekend, Ellis Wines is pairing five wines with chocolates from Indulge – available for tasting at its urban cellar door in Garsed Street, Bendigo.

turning a new leaf Local businesses embrace the season with tips, traditions and tributes.

AUTUMN JOBS FOR THE GARDEN Autumn is a great time of year to prepare your garden for the cooler months ahead – and there are many ways to save water!

Adjust your watering system As the seasons change to the cooler months, remember to change the settings on your watering system. Less water is needed in autumn, winter and spring than in summer. Make sure your watering system has a rain sensor or soil moisture sensor as part of its control system.

Improve your soil Adding compost to your soil once a year encourages organisms that help your soil hold water and nutrients. Spread 5-10cm of compost on your soil when it is damp, then dig it in to a depth of around 20cm. Digging helps to form cracks in the surface for water to get through.

The Ellis family has taken joy in making and sharing their wines since Bryan and Joy planted the first vines on rich red Cambrian soil in Colbinabbin in 1999.

After 10 years of contract sales to other wineries and many awards won with their fruit, the urge to create their own label became too strong to resist.

So, in 2009, the Ellis Wines label offered its first vintage. The label features a signature of the family name, signed with a quill to mark the occasion.

Today, their vineyard has grown to more than 123.5 acres of vines and includes shiraz, merlot, viognier, moscato and cabernet.

They are also making it easier for people to enjoy the Ellis Wines experience, since opening the cellar door last year. It’s proving a popular decision, says Raylene Flanagan.

“Being in the heart of Bendigo, we are making our wines more accessible to people in a fresh and unique atmosphere. They can sit and enjoy a wine over our delicious, signature cheese ‘platt-a’ by opting to order it 24 hours in advance to have it at the cellar door or takeaway.”

Gift vouchers are also available.

Pop in to the Ellis Wines cellar door at 52 Garsed Street, Bendigo, from 11am to 4pm weekdays and Saturdays.

Discover more about the vineyard at www.elliswines.com.au

Mulch, mulch, mulch!

Apply mulch to your garden beds in autumn to take advantage of winter rainfall and protect the surface roots of plants from the cold winter weather. Mulching is the best way to save water in the garden, reducing evaporation by up to 70 per cent.

A time to grow Autumn is also a great time to plant. Soil temperatures are warm enough to encourage root growth and the milder temperatures reduce water stress. Young plants planted into gardens in autumn have a chance to settle in and become ready to take advantage of the spring sunshine.

For more waterwise gardening tips, see Coliban Water’s ‘Smart Gardens for a Dry Climate’ booklet. Visit www.coliban.com.au/ smart-gardens-dry-climate

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HEARD & CO. SCORES AGAIN IN SALES AND SERVICE AWARDS In three short years, independent boutique real estate agency Heard & Co. Real Estate has become one of Victoria’s finest, winning many awards with independent review platform RateMyAgent.

The strict client review platform has recognised Greg Heard as the number one agent for Greater Bendigo for the third consecutive year. RateMyAgent features independent reviews from sellers and buyers about their experience in dealing with agents and agencies. Nationally, Greg was ranked number 34 in the Top 100 agents, and ranked number nine in Victoria for client satisfaction and significantly high sales results for an individual agent.

“The accomplishments come from a vision to establish an honest brand that our local community can trust, providing sincere advice to our clients. Constantly having their wellbeing at front of mind, ensures we are creating a team of humble, helpful and highly skilled professionals who really do put

our clients’ needs ahead of anything else,” says Greg.

our clients,” he says of the family-owned business.

Greg is extremely proud of his achievements over the past three years after opening his sales agency in January 2018.

“The future is bright and exciting for Heard and Co. The foundation we are setting, built on trust and integrity through old-fashioned hard work, is already respected and can only grow from where we are now.”

“I am excited to continue the growth of Heard & Co with the guidance from Pittard Training Group, arguably the best real estate training in the industry. This ensures we will continue to grow as a highly skilled agency with outstanding service and results for

Visit www.ratemyagent.com.au or contact Heard & Co. directly on their all hours hotline 03 5409 3100.

VINEYARD CRAFTS OPULENT WINES Turners Crossing vineyard rests on the banks of the Loddon River, on the Old Bridgewater-Serpentine Road.

It’s about 50km north-west of Bendigo, not far from Serpentine, where the rich river clay topsoil is plentiful and the limestone, pebble-filled subsoil is ideal for growing grapes.

Since 2002, shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, viognier and the rare Italian variety, picolit (used to make a dessert wine) grapes have been thriving on the vineyard’s 42 hectares, producing wines of outstanding quality.

A sought-after choice is the premium 2018 ‘The Crossing’ shiraz.

Sales Director, Chris McCormack, describes this wine as a shiraz which bears all the qualities and characteristics of a full-bodied, fruit-driven yet flavoursome red wine that is rich on the palate.

“Yet it still has a silky mouthfeel and smoothness that appeals,” he says.

To produce the wine, whole bunches of grapes are plunged in open fermenters for three weeks before being pressed and pumped two to three times every day.

The juice is then fermented in a mix of new and old oak hogsheads with indigenous yeast, with time spent in malo before maturing for 15 months in a 5000-litre oak vat.

“There’s minimal intervention throughout the process and very limited cross-flow filtration before bottling. It makes a wine that will continue to improve for the next eight to 10 years with good cellaring.”

To discover more about Turners Crossing wines, visit turnerscrossing.com.au

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SUPPORTING FAMILIES IN NEED Napier Park Funerals has been providing fitting farewells for people since 1992.

Located in Napier Street, White Hills, the funeral home is one of Bendigo’s largest.

It boasts a tastefully decorated chapel with up-to-date audio-visual facilities and can provide live video streaming of services.

With more than two acres of grounds, the funeral centre offers onsite parking for more than 100 cars. Facilities have recently undergone a total renovation with the inclusion of a new function centre. The garden complements the complex, with lawn and rose bushes creating a tranquil environment for those attending funeral services.

Ruth Chilver says Napier Park is a familyowned business that prides itself on its caring and supportive staff. “Each team member recognises it is a privilege to do what they can to make the bereavement

process for families as smooth as possible,” Ruth says.

“We are more than just a funeral company; we also feel we are part of the community.

As part of our holistic approach, we strive to support our local community and aim to make a positive difference to the lives of others and our local environment.”

tours of the facilities. “We are proud of our facilities and have an open-door policy. We believe it is important for both carers and families of a person who passes away to be equipped with the knowledge of what will happen when their loved one is brought into our care. This knowledge provides peace of mind and assurance during this most stressful time.”

This includes educating people on the funeral home profession and offering

Contact Napier Park Funerals on 5441 4800 or visit www.napierpark.com.au

subdivided properties across Bendigo. This experience, she says, has given her a solid understanding of the property market.

“I did work experience at a real estate agency when I was 16 and I knew then that it was the career I wanted. I understand that each person has unique needs and I want to help them achieve their property goals.”

Sales consultant and auctioneer Mitch Kenny agrees that each campaign has to be tailored to every client. “This business isn’t about the property that is being sold, but the people who are involved.”

Janelle and her team have more than 30 years of combined experience and celebrated the business’s third anniversary on February 19.

The team is fully trained in industry innovations, up-to-date with legislative changes and experts with movements in the property market.

JANELLE BUILDS ON PASSION FOR PROPERTY

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With a passion for property and a desire to help people find their ideal home, Janelle Stevens opened the doors to her eponymous real estate agency three years ago.

sales and property management. “I started the business from scratch by myself and, in three years, I now have a team of four who are equally dedicated to deliver premium service and achieve optimum performance and results for every client,” says Janelle.

Today, Janelle Stevens Property has become entrenched in Bendigo, offering real estate

Janelle is a licensed real estate agent and has built, sold, leased, renovated and

“We are raising the benchmark in real estate,” says Janelle. “At all levels, we provide special attention to homeowners, purchasers and investors by meeting their individual needs and applying passion, commitment and expertise to ensure they get the result they want and need.”

Janelle Stevens Property is located at 122 Queen Street, Bendigo. Phone the team on 0417 835 127 or visit www.janellestevens. com.au.

BRINGING INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE TO BENDIGO Creek Street Christian College is excited to bring to Bendigo the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP).

An additional option for Year 11 and 12, this internationally recognised two year course provides opportunity for students to develop into inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who experience a well rounded curriculum.

In addition to six key learning areas students are encouraged to actively serve others within the community.

The subject titled ‘Theory of Knowledge’ teaches the students about ‘how they learn’, preparing them to become lifelong learners.

IBDP prepares students for success in higher education and to be active participants in a global society.

“He taught me that passion and hard work can shape your career.”

Kerryn Harrington, Physiotherapist, Carlton FC & La Trobe Alumni with Dr Marcos De Noronha, Senior Lecturer, Physiotherapy

Book a one-on-one consultation latrobe.edu.au/consult

CRICOS 00115 DC37913 BGO 2/21

If you would like to know more about this unique and comprehensive programme now available in Bendigo please contact the College. www.creekstreet.vic.edu.au

IMPERMANENCE A visceral and thrilling exploration of the juxtaposition of beauty and devastation, Sydney Dance Company’s full-length work Impermanence is Rafael Bonachela’s newest creation.

Contemporary composer Bryce Dessner has composed a new score full of emotional power. Best known as a founder of American rock band The National and for his film scores for The Revenant and The Two Popes, Dessner was initially inspired by the tragedy of the Australian bushfires and the Notre Dame fire in Paris. Performed live on stage by the Australian String Quartet and the full might of Sydney Dance Company’s ensemble, this is an epic, driven performance that packs an emotional punch.

When COVID-19 struck in March 2020, Impermanence was only four days from its world premiere opening night. After a tumultuous year, Sydney Dance Company brings it to the stage for the first time in 2021, now with added poignancy. Experience the power of dance and music performed live together, laden with meaning, fleeting and vulnerable.

Join Sydney Dance Company in its return to the stage and from devastation, find energy, urgency, radiance and hope.

Impermanence is commissioned by the Australian String Quartet and Sydney Dance Company, assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts - its arts funding and advisory body.

Impermanence is on at Ulumbarra Theatre on Saturday, May 22.

cultural revolution

Bendigo brings you the best in arts and entertainment this autumn, from sport to strings to that special Sixties vibe.

SWINGING BACK IN TIME The 1960s was a dynamic decade, remembered as a time of hope, change and war that brought great social and political upheaval.

There were assassinations and attempts, civil rights and anti-war movements, and advances in science and technology that took mankind to the moon.

The counterculture movement saw a shift in musical tastes, with charts of the day filled with folk, novelty pop songs generated from boy and girl bands, and rhythm and blues. Fashion saw hems rise and the hippie culture was prominent, with men sporting long hair.

A special exhibition, Modern revolution: Bendigo and the 1960s, reflects on the decade and highlights how local and world events influenced the region.

The personal perspective is shared through the recollections of some local people who grew up, lived and worked in the city during the decade.

Their stories share lived experiences of what some historians say was a time of unprecedented change.

The exhibition is free and open from April 2 to August 29 at the Post Office Gallery. To book tickets, visit www.bendigoregion.com.au

Bendigo Art Gallery circa 1962. Photographer Allan Doney.

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AN EVENING WITH THE MELBOURNE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA The MSO returns to Bendigo with a spectacular program of classical masterpieces. This special evening will feature Vivaldi’s adrenaline-charged concertos, The Four Seasons.

Mendelssohn’s famous overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream will delight with its shimmering orchestral texture. And don’t miss Stanhope’s outstanding work Spin Dance, with Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony providing a spirited conclusion.

Join the MSO and settle in for a memorable night of stunning music, featuring Melbourne’s finest musicians.

To enhance your concert experience, conductor Nicholas Bochner will introduce the program prior to the performance.

The MSO concert takes place at Ulumbarra Theatre on Thursday, April 29.

CELEBRATING THE SIXTIES The Swinging Sixties was a youth-driven cultural revolution that was all about being modern and embracing a fun-loving lifestyle, and at its heart was the city of London.

Art, music and fashion flourished in the city, where the Beatles sang catchy tunes and fashion designer Mary Quant made her mark with the rise of the miniskirt, a firm favourite of fashion models Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton. As the mod subculture made its mark, shopping areas such as Kings Road and Carnaby Street became popular destinations.

It was also a time of social and political change; the activism of the anti-nuclear movement and sexual liberation. In the drive for personal expression, the female youth market fell in love with Quant’s fun designs, most notably hotpants and the miniskirt.

The miniskirt is widely associated with Quant, who considered it a practical and liberating fashion choice as it allowed women to run for a bus, a popular form of transport in inner London.

Cultural historian Kenneth Park takes a look at London in the Swinging Sixties, and the events that helped define this period of great change.

The Swinging Sixties is one of many events coinciding with the exhibition Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary at Bendigo Art Gallery.

Fans of the Sixties can revisit the vibrant decade by dressing up in their favourite fashion at the Quant Up Late special night out at Bendigo Art Gallery on June 26.

Mingle and listen to classic sets from DJ Randy Lipz and DJ Lady Soul. Tickets cost $50 and include exhibition entry, one complimentary drink and canapes. Additional drinks are available at bar prices.

Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary is at the Bendigo Art Gallery until July 11; Quant Up Late is on June 26, also at the gallery, with Swinging Sixties on April 29 at La Trobe Art Institute.

For tickets to the exhibition, Lecture Series: Swinging Sixties and Quant Up Late, visit www.bendigoregion.com.au Kellie Wilson modelling shirtdress and shorts, 1966. Photo Duffy © Duffy Archive

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cheers to festival return Shake off your picnic rug and rally your friends because Bendigo’s open-air wine and food festival returns in April for a special two-day event.

Rosalind Park will again play host to the Strategem Bendigo Winemakers Festival on April 17 and 18.

Guests will be able to sample more than 50 wines, enjoy delicious regional food and listen to live music.

Bendigo Winegrowers Association president Wes Vine is excited to showcase the local wines and have people return to the festival that is extending to two days to comply with COVID-19 restrictions.

“The festival has something for everyone – handcrafted wines from the Bendigo region, as well as vendors with regionally sourced food and a full program of live music,” says Wes.

“Our winemakers are looking forward to welcoming everyone back after being forced to postpone last year. We’ve split the weekend into two events, as numbers are limited due to COVID-19.”

Wines will include the cool-climate classics of sparkling, chardonnay, riesling and rosé, with popular red wines from the region also featuring.

Saturday, April 17, is for ages 18+ with Sunday, April 18, open to all ages.

“This is a great festival for people to reconnect with friends and family they haven’t seen in a while, in an easily accessible, central location – that also happens to be stunningly picturesque.

“It also provides a wonderful opportunity for people to plan a weekend away to Bendigo and take in the festival as well as other activities, such as the Mary Quant exhibition at the Bendigo Art Gallery,” says Wes. “We encourage people to bring their picnic rug and find a spot on the grass to enjoy the wines and the relaxing park setting. We also want everyone to be safe while enjoying the festival, so we’ll be following the Victorian Government’s COVID Safe event format.”

The Strategem Bendigo Winemakers Festival is on the weekend of April 17 and 18. Tickets cost $60 for Saturday and $55 for Sunday (under 18s are free), and include entry, a souvenir wine glass and all wine tastings. Visit www.bendigowine.org.au

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SEASON 2021 ON SALE NOW

By A Thread

Long spools of white rope run through pulley sheaves and wrap around bodies, explicitly connecting the artists’ movements above and off the ground. The actions of one acrobat affect and implicate the movements of others in a mesmerising negotiation of cause and effect.

FRIDAY MARCH 19 – SATURDAY MARCH 20

An Evening with the MSO

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra returns to Bendigo with a spectacular program of classical masterpieces. This special evening will feature Vivaldi’s adrenaline-charged virtuosity, The Four Seasons.

THURSDAY APRIL 29

Impermanence

Sydney Dance Company’s full-length work, Impermanence, is Rafael Bonachela’s newest creation, with music written by Bryce Dessner, performed live by the Australian String Quartet.

SATURDAY MAY 22

Bizet’s Carmen

Experience the thrilling Spanish colour and rhythms of Bizet’s vibrant score with Opera Australia’s singers, live chamber orchestra and a children’s chorus drawn from the local community.

THURSDAY JUNE 3

To view the entire season and book tickets visit gotix.com.au

a fashion

Mary Quant and Vidal Sassoon, 1964. © Trinity Mirror / Mirrorpix / Alamy Stock Photo

revolutionary

A new exhibition at Bendigo Art Gallery showcases the clothing and cosmetic designs of a London trendsetter whose styles changed the shape of women’s wardrobes.

By Emma Busowsky Cox, Curator, Bendigo Art Gallery British fashion designer Dame Mary Quant personified the energy and fun of swinging ’60s London and was a powerful role model for the working woman. Emerging at a time when post-war Britain was still in recovery mode, Quant and her bright, fun, youthful fashion was perfectly placed to usher in the new era of growing affluence and the social mobility of young people benefiting from higher wages, further education and new opportunities for women.

not wish to wear the traditional styles worn by their mothers and grandmothers and wanted a new look to reflect the changing times. At a time of growing activism and struggle for equal rights, Quant had a visionary take on the role of women and led the way by working hard and taking risks. In less than a decade, she grew her tiny boutique in Kings Road, Chelsea, into an international brand. “I didn’t have time to wait for women’s lib!” she stated.

Challenging long-held conventions, Quant popularised the miniskirt, colourful tights and tailored trousers, encouraging a new age of feminism. She recognised that, like herself, young women did

Bendigo Art Gallery is the exclusive Australian venue for the exhibition Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary from the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, which runs from March 20 to July 11.

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Drawing on the V&A’s extensive fashion holdings, Quant’s archive and private collections, the exhibition brings together more than 110 garments as well as accessories, cosmetics, sketches, photographs and even Quant’s own line of fashion dolls to survey her extraordinary contribution to fashion.

Born in 1930 near Blackheath, south-east London, to Welsh parents, Mary Quant was evacuated to the countryside during the war and grew up with austerity and clothes rationing. As a teenager, she longed to train in fashion design, although her parents insisted she should follow them into teaching. As a compromise, she trained as an art teacher at Goldsmiths College, where she enjoyed socialising with exciting, pleasure-seeking, free-thinking people from different walks of life. It was there, at a fancy-dress ball, that she met her future husband, Alexander Plunket Greene, a trumpet-playing bohemian from Chelsea, south-west London.

Following a stint trimming high-class hats at Erik’s, a couture milliner in affluent Mayfair, Quant gravitated towards London’s jazz clubs and the buzzing pubs and cafes around Chelsea’s King’s Road. It was there that she, alongside Plunkett Greene and their entrepreneur friend Archie McNair, opened her experimental shop Bazaar in 1955 to showcase her designs alongside “a bouillabaisse of clothes… and peculiar odds and ends”.

The shop opened with a party and the stock sold out. Exhausted but exhilarated, Quant turned out dresses in her bedsit, buying fabric from the grand department store Harrods each morning. Bazaar transformed the formal experience of shopping. Three years later, Quant took on the fashion giants of Knightsbridge, London, brazenly opening her second boutique opposite Harrods itself.

TOP RIGHT: ‘Stealing a March on the Guards’, 1961.

Photograph by John Cowan © John Cowan Archive TOP LEFT: Jill Kennington in white PVC tabard, raincoat and hat,1963.

Ernestine Carter Archive, Fashion Museum Bath. Photograph by John Cowan © John Cowan Archive RIGHT: Pink dress with tie c. 1966 . Mary Quant at the V&A (06 April 2019 – 16 February 2020). © Victoria and Albert Museum, London BELOW: Mary Quant Kangol beret advertisement, 1967.

Image courtesy of The Advertising Archives

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A Crate Full of Quant (Dame Mary Quant and Alexander Plunket Greene with models Vicky Hodge, Peggy Moffitt, Linda Carless, Jenny Fussell, Karina, Renate, Jill Wright, Lorraine Chase and Sarah Dawson) by John Adriaan. Given

by Sally Pasmore, 2009 National Portrait Gallery London

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Model holding a Bazaar Carrier Bag,1959.

Image courtesy of Mary Quant Archive / Victoria and Albert Museum, London

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Jersey dress with red pocket on the front 1966. Mary Quant at the V&A (06 April 2019 – 16 February 2020). © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

ABOVE LEFT: Two models wearing striped ensembles, Spring 1973.

Image courtesy Mary Quant Archive / Victoria and Albert Museum, London ABOVE RIGHT: Twiggy modelling waistcoat and shorts ensemble, 1966. © Photograph Terence Donovan, courtesy Terence Donovan Archive, The Sunday Times, 23 October 1966 BOTTOM RIGHT: Quant Afoot’ ankle boots 1967. Mary Quant at the V&A (06 April 2019 – 16 February 2020). © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Quant’s daring but easy-to-wear styles attracted a diverse and loyal clientele. Her clothes were sought by women of all backgrounds and ages, from celebrities to journalists, to mothers with young children and professional women at the heart of London’s creative industries.

“Once, only the rich, the Establishment, set the fashion. Now it is the inexpensive little dress seen on the girl in the High Street. These girls… don’t worry about accent or class… they are the mods,” Quant said.

Ahead of her time in marketing and promotion, Quant was the embodiment of the label. Her distinctive, photogenic style and playful energy made her the ultimate ambassador for the brand.

She saw the potential for expansion, and boldly capitalised on the opportunities presented by the international demand for British fashion.

Her wholesale company, Mary Quant’s Ginger Group, established in 1963, saw her designs initially rolled out to British department stores and soon thereafter, to equivalent retailers in Australia, America, Canada and Europe. Ginger Group fashions made in Britain were featured in magazines such as The Australian Women’s Weekly and Dolly and could be bought in Australian department stores including Myer in Bendigo, Georges in Melbourne, Mark Foy’s in Sydney and FitzGerald’s in Hobart.

LEFT: Lieze Denise modelling a Mary Quant cocktail dress, about 1960.

Photograph by Woburn Studios. Image courtesy Mary Quant Archive / Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Following the success of the brand here, Quant licensed the fashion manufacturer Taffs to make her designs in his factory in St Mary’s, New South Wales, and under the guidance of Barry Taffs and Sidney Sernack, Mary Quant garments were produced locally for the Australian market. Later, via a collaboration with Butterick, Australian women sewed their own Quant designs at home – the ultimate gesture in democratic fashion design.

‘

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Mary Quant and Alexander Plunket Greene, 1960 Courtesy of Terence Pepper Collection. © John Cowan Archive

Green jersey dress 1967. Mary Quant at the V&A (06 April 2019 – 16 February 2020). © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

ABOVE LEFT: Celia Hammond (right) and Jean Shrimpton modelling Quant designs, 1962. © John French / Victoria and Albert Museum, London ABOVE RIGHT: Jean Shrimpton modelling ‘Rex Harrison’, 1962. © John French / Victoria and Albert Museum, London

“Fashion is not frivolous; it is a part of being alive today,” Mary Quant said in 1966.

Quant also applied her radical approach to cosmetics. With monochrome, daisy-logoed plastic packaging, easy-to-follow instructions and amusing advertising campaigns, the Quant range took her modern, London look to fans around the world.

Innovative products with tongue-in-cheek names included ‘Cry Baby’ waterproof mascara and ‘Loads of Lash!’, a long strip of false lashes that could be cut to length. Quant quickly became the woman who made fashion less exclusive and more accessible to a new generation.

However, Quant’s greatest legacy is her vision of fashion as a means of communicating new attitudes, ideas and change for women. By bending the rules and testing different gender roles and identities with affordable, well-made clothes to enjoy, empower and liberate, she predicted the opportunities and freedoms of future generations.

Visit www.bendigoregion.com.au for tickets to Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary.

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RACEDAY

2021

SATURDAY 27 MARCH CITY RACING COUNTRY ATMOSPHERE Over $1.2 million in prizemoney on offer!

FOR ALL BOOKINGS countryracing.com/Bendigo or phone the club on 5448 4209

country.racing.com/bendigo

MUSIC RETURNS TO STAGE

David and Rae Allen, Janet Nash and Alan Hauserman

Richard and Mary Habgood

Meg Webster and Pam and Martin Pearce

Terry and Dianne Finnegan

Susan and Peter Mahler

Meghan Walker and Cara and Ian Lovejoy

For five days in early February, some of Australia’s best artists came together for 15 concerts at the Bendigo Chamber Music Festival.

Organisers say it was a welcome return of musicians – and audiences – to the stage after COVID-19 put a pause on live entertainment.

Harvey, Jen, Tegan, Aidan and Mackenzie Schanssema

Julian Spence, Andy Buchanan and Ben Kelly

Nathan, Alicia and Lauren Crowley

Sophie and Sadie O’Connor

SUMMER IN THE PARK Nothing says summer in Bendigo more than listening to live music while basking in a park.

Faye, Ash, Ruby, Issy and Bridget Fraser

Yusuf and Shekib Mastoor

And the crowds lapped it up, with The Grinners bringing the tunes. Getting in on the act was the inaugural 5K Frenzy, with Andy Buchanan and Ellie Pashley the first to cross the finish line.

WINERY SETS WEDDING SCENE

Chris and Brodie Stearns, Tomas Napolitano and Rebecca Hansen

Steph Bischoff and Aaron Charles

Hannah McBain and Jordan Henders

Lachlan Dunn and Paige Siddle

Rose Bell and Joey Whiting

Mick Burns, Jayden Loveridge and Damian and Jacinta Blood.

Chateau Dore brought the love and food to 2021 with its first wedding tasting menu of the year.

Happy couples spent a sunny February day touring the vineyard, then sipping and supping tastings that they could potentially serve on their special day.

Introducing the ‘ALINA COLLECTION’ 16 Mitchell St, Bendigo | P: 5443 5755 | MrWolfe.com.au |

Cathy and Allan Spencer

James Deacon and Sharon Newth

MUSIC STIRS THE SOUL Katrina Costanzo, Michele Hanrahan, Donna White and Mick Costanzo

Faye, Ash, Ruby, Issy and Bridget Fraser

Logan, Braidy, Austin, Johno and Rachel Phillips

Sienna, Russell, Locky and Alicia Bergin

With its community vibe, it is fitting that The Old Church on the Hill hosts the pared-back music style of The Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival’s Singer/Songwriter Showcase.

In February, it was the turn of acoustic guitarist Daniel Champagne and Bendigo’s own bluesman supreme Bill Barber to bring a house concert vibe to the gathering place.

A GREAT START CAN LEAD TO A GREAT FUTURE EARLY YEARS EDUCATION AT GIRTON GRAMMAR SCHOOL

For young children, care and education cannot be separated.

At Girton Grammar School this is a guiding principle through Junior School, and especially in the early years from Prep to Grade 2.

Our Junior School is a place of learning and growth where all children are accepted for who they are, and where we cherish this brief and unique period of life.

James Turpie (Prep 2021) on his first day of school.

The early years at school are a time when children are learning more every day than at almost any other time in their lives. It is a time to embrace the huge

learning opportunities that present themselves, as children explore the world around them and are exposed to new and wondrous things. For this reason, we encourage every student to engage in a broad range of learning experiences, both inside and outside the classroom.

Teaching based on this approach allows us to bring out the best in every child, for friendships to flourish and for personalities to develop.

Contact our Registrar or see our website to discover how the early school years at Girton deliver an exceptional future. www.girton.vic.edu.au

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sticking to a plan

Artists are often referred to as being talented, possessing sublime skills that are unique or rare.

By Alex Fisher - Photography by Leon Schoots Talented artists are a thing of mystery to the mere creative amongst us, never mind those of us for whom paint is simply something that is difficult to remove from clothes in the wash.

But emerging Bendigo artist Prue Wilkinson would beg to differ and believes that successful artists are riding on the canvas of hard work, not a mythical gene pool of talent.

“No one is born with talent. The depiction of the tortured, talented artist is mostly a myth.

“In fact, the very concept of talent can be condescending to artists because it suggests that things come to us easily, which then implies we are not hard workers.

“Hard work can, in fact, lead to talent through constant honing of your craft. It’s definitely my hard work that won the Top Arts award,” Prue says.

Prue was recently awarded the People’s Choice award at the prestigious 2020 Top Arts exhibition, hosted by the National Gallery of Victoria. Her watercolour painting was selected from 1700 works submitted via the Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority’s application process for the 2020 VCE Season of Excellence, with just 46 pieces of art selected for exhibition at the NGV.

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Top Arts is an annual exhibition presenting exceptional work of VCE Art and VCE Studio Arts students undertaking the Victorian Certificate of Education, which Prue completed at Girton Grammar School in 2019.

Prue has no memory of life before art. It was her first love and has sustained her from a young age. She still has drawings from as early as age three. Prue recalls doing a watercolour of the school buildings in Grade 2 at Camp Hill Primary School. She looks back at that piece of art with a certain level of recognition and pride that it is a genuinely impressive effort for someone so young.

“I enjoy looking back on old artwork to acknowledge the hard work that was done.

“As an artist, you always compare yourself to other people because you want to be the best that you can be, but I think being a successful artist is about loving what you do and striving for constant improvement. That means reflecting on your previous work and thinking about how to improve it,” Prue says.

Every artist is used to being asked what inspires their work, and Prue shows her passion for her craft and her industry with a quick reply.

“I am a very emotional person. I find it difficult to express myself verbally, but I find that art is a voice for me and a way to express myself and express how others might feel.

“Art can trigger empathy and can be used to convey empathy, which is one of the reasons art is so important to our world, and especially right now.

“A world without art would be boring. Life would be filtered. Art is unfiltered and drives human passion.

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“Art therapy in medical settings is evidence of the emotive and psychological responses that art can generate in people, and that is crucial to human existence.

“Money can sustain us physically, but we can’t live without emotional sustenance, too,” Prue says.

To win the Macquarie Group People’s Choice Award in the Top Arts competition, Prue used her own emotional response to a family member’s suffering caused by Alzheimer’s disease to convey the impact the condition can have on both the patient and their family.

Her Year 12 Art theme was “Confinement”, which consisted of a series of three watercolour paintings. It was one of these, Cage of Confusion, that won the People’s Choice Award based on votes from visitors to the National Gallery of Victoria.

“At the start of Year 12 at Girton, my family was in the thick of dealing with Alzheimer’s disease. I wanted to learn more about the condition and be more involved in communicating the need to talk about it.

“I think people are fearful of Alzheimer’s because they don’t know about it, and there is a stigma associated with it.

“My sad observation, too, is that people suffering from diseases like cancer receive far more visitors than those who have Alzheimer’s and yet Alzheimer patients need just as much support and love as any other patient, perhaps even more so.

“In my painting, I emphasised the hands of Laurie, who is depicted, because hands are often the first thing to deteriorate in Alzheimer’s patients and our hands are integral to how we communicate, especially non-verbally. They sometimes turn blue as the disease progresses.

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“The way I have painted Laurie’s hands indicates how scared and confined he was and how confined he felt in his own body.

“The tilted and oversized depiction of Laurie’s head, along with the dripping watercolour, conveys the heaviness of the disease on the sufferer and their family,” Prue says.

Winning the popular vote in the art world is difficult and relies on the artist conveying something people can connect with. Prue says that Alzheimer’s is a confronting disease and, therefore, the confronting nature of her painting is something to which people can relate.

“Just about everyone knows someone who has Alzheimer’s or when they think about the disease, it instils a sense of fear.

“When art provides insight into our fears, it usually promotes a connection, so perhaps that is what happened for my painting to receive the People’s Choice Award,” she says.

It is clear that Prue’s life and career focus will always be art. She is adamant not to be locked into something that she does not love and is clear about not needing a “Plan B”.

“I think there is a link between the people who ask me what Plan B is, and the ones who assume I have talent.

“It’s important to know that talent can only get you so far, but hard work can sustain a career and a life. The more we measure happiness based on what we love, not what we can earn, the better off we will all be.

“It is utterly surreal to me that I have had a painting exhibited at the NGV, even though it was a specific goal of mine right from the start of VCE at Girton to be successful in the Top Arts competition.

“I’m on cloud nine, really, and I truly hope to keep drifting on it for some time yet.”

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Logo Rationale Concept 1 Imagine Strathfieldsaye logo has an elegant, fluid, open feel to the overall design.

Drawing inspirations from serene forest retreats, the selection of a looser font style represents the creek that runs by the development and the stylised “i” representing forest reserves in and around the project.

PANTONE 5415

PANTONE 325 Copyright © Vive Group 2012

Image taken at Imagine, Strathfieldsaye

Villawood Properties has been building communities in Bendigo for more than 30 years.

Find out more at

www.villawoodproperties.com.au

GETTING OUT AND DOING MORE

Amber and Catherine Dreis, Katie Hoggarth and Eloise Dreis

Anthea and Quinn Wilson, Nicholas Lee, Angus Wilson and Sue Lee

Carmen White, Augie White, Lola White and Rhonda Trevean

Julia, Mia, Nicki and Greg

Wendy Douglas and Eli and Belle West

Jay, Angela, Koby and Kayla Simons

A beautiful Bendigo summer night brought out families to the picturesque Garden for the Future in White Hills.

The chance to kick back on the picnic rug and munch on popcorn while watching family film Dolittle on the big screen proved popular.

- AdvertIseMent -- AdvertIseMent AdvertIseMent --

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Vicky, Caitlyn and Hunter

Poppy and April Wainwright and Oliver Simm

Gemma, Keira and Grace Ellis

Gary Davidson and Monica Mason

HITTING THE RIGHT NOTE Bendigo’s Summer in the Parks music series was a smash hit throughout February.

Cath Butler, Kim Holzer, Sue Wilson and Penny Rodan

Helping students

discover all God made them to be.

Year 11 and 12 InternationalPacks Baccalaureate Information and Programme now available.

College tours available

upon Tours request. of the College and IB information available

Creek Street upon request.

ChriStian College 91 Creek Street Bendigo 3550 t: (03) 5442 1722 CREEK STREET e: info@creekstreet.vic.edu.au CHRISTIAN COLLEGE 91 Creek Street, Bendigo www.creekstreet.vic.edu.au

www.creekstreet.vic.edu.au

Charlotte Gibson and Bridget Adelaide and Daniel Whitfield

Iffy Pop and Clockwork Orange were among the bands that enjoyed being back in front of a live audience. The smiling faces in the crowd suggest the feeling was mutual.

an embarrassment

of riches

Surrounded by nature, this plumber-turned-sculptor is never short of inspiration for his unique work.

By Dianne Dempsey - Photography by Leon Schoots The nesting boxes are all around us, housing kookaburras and robins, sugar gliders and even vulnerable brush-tailed phascogales.

Before continuing the tour of Andre Sardone’s studio, we get fixed on the brush-tailed phascogales. How can you resist them? The male dead by 12 months from too much, well, too much “frenzied mating”.

We look up into a tree and see a tawny frogmouth – the pseudo-owls of the forest. I ask why this abundance of life about them? Andre says he and his partner Bridget Finch don’t rake and burn around the trees as their neighbours do. The forest creatures love the undergrowth.

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The artist’s Mandurang mudbrick house and studio sit unobtrusively in the state forest and, as everyone knows, it’s been a wonderful time of rain and abundance. “There’s been plenty of snakes this year, as well as spiders,” Andre says cheerfully. A walk around his studio reveals a jacky lizard curled around a sculpture. “Sometimes at night, when we’re lying in bed, the bats fly in over our heads.”

(I let that comment go by.) We move to the settees on the large undercover veranda to drink coffee and talk about his work. But before doing so, Andre considerately checks under the settee for the brown snake that was seen last week worrying his dog. I notice for the first time a giant wood moth that must be about 10 centimetres long, the wind nudging its fragile wings.

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That the environment is constantly influencing Andre’s work would be stating the obvious. His latest theme, a profusion of shimmering orbs, are made of recycled materials such as mattress springs, steel rods and stainless-steel discs. The orbs, which hang in his studio, under the eaves of the house and from branches, are expressions of life, of energy, air and movement. Andre wants everything to move. Walk up to any of his pieces and give it a tap, send it spinning or turning. Nothing rests and when it does, it settles into an agreeable shape.

Andre’s artistic instinct is to make sculptures that are original.

“I like to find a point of difference,” he says. “I don’t like doing multiples. I keep evolving and learning, I don’t know what the end goal will be. So many ideas occur to me and I only have time to fulfill maybe one in every 20. I experiment and learn. I have an idea and realise it.” As an artist, Andre is suffering from an embarrassment of riches.

He didn’t go to art school and doesn’t refer to his work in traditional art theory terms. He says he has a “visual aesthetic”. “I have an idea and realise it.”

In essence, his art belongs to his ability to change the shape of the material he uses. A roofing plumber by trade, Andre comes to his art with the skills of his trade - skills that have exponentially increased according to the demands of the recycled material he happens to be using. A turning point for him came some 18 years ago, when he was at a building site sheltering in his ute from the rain, reading the Herald Sun. (There was no mention of a pie or chocolate milk.)

“I saw a picture of Albert Tucker’s ‘The Futile City’ and I thought, I can replicate those colours and lines. I worked with Colorbond, I was a tradesman and I was bored.” Andre’s first step into the art world still hangs in his studio. He would never give it away as it’s too significant for him. The Colorbond version of ‘The Futile City’ – with its eerily precise match between material and concept – earned Andre much recognition but not necessarily acceptance by the art world. He exhibited in Melbourne in 2003, 2004 and 2005, but he always returned to his work as a roofing plumber; although not so much these days.

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In 2006, he and his wife and three children travelled around Australia in a bus. “We came to Bendigo in 2007 and happened upon the land in Mandurang, or rather, the land found me.”

In 2013, he re-partnered with photographer Bridget Finch, with whom he will be sharing his next exhibition. “She will sit for hours under a tree amongst that undergrowth waiting for a bird to come her way. Bridget started by drawing birds but she has a great eye for photography.” Together, the couple have a richly textured life. Of an evening, Andre enjoys cooking while Bridget will play the piano or work in the garden.

Andre’s work is currently in several galleries but his goal is to put bigger sculptures into bigger spaces. Among several projects he is working on are steel sculptures that can be taken apart and then reassembled for installation.

“My children are pretty much launched and these days I’ve got more time, ambition, skills, energy and ideas. I can go in different directions. It’s a wonderful place to be,” he says, smiling.

He says he has been highly motivated by the experience of participating in the Emporium Creative Hub Incubator program. “It really gave me confidence; helped to realise that what I’m doing matters and is valued.”

This year, in the forest that surrounds his home, there is more of everything and Andre Sardone is responding with joy to the abundance.

Supported by the City of Greater Bendigo’s Artists on View program, Steel Life is an exhibition of sculpture by Andre Sardone and photographs of nature by Bridget Finch, and the crossover between the two.

Running concurrently at the same venue is Andre Sardone’s Shimmer, an installation of explorative, whimsical, kinetic sculpture made from waste materials.

This is supported by the COGB Creative Recovery Activation Fund.

The exhibition will run from June 19-27 at Dudley House, Bendigo.

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Bendigo Health Nursing & Midwifery Careers Why Bendigo Health

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Bendigo Health is a dynamic and growing health service, that is technologically advanced compared to other hospitals.

With a population of more than 114,000, Bendigo is a thriving regional city located only 150km north west or 90 minutes from Melbourne.

It is a city with the attributes of urban metropolis, and the benefits of living in regional Australia.

If you apply to be a Graduate Nurse or Midwife at Bendigo Health you have the option of choosing your own stream allowing you to take control of your nursing career. You will also be provided with the opportunity for ongoing employment following your graduate year.

We have a great teaching culture and very supportive staff. Our patient base is diverse, very friendly and accepting of people learning.

bendigohealth.org.au/careers

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revealing images They’re usually considered a means of concealing mistakes. But this Bendigo artist uses the humble eraser as a tool for telling her stories.

By Raelee Tuckerman - Photography by Leon Schoots There’s a drawer in Lyn Raymer’s light-filled studio at the rear of her historic mining-era home that bears witness to her drawing technique. It holds masses of eraser remnants, cut down so tiny they can barely be held but by the smallest of fingers, along with pencils similarly worn almost to the point of no return.

“I put them in here for my grandchildren,” smiles Lyn, who specialises in reductive charcoal and conte drawings, as she pulls opens the treasure trove. “They think it’s wonderful.”

On display all around the room are examples of Lyn’s striking blackand-white compositions, most created by first rubbing charcoal to completely cover the background of her paper, before she slowly starts to reveal her narrative by rubbing out sections of the shade.

“The eraser is my white chalk,” she explains. “I use it to chase the light, then I get back into it with darker conte. I keep reapplying light and dark. Sometimes I make quick freehand arcs because that gives such energy at the start and end of the lines you draw. And when you cut through with an eraser, it smudges and takes some black

with it, creating movement on the surface of the paper.”

Light and dark. Energy and movement. All key elements to conveying her message. “An artist must have a story to tell – and they must tell it well.”

Lyn grew up in Warrnambool and Gippsland and studied fine arts at RMIT and Monash University in the 1970s. She taught art at the Chinese International School in Hong Kong after moving there with husband Graham and ended up staying 22 years, managing her own studio in Fo Tan and her gallery in HK Central. She also conducted workshops there and in Dubai and it was during this time that drawing, particularly figurative art, emerged as her preferred mode of expression.

“I was having to draw to show my students the pose, the gesture – and then the love of it was on.”

Memories of her past – both positive and negative – feature heavily in some of Lyn’s recent work.

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Her Sha Tin series, based on the constantly changing shape of crowds, has its roots in train trips to Melbourne with her grandmother as a little girl. “I love crowds,” says Lyn. “While we sat at Spencer Street Station waiting to go home, my grandmother would encourage me to people watch. ‘What do you think they’re doing? Where do you think they’re going?’ It was her way of keeping me amused but it stuck. In Hong Kong, I had the added bonus of looking down on crowds of people, and watching the movement of those shapes was extraordinary. It really appeals to me – watching the energy of the crowd which, if you’re in amongst it, can be quite comforting or quite terrifying.”

The COVID-19 pandemic, combined with a childhood nightmare, spawned another series, titled H.M.A.S Story Book, featuring various representations of a menacing naval mine. “My grandfather had a hidden book I was never allowed near because it gave me nightmares. But I would seek it out and worry through those pages until I found the image (of a mine) I most feared: one that would then fall as a shadow in my sleep. Last year, when I saw those Pixar-coloured virus shapes floating across the television screen, they reminded me of that book. So I did a series of drawings to try and exorcise my demons.”

Works from both these series have received accolades from art critics. Lyn has been a finalist in more than a dozen major art awards over the past five years, including four during the lockdown year of 2020 (the Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award, the Gosford Art Prize, the Ravenswood Australian Women’s Art Prize, and the Lyn McCrea Memorial Drawing Prize). She held a solo exhibition at the Stockroom Gallery in Kyneton in 2019 and her work has appeared in various static and travelling exhibitions in Australia, Hong Kong and Dubai.

Art books and magazines abound in Lyn’s home, providing insight and invoking admiration of the techniques employed by other creative souls. “I have lots of art books from all over the world.

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“I look through them at the method and draw inspiration from them,” she says. “Every artist is interested in the methods and techniques. You have your own ideas, which come from the head or the heart or the gut. But there are many ways of expressing that and a lot of mediums to explore. I look at Syrian artist Youssef Abdelke, who I was fortunate enough to meet in Dubai, and look closely at his large charcoal drawings, extraordinary etched lines and sanded surfaces and I’m absolutely blown away. Then there’s Godwin Bradbeer, who burnishes the paper with silver spoons to get black silver oxide into his work. I would never attempt to use their techniques but their drawings have inspired me.”

Lyn draws “from the gesture to the squint”, meaning she starts each piece by working out the broad composition before focusing on more general gestures then honing in on the fine details. But she is careful not to become too caught up in detail, having learnt a valuable lesson during a life-drawing masterclass featuring an elderly male model many years ago.

“My drawing started to boast a far too keen observation of every fold and wrinkle on the model,” she recalls. “The artist, with his back to the model, spoke quietly to me and said, ‘give him dignity’.

I was missing something because I’d allowed my ego to get in the way. It was a pivotal moment and a lesson learned – reflecting on your work is a moment of self-reflection and that’s something I now pass onto students. You don’t get the essence and the beauty and the truth if you let your ego get in the way.”

After two decades in Asia, the Raymers landed back in Australia and six years ago chose Bendigo as their new home, having tired of high-rises and big cities. “Bendigo is totally lovely, though when you are local, you often don’t see what’s around you,” says Lyn. “It’s completely open, you don’t have to go far here to see a good horizon line and that’s very relaxing. It has very blue skies, proximity to the city, a growing art community, beautiful buildings and such history.”

Lyn hasn’t stopped drawing since arriving in her new surroundings, and is now keen to share her skills with budding local artists.

“I’ve been practising art in my own corner of Bendigo for several years but I need to get out and meet people,” she says. “I have a good deal of artistic and teaching knowledge so I hope to start teaching drawing here.

“The last five years has been very productive but it’s come at a cost, as I haven’t swapped ideas with other people. It’s time for me to once again enjoy the company of those who want to draw and to that end, I plan to offer drawing sessions to a small number of students, a couple of days a week. I’m ready and I’m excited.”

For more information, visit lynraymerartist.com

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Unwined amongst Bendigo’s vines Autumn and Winter make for a fantastic time to be in beautiful Bendigo sipping a local wine and tasting locally-prepared food. Immerse yourself in two upcoming events hosted by the Bendigo Winegrowers Association. Make a day of it, make a weekend of it, make great memories in the Bendigo wine region this Autumn and Winter.

Strategem Bendigo Winemakers Festival

Barrel Wine Tasting Weekend

Transforming Rosalind Park into an open-air wine and food festival for a fun filled day.

Barrel halls are usually guarded treasures but on the weekend of 10 11 July 2021, you will get to visit sacred barrel halls throughout the Bendigo region.

Around the park will be a range of handcrafted local wines to taste and regional food vendors, as well as live music providing the soundtrack to your day.

Due to COVID-19 limitations, patron capacity is restricted and tickets are limited.

This festival is proudly sponsored by Strategem, Bendigo Mazda, City of Greater Bendigo, Bendigo Tourism and Loddon Shire Council.

Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 April 2021

Winemakers will throw open the doors of their barrel halls and take you inside the sacred walls to taste wine straight from the barrel. You will meet the winemakers and uncover the mystery and romance of winemaking.

Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 July 2021 Tickets on sale soon Details at www.bendigowine.org.au

Tickets from $55 Go to www.bendigowine.org.au

www.bendigowine.org.au

@Bendigo_region_wines

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Ph: 03 5441 4800 420 Napier Street, Bendigo

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ABOVE: ‘The Road to Eaglehawk’ painted by Geoff Hocking from photographs taken by Les Elliott of Geelong:

the road to Eaglehawk: remember the Fifties?

Over the past year of gloom, doom and lockdown, a second cousin has been sending me images scanned from her late father’s collection of slides.

By Geoff Hocking Her mother was my mother’s first cousin and they lived in Geelong. Both were great friends as young girls. My mother often spent her teenage holidays in Geelong, and they kept up a close relationship all their lives.

Our relations would often come to Bendigo and stay with us in Golden Square.

Her father, Les, was a keen amateur photographer, and he got out and about in Bendigo and surrounds making a

visual record of old mining sites, old and abandoned farmhouses, rusting winding gear, Lake Eppalock under construction, Lake Neangar at Eaglehawk, and the Bendigo Easter Fair.

His photographs were mainly taken in the late Fifties. I can only work this out because any photograph in which I can be seen, I look about eight or nine years old, which would date the pictures as 1955.

Receiving these photographs inspired me to

translate them into a series of paintings of the mining sites.

One photograph that excited me in particular was of the tramline running through Long Gully. I have spoken about this stretch of road before, as it was drawn and reproduced as a coloured linocut by the artist Kenneth Jack at around the same time. What was serendipitous is that Les stood in exactly the same spot that Ken had done his drawing.

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This stretch of the road to Eaglehawk was also a popular spot for us as art students when at the old School of Mines. I have managed to keep, for the past 50 years, a small linocut carved by fellow student, Singaporean Leng Guan (John) Seow, who also sat in the same spot.

So, late last year, I painted this as well – as it was in 1955.

I checked with Dennis O’Hoy, one of my teachers at the old art school and a valuable repository of Bendigo historical facts and items of interest, and he was able to tell me who the proprietors were of the old Chinese grocery store that featured in all these artworks.

I had always known this store as Happy Jack’s. I was wrong, but pretty close. The last proprietor was Harry Jack, the father of wellknown Bendigo identity Russell Jack.

Dennis’s copy of the 1930 Post Office Directory shows that Chinese grocers and fruiterers Hang Goon and Ah Hoong are listed as proprietors of the old store, and Harry Jack is shown as proprietor/ fruiterer from 1938 until the 1960s. This is about the time we, as students, took our paints and sketchpads out onto the Eaglehawk road and tried our hand at recording a soon-to-be-lost part of the Bendigo Goldfields’ Chinese history.

What is today a BP service station and mini-store was once Herbert Pearce’s Petrol Station and Garage, and had previously been a blacksmith shop run by G.H. Cole and William Gardner.

ABOVE: Sailors Gully Hotel. East Clarence Mine painted by Geoff Hocking from photographs taken by Les Elliott of Geelong:

Dennis O’Hoy’s collection of directories has proven most valuable in providing this information. As I scrolled down through the propertyby-property listing, I noted that very little had changed. The Rose of Australia is still there, as is the Anglican Church and the little Post Office, and among the residents was a Lily Hocking, who I assume is a relative – at least ‘same tribe, different hut’.

Harry ‘Happy’ Jack’s ramshackle timber-framed store has long gone, but is remembered in cousin Les’s photographs and several linocuts from the old school days, and is certainly not forgotten by Bendigo’s Chinese community.

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It is interesting when looking at these old photographs to see how derelict many things were just over a half-century ago.

Mining machinery just abandoned and left to rust, streetscapes unmade, gutters just ditches at the side of the road, buildings on the verge of falling apart or readying themselves for the renovators of a new era – or destined for removal and replacement by new housing, as was the prognosis for the old Chinese store.

While we often think we have lost so much of our built history, and some of the crudely constructed goldfields buildings have just collapsed and disappeared, there is still so much to treasure. Every bit that remains tells our story – every photograph, every student drawing, every painting, every Post Office Directory, every memory, every word – helps keep our unique history alive.

“At Weeroona College Bendigo we care about our students and help them to thrive.”

Cultural Experiences at WCB

WCB students are given opportunities to engage in a variety of cultural experiences and classes.

WCB’s curriculum has been audited to recognise and celebrate Indigenous perspective and voices across all subjects. In addition to this, we offer Chinese and Auslan as part of our LOTE program and ‘First Nations People’, ‘Introduction to Revolutions’ and ‘World of Food’ electives.

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Adam, John, Leanne and Helen Flett

Aparna Ravichandran and Kartik Nandakumar

Diya, Molina and Ajay Asthana

Joan and Ian Vlaeminck and Peter and Margaret Galvin

Sharon, Peter and Cally Armstead

Tony and Judy Siragusa and Dennis Munari

HEATHCOTE FESTIVAL BRINGS IN CROWDS Autumn turned on its charm as crowds flocked to the Heathcote Community Festival over the Labour Day long weekend.

Central to the event was a bush market with stalls, food trucks and offerings from local vineyards. Visitors brought along picnic rugs and soaked up the atmosphere and enjoyed concerts from local musicians. Regional vineyards were also open.

finding home

Paw Ku Htee has called Bendigo home for nearly six years and is now helping other new arrivals to become independent and navigate the system.

By John Holton Photography by Leon Schoots “You should do this… you have an amazing story to tell.”

It was these words of encouragement from one of her closest friends that convinced Paw Ku Htee to enter Heywire – an ABC initiative for young people living in regional or rural Australia.

A member of Bendigo’s Karen community, Ku Htee is surrounded by hundreds of others with similar stories of life as refugees and asylum seekers – stories of traumatic loss and great resilience. She doubted her story was very ‘special’.

But the folk at the ABC disagreed. The 21-year-old Bendigo Senior Secondary College alumna was recently named one of 35 winners in this year’s Heywire competition for sharing the story of her journey from Mae Ra Moe refugee camp in Thailand to her new life in regional Victoria, working for Bendigo Community Health Service.

After graduating from BSSC, Ku Htee began her role as a trainee and now works three days a week supporting the Karen community in vitally important ways.

“My role is really varied,” she says. “Part of it is translation – getting important messages out to the community – but I also work closely with people who have been in Australia less than five years, teaching them how to become independent and navigate the system.

“It can be very hard for people to catch public transport, fill in forms, or access medical services and job providers.”

Paw Ku Htee pictured right.

Ku Htee is well placed to help people from refugee backgrounds, having spent the first 15 years of her life in Mae Ra Moe camp.

Her parents had fled the civil war in Myanmar many years earlier, forced to leave behind the family rice paddy, fearing for their lives.

“There was no hospital or doctors in the camp,” Ku Htee says. “I was born in the middle of winter beside the fire. My family lived in a bamboo hut.

“I’ve heard the stories from my parents many times. I think that was their way of dealing with it… to tell us everything.”

Ku Htee describes her education at the camp as “very basic”.

“I didn’t learn much English, as the teachers were not highly qualified,” she says, “but we were one of the luckier families.

“My parents had been in the camp for a long time and my dad got on really well with the nearby villagers. We had our own field to grow vegetables. Rice, oil and yellow beans were

supplied by aid organisations, but vegetables were a real luxury.”

Despite having some really good memories of her childhood, Ku Htee says the nature of life in a refugee camp is one of trauma and constant loss.

“People are always moving on… transitioning,” she explains. “You live so closely with people – get to know them really well – and then they suddenly disappear. I would think, ‘I want to go too’, but you couldn’t live in the past… you just had to move on.”

The lack of hospitals or doctors in the camp meant people regularly became ill from unknown diseases.

Ku Htee’s best friend was one of those who became sick when they were both just eight years old. When her health continued to deteriorate, she was eventually taken to the town an hour away by road. She died a half hour into the journey.

Ku Htee describes it as one of the toughest times in her life at the camp.

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“Those experiences are always with you,” she says. “You move on with your life, but you never forget.”

Leaving the camp after 15 years was a doubleedged sword for Ku Htee. She was excited about the opportunity to migrate to Australia, but sad to leave friends (and her pet dog) behind.

“I’ll never forget the bus journey to Bangkok,” she says. “It was more than 10 hours, but I refused to sleep because I didn’t want to miss a thing. I’d never been to a city before… never seen tall buildings.”

Boarding the plane to Australia was the first time Ku Htee had ever seen white people.

The unfamiliar food on the flight also left an 58

indelible mark.

“It was so awful… I think I had food trauma,” she says with a laugh. “I could still smell it for days after we arrived in Melbourne.”

Ku Htee and her family spent a year living in suburban Ringwood before being lured to Bendigo by the better access to services, the ease of getting around and the established and growing Karen community.

“After Melbourne, Bendigo felt like such an accepting and welcoming place. We quickly felt like we belonged here,” she says.

Ku Htee spent two years at BSSC in 2018-19 and made lasting friendships. She also credits her VET Allied Health teacher, Kait Kelly, as making a lasting impact on her life – inspiring

Ku Htee to apply for the Diploma of Nursing at Bendigo TAFE. “I really enjoy working with community and educating people and I want to continue to develop those skills,” she says.

“It would be great to travel and work in other countries one day, but to begin with I’d really love to work in a modern hospital like Bendigo Health. That’s the dream right now.”

She hopes this will also be the year she becomes an Australian citizen.

“Being born in a refugee camp means I have no official citizenship of any country,” she says.

“Having that identity is something that will be really important to me.”

Chris Kirwan, Lyn Graham and Valma Datson

Cheryl and Dave Campbell

Garry, Bernice, Brett and Laura Campbell

GOOD TIMES FOR NEW YEAR

Lisa and Jay Wills

Celebrating the Lunar New Year at the Malayan Orchid, known by many as Bobby and Pam’s, is an annual tradition for many.

Stuart Fletcher and Bernice Marshall

While COVID-19 restrictions brought a halt to dine-in on the first day of celebrations, guests were eventually able to gather to bring in the Year of the Ox.

Warren and Deb Sinnott

BSSC Alumni

Succeeding in Bendigo

EMILY COSSAR – Class of 2017 Bachelor of Paramedic Practice

JOSPEH KENNY – Class of 2018

SHANIA CHARVAT – Class of 2016

Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Medical)

Bachelor of Human Services/Master of Social Work

At Bendigo Senior Secondary College we love to see our Alumni thriving in their chosen pathway at La Trobe University Bendigo. While our Alumni forge successful careers both nationally and around the globe, it’s great that so many discover their strengths, follow their passions, and gain qualifications for life right here in Bendigo.

DEKLAN HEIDER – Class of 2017 Bachelor of Information Technology

If you’re a former student of BSSC or Bendigo High, visit our website, fill out the Alumni Q & A form, and let us know how the college helped point you towards your future. We’ll share your responses with our Alumni community and current students as a way to build a culture of aspiration.

As Alumni, there are so many ways you can be involved in the life of the college; whether it’s taking part in college events, sharing your career and life experiences with students, or supporting them through mentoring, awards and scholarships.

You may simply want to keep up-to-date with what’s happening at the college, or network with other Alumni through our Facebook page and Alumni News on the BSSC website.

Like to find out more?

Drop us a line... alumni@bssc.edu.au

Bendigo Senior Secondary College Empowering learners for individual, community and global leadership

www.bssc.edu.au

the year of the babies

My office is abuzz with baby talk. Not only am I due to give birth to my second in April, two other members of our team are also expecting. I have declared 2021 ‘the year of babies’.

By Lisa Chesters, Federal Member for Bendigo - Photograph by AJ Taylor Bendigo and the surrounding region is going through a bit of a baby boom. According to Bendigo Health, their record birthing month was 152 babies in July 2020. Bookings for January to March sat at around 160, rising to 180 by the second quarter of 2021.

Whilst the immediate focus is pregnancy care, the birth and the newborn bubble, expecting mums are always encouraged to communicate with their employers and make decisions about their return-to-work plans post maternity leave.

Today, it is possible for new mothers to also have a career, but it hasn’t always been this way.

It’s hard to believe that, for many of us, our mothers and grandmothers did not have the same choice. Many were forced to give up their jobs once they were married or had their first child.

It wasn’t until 1966 that women in the Australian Public Service won the right to remain employed after marriage. Many women working in the private sector had to wait much longer for the same rights.

Whilst the laws changed to make it illegal to sack a woman because she got married or pregnant, the culture in Australian workplaces didn’t change for many years.

My mum resigned from her job as a bank teller just before I was born. Back in the ‘80s it was just expected that women would leave their jobs when their first child was born.

We’ve come a long way since this time, but the primary caring role in many families still falls to mum.

Conversations with family and colleagues about how to balance babies and work can be challenging. I acknowledge that I’m in a privileged position as a member of parliament with flexible hours and child care at Parliament House.

I want to encourage other workplaces to do what they can to enable new parents to transition back into the workforce with ease.

I take pride in the fact that my expecting staff members told me their exciting news early on. I know that many women hide pregnancies from employers for many months in fear they may be treated differently or not be presented with career opportunities.

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Felicity Wolff, Lisa Chesters and Erin Ryan

This stigma must change.

Although pregnant staff members come with the challenge of filling their positions whilst they take maternity leave, I have found it has also presented an opportunity to have open discussions about flexible return-to-work options.

At a time where the cost of child care is often a barrier for parents (mostly women) who wish to return to work after having a baby, I encourage businesses and organisations across Bendigo to work towards arrangements that suit all parties.

Women deserve the right to be able to have families and careers.

Unfortunately, the gender pay gap still very much exists in Australia.

According to Workplace Gender Equality Agency 2018-19 data, the gender pay gap sits at 20.8 per cent, meaning men working fulltime earn $25,679 on average a year more than women working full-time. It’s evident that over a lifetime, women will earn less than men, be less likely to advance their careers, and accumulate less superannuation and savings than men.

Women are, therefore more likely to live in poverty in old age.

One way we can start to fix this problem is by providing better options to women returning to work after having a child. Whether it be flexible hours, days, child care arrangements or working from home options, open and honest channels of communication with returning staff members are vital.

Gone are the days where the man is required to be the sole ‘breadwinner’. Many women are now on higher incomes than their partners, so it sometimes makes more sense financially for the female to work more hours.

I’d like to normalise the idea of the man or supporting partner stepping into a part-time role to help raise a family rather than the expectation always be on the mother.

WGEA states that for every hour Australian men commit to unpaid care and domestic work, Australian women commit one hour and 48 minutes.

Further, many dads and partners are keen to spend more time with their little ones. I’ve had countless fathers with older children say to me, “I wish I could have been there more in the early years. Your kids grow up so quickly and I feel like I’ve missed so much”.

Unequal unpaid care work is a barrier to reaching gender equality in the paid workforce because it reinforces gender stereotypes of the female ‘homemaker’ and male ‘breadwinner’. There is a new generation of men who are keen to work flexibly, but research by Bain and Company shows that men are twice as likely as women to have their requests to work flexibly rejected and can face careerlimiting judgements in the workplace about their work ethic.

Unfortunately, here in Australia, supporting parents do not have the opportunity to access the same flexible work arrangements as primary care givers.

COVID-19 has taught us that high levels of productivity are achievable in more flexible work environments and I hope these changes open the door to greater workplace participation for women.

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Ashlee and Andrew Family tradition played a big part in this Bendigo couple’s special day, after COVID caused some pre-wedding jitters.

Photography by Justin & Jim After many opportunities to meet in person – living in the same college at university, the same suburb in both Melbourne and Bendigo – it was the internet that finally brought Ashlee and Andrew together. They started dating in 2015. Four years later, on Christmas Day, Andrew popped the question.

“We’d exchanged gifts and were preparing to take our dog for a walk,” Ashlee says.

“Andrew said that he had one more gift and produced a basketball and asked, ‘what else

do you need to go with a basketball?’.”

Adds Andrew: “Ashlee answered ‘a ring?’, and there was an engagement ring behind the basketball. After some lovely words, she said yes!”

Following family tradition, the couple exchanged vows at Sacred Heart Cathedral.

The reception was at Ulumbarra Theatre, with the Bendigo Chinese Association Lion Dance Team introducing the newlyweds to guests with a bang.

“Sacred Heart Cathedral is a significant

place, with many of Ashlee’s family also being married there, including her parents Kerry and Doug in 1980,” Andrew says.

“Her family have been long-time members and volunteers with Bendigo Chinese Association and we were proud to share some of our history with our guests with the lion dance performance.”

Their February 20 wedding took place just days after Victoria emerged from a COVID-19enforced snap lockdown, leaving the couple nervous in the lead-up to their big day.

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“The five-day circuit breaker lockdown in the week before wasn’t ideal, but we’re so grateful we got to go ahead and feel for any couples that have had their special days postponed or interrupted. Some of our good friends had to change their plans as they couldn’t make it from the Northern Territory.”

But it wasn’t the only hiccup for the couple, with Ashlee burning her face in a cooking accident three days before their wedding.

Yet it was far from their minds on the day, with the bride looking stunning in her wedding dress from Lover. Renik did Ashlee’s hair and her makeup was by Make Up By Ky. Flowers were from Libertine Florist. The groom wore a classic suit from Peter Anthony Bendigo. They have nothing but praise for all their vendors, and advise other couples to listen to the experts when wedding planning.

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“Trust the opinion and recommendations of your vendors; ours didn’t steer us wrong.

But also trust your own instincts because at the end of the day, if you’re comfortable and you plan the wedding that you want, you can’t go wrong.”

Family featured prominently on the day, including the couple’s labrador Dara, who appeared front and centre in the photos

by Justin and Jim. Photos were taken in the cathedral grounds and at the Chinese Gardens.

“Having Dara as part of our day and in our photos was special, as was driving Andrew’s Uncle John’s AMG GT around Bendigo.

There were many highlights – the lion dance, our first dance, spending time with our bridal party, being surrounded by our loving family and friends, all of it.”

To ensure they put their best foot forward on the dance floor, the couple took lessons at Motion Dance Studio, with James Hollands providing the music that kept guests dancing well into the night.

For their honeymoon, Ashlee and Andrew, who are “enjoying referring to each other as husband and wife”, spent a week in Harrietville, exploring Mount Buffalo, Bright and surrounds.

Back home in Bendigo and reflecting on their wedding, Ashlee says having family and friends together made the day even more special.

“We have beautiful memories of just how happy we both were all day. More than anything, being surrounded by all the people that we love and appreciate having in our lives, especially after being separated from most of them for much of the previous year, will last a lifetime.”

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WINE. FOOD. FUNCTIONS, WEDDINGS & CONFERENCES Visit our Cellar Door and Gallery. You can relax and enjoy wine tasting in air conditioned comfort or relax outdoors in the gardens.

“AN EXCELLENT WINERY, PRODUCING WINES OF HIGH TO VERY HIGH QUALITY” JAMES HALLIDAY Open at weekends, at other times by appointment - 0417 357 688 - 77 Faderson’s Lane, Mandurang - (9km South - East of Bendigo, Off Tannery Lane)

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155 VIEW STREET BENDIGO PH: 5442 4411

Hayley & Ben This bride and groom used their own expertise to help make their wedding day memorable, even if they did have to wait a little longer than planned.

Photography by Justin & Jim After the global pandemic forced a delay to their wedding, Haylee and Ben were excited to finally exchange vows before family and friends on a sunny Friday in February.

florist for a while now and since the beginning, I had dreamed of what I would do. It was so great having some amazing florist friends help me on the day to bring it all together.”

Their wedding setting was the picturesque Fortuna Villa, with the ceremony area beside the private lake decorated in blooms Haylee and her colleagues at The Petal Factory had prepared.

The ceremony was brief and to the point as the couple wanted to spend as much time as possible with their loved ones after being apart for so long.

The beaming bride, dressed in a stunning gown from Poppy’s Bridal Couture, even carried a bouquet she had lovingly created for her and Ben’s special day.

“It was so rewarding being able to do the flowers for my own wedding. I have been a

“Finally getting to get married was the best feeling. Until I walked down that aisle, we both felt that with restrictions and COVID that it could get cancelled at any moment – it didn’t feel real until then,” Haylee says, of having to reschedule their wedding from October 17 to February 26.

As guests gathered for a group photo with the couple, Ben announced even bigger news – that Haylee was pregnant.

“He announced to all of our family and friends that we are expecting our first baby, during the group photo shoot. That will be a massive memory we will cherish.”

The couple met nine years ago through the Marong Football Netball Club.

“It was the first club event of the season, and it was a mystery bus tour. Because there were so many newbies at the club that year, they decided to pair up a footballer and a netballer for the evening to help introduce everyone.

Ben ended up being paired with my sister for 69

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the night and we became good friends from then. Twelve months after that, we started our relationship.”

The wedding proposal came on a trip to Melbourne, during a side trip to Trentham Falls.

“When we got there, we did a bit of exploring and at the bottom of the falls he got down on one knee and proposed.”

It was fitting that a garden setting would feature in their wedding. As the sun started to set on the day, the ice cream cart from Bianco Latte proved a popular diversion while the bridal party explored the gardens for photos with Justin and Jim Photography.

“We wanted the day to just be relaxed and enjoyable so we hired the gelato cart as a little treat to be enjoyed whilst enjoying the sun in the garden before the reception started.”

Guests were also intrigued with Ben’s newly restored XY Falcon, a project he and his dad had completed just the day before.

“Having Ben’s childhood dream car in the wedding was a highlight. Ben originally bought it when he was 15. Together with his dad, they spent the past 12 months restoring it.”

After a busy, yet ‘stop-go’ lead-up to the day, Haylee and Ben “finally escaped” to enjoy a week in Port Douglas. Now back home, they are settling into married life and Haylee says they never once thought their wedding day wouldn’t come – they just kept having to look forward to it a little longer than planned.

“Being home, it is nice to have such a massive life event to reflect on. To all the couples affected by COVID, just plan the best that you can – you cannot do anything if closures are announced, it is completely out of your control.

Don’t get caught up in the small stuff, just enjoy that your day has finally arrived and you get to marry your loved one.”

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Andre Sardone and Moustafa Al Rawi

Caleb Maxwell and John Richards

David Darrah and Bailey Cook

Ché Stevenson and Gretchen Hillhouse

Denae Trickey and Belinda Jordaan

Leon Schoots and Reece Hendy

CREATIVES SHARE NEXT STEPS After weeks of creative planning and business thinking, 15 creative entrepreneurs shared the next steps in their careers at the inaugural Emporium Creative Hub Incubator presentation evening.

The Incubator program is designed to bring a business focus to creative minds, and the small crowd in attendance relished hearing the next steps for participants.

www.justinandjim.com.au

Matilda Lovett, Bella Bowles, Avni Rao and Dylan Sim

Milly Fletcher, Zoe Cuthbertson, Sophie Mayes and Frances Leach

Chloe Davey, Miffy Fisher, Ruby Conti, Kiara Primmer and Olivia Kealy

Lewis Fitzpatrick, Charlie Keogh, Gus Waller and Will Crane

STUDENTS LAP UP SWIM CARNIVAL More than 800 students made a splash at Girton Grammar School’s 2021 Senior School Swimming Carnival.

Liam Jones, Matthew Saxon, Jeremy Carlson, Emily Russell and Alex Blake

Madeline Dole, Skye Fitzsimmons and Miriam Henry

Six sports houses competed, filling the Faith Leech Aquatic Centre with colour.

2021 honours went to Jones House for the Spirit Cup and Jenkin House the overall perpetual trophy.

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flavours of autumn

Magnificent local vintages to help you transition into the autumn season.

By Ashley Raeburn - Restaurant Manager - Alium Dining Photography by Leon Schoots ELLIS WINES, ‘SIGNATURE LABEL’ ROSE 2020 - HEATHCOTE Ellis Wines is definitely one of the success stories from the Heathcote wine region in recent times. With a strong focus on Shiraz, the team also produce fantastic Cabernet, Merlot and Viognier. The winery is going from strength to strength in terms of releasing exceptional quality wines that continue to bring home a swag of awards. These include being named one of the 10 Dark Horse Wineries of 2021, a Five Star Winery Rating and three wines all rated 92 or above in the renowned James Halliday Wine Companion.

The awards keep coming with this current Rose receiving 5 Stars/ Gold Medal from Winestate Magazine. Produced predominantly from Shiraz with small amounts of Viognier adding richness and depth to the wine, it pours a lovely salmon pink colour in the glass.

MANDURANG VALLEY, RIESLING 2020 - BENDIGO

This boutique winery seems to be getting better with every vintage.

Family owned and operated since the first vines were planted in the mid 1970’s, The Vine’s (yes that’s their surname!) now have three generations working together to produce exceptional wines from the Bendigo region. Hosting a particularly delightful cellar door and extremely impressive gardens. It is very easy to spend an afternoon sampling the ranges of wines with a gourmet cheese platter. Don’t forget to check out Pam’s regularly changing art exhibitions as well.

As one of the few Riesling producers in Central Victoria, Mandurang Valley consistently produce a delicious wine that punches well above it’s price point. Light golden straw in colour, the initial nose delivers aromas of freshly grated lemon and lime zest leading into a gentle but lively palate that will please the most discerning Riesling drinker. Notes of honeysuckle, orange blossom and fresh autumn fruit (apples and pears) are balanced with just the right amount of acidity providing excellent depth to the finish.

Dishes with a subtle hint of spice would work well as would freshly cooked scallops. The wine also displays the potential to age quite well over the next 5 to 7 years.

Aromas of freshly picked strawberries, red cherries and rose petals provide a delicious introduction with the palate fresh and lively with summer red berry flavours and a touch of apricot from the Viognier.

Gentle acidity gives beautiful balance to the natural fruit sweetness and helps delivers a long lasting finish. Try with a mix of quality charcuterie or grilled zucchini with goats cheese and pomegranate.

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SANDHURST RIDGE, FRINGE SHIRAZ 2013 -W BENDIGO Having been recently named as a Five Star Winery as well as one of only 10 who were awarded the Dark Horse Winery of the Year by the esteemed James Halliday. These accolades provide true recognition to one of Bendigo’s finest vineyards who have been producing award winning wines for over 25 years. Owned and operated by the Greblo family, their history and knowledge of winemaking and agriculture certainly make for some outstanding wines. A visit to the cellar door can see you sampling favourites such as Shiraz, Cabernet Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc along with the lesser known Italian varietal Nebbiolo.

Sandhurst Ridge also have a extensive selection of excellent back vintage wines including this 2013 Shiraz. With the top quality fruit sourced from nearby to Sandhurst Ridge Estate, this is definitely a steal for those who like their Shiraz with some years under the belt.

A distinctive regional nose of ripe dark fruit comes to the fore immediately with hints of white pepper leading to a palate packed full of dark fruit – plums, black cherries and blackberries. Tannins have softened but still evident providing excellent length to this rich and seductive wine. An excellent accompaniment to Beef Wellington, or just a quiet glass on a cool Easter night with good chocolate.

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TURNERS CROS S I N G From the banks of the Loddon River, Turners Crossing has been producing wines of outstanding quality that speak of a sense of place and provenance.

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greens

By Beau Cook - Photography by Leon Schoots

A great way to use up the last of those giant homegrown zucchinis.

Nice with poached eggs for breakfast or as a side salad.

CHARRED ZUCCHINI WITH GARLIC BUTTER, LEMON AND PARMESAN Serves 4-6 as a side Ingredients • 1 oversized zucchini (approx. 800g) • 2 tbl. olive oil • 1 tsp. sea salt flakes • 2 tbl. pine nuts • 2 tbl. unsalted butter • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped • Juice of half a lemon • Handful of soft herbs, finely sliced (either mint, basil or parsley) • 50g parmesan cheese, finely grated • Cracked black pepper

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Method 1. Slice zucchini into 2cm thick wheels (if using smaller zucchinis slice lengthways). Toss with olive oil and sea salt.

2. Heat a large pan or BBQ on a high heat then grill zucchini for 4 minutes each side or until nicely charred.

Place onto a large serving dish.

3. Meanwhile, heat a small pan over a medium/high heat, toast pine nuts until golden all over, then add butter and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the butter is foaming and starting to brown slightly, then add lemon juice and take off the heat.

4. Spoon butter mix all over the charred zucchini, scatter with herbs and top with parmesan and some cracked pepper.

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SWEET NIGHT OUT A WINNER It was called the Sweet Summer Nights market but someone forgot to bring the balmy January weather. Despite that, crowds braved the windy evening to spend their Friday outdoors.

The twilight event was held at the Bendigo Racecourse and offered something for everyone. Stalls were brimming with gift ideas, including crystals, bath items, candles, Aboriginal art and leather items, as well as plenty of food options and a jumping castle for the young ones

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taking the plunge

On revitalising their backyard with a new pool, many more fun-filled Summer days are on the horizon for a Malmsbury couple.

By Marina Williams – Photography by Leon Schoots

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It was out with the old and in with the new when Ian and Judy decided the family pool needed an update.

The property offers extended views across the rolling hills of Taradale, taking in the Bell Topper and railway line.

They wanted something that would best suit their lifestyle, complement their home and fit respectfully within the existing landscape. Within months, ideas became reality with a custom concrete pool an unobtrusive addition to their Malmsbury property.

“We see the trains come past, and you should see it when the steam trains come up. It is absolutely wonderful and the steam and smoke fills the valley. It is a beautiful spot to live.”

“We only wanted the pool to go out a certain distance, so we could look out from the dining room and see the dams. It looks like water all the way through this section of the landscape,” says Ian. “It brings an added sense of calmness to the place.”

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The family has lived at the property for about 14 years, with six children and 14 grandchildren enjoying many summers in and beside the old pool that once sat in the same spot. The garden was already in good shape, as was the existing deck and patio areas, so it was vital the new pool footprint matched.

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“We had it for the kids, it had its day, so we spent some money and got a new pool. We went to Kurt, were impressed with his approach and soon we were building. Kurt, Nic and the team at Evolution Pools were absolutely great to deal with and really took on our vision and needs.”

Rob from Bendigo Bathrooms added the finishing touches with tiling. All trades met the retired builder’s standards.

“Rob did an absolutely beautiful job, one of the best jobs I have seen,” Ian says.

“He is a great guy and his workmanship was second to none.”

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The project took about six months. A site inspection deemed concrete the best option, says Kurt, with the pool requiring special engineering to meet reactive soil conditions. Solar heating and an automated mechanical heatpump system best suited the climate.

Automation keeps the water temperature constant to extend the swimming season.

The pool measures a modest 5m by 4m and the owners were specific about its depth. It ranges from 1300mm to 1750mm at its deepest.

“We didn’t want a huge pool, just one in which a few people could sit, have a

wine or a beer and talk. Because we are getting older we wanted quite big steps going down into it. We also wanted to stand in it and be covered by the water,” Ian says.

Cotto tiles in alpine grey line the pool, with coping tiles and surrounds a porcelain finish. The drop-face coping tiles and additional tiles are charcoal quartz. Paint for the pool wall was matched to plantings in the garden.

“We were also specific with the colour choices so the pool would blend into the landscape. The tiles complement the grey hardwood that looks like a wharf. It all

matches,” he says. “Having glass fencing was also important, so the view wasn’t obstructed from the sitting areas.”

The pool isn’t large in stature, but it has made its mark on its creators and owners.

“It was a pleasure working with the client to create a pool that fits within the already beautiful landscape, not take away from but complement the existing surroundings,” says Kurt.

It will also continue to be a popular gathering place for friends and family, says Ian. “We are loving it. The kids are grown up now, but we can see many more years of fun to be had here.”

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ruling the court We’re about to blow the whistle on the full extent of a local netball enthusiast’s sporting talent.

By Raelee Tuckerman - Photography by Leon Schoots Maddie O’Nial works as a nuclear medicine technologist in Bendigo Health’s radiology department and is known among friends and colleagues as a keen netball player and official.

But few outside her centre circle realise she’s part of the elite umpiring pathway program, regularly running courtside at Victorian Netball League matches and twice earning selection to officiate at national championships.

“It’s like I have this secret life,” she laughs. “I have many good friends outside of netball who know I play and umpire, but I don’t think they know exactly what I umpire. And a lot of people at work have no idea I umpire down in Melbourne, or anything like that.”

Maddie will take the court this season for Kangaroo Flat in the Bendigo Football Netball League, joining the club last year after moving here mid-2019 to take up her dream job, but not getting the chance to pull on the Roos’ uniform due to the pandemic.

She also plans to resume VNL duties, driving to Melbourne each Wednesday night to officiate the state’s premier domestic competition.

Her umpiring journey has been challenging, especially as a country kid from Echuca making five-hour round trips to the big smoke as a teen to gain experience and access top-level coaching.

“I started at the Echuca and District Netball Association, originally as a player, but when I was 14, I decided to give umpiring a go to get that extra challenge,” Maddie recalls. “I was 15 when I got my C-grade badge and at 17, received my B badge doing Regional State League matches in Bendigo. I’d finish school on Wednesdays, jump in the car with Mum and drive down for games. It was then I realised I actually wasn’t too bad at it.”

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When Maddie joined Kyabram in the Goulburn Valley league, her whistle skills were quickly noticed by the local umpiring convenor. “I umpired a B-reserve match in round two and from round three I was doing A-grade and that’s where I stayed. It was quite abnormal to see a 16-year-old running around umpiring A-grade and at first, people didn’t pay me much regard because they thought I was just a little girl.

But I think I surprised a few.”

Her impartiality was highlighted by the fact her sister Steph played A-grade for Kyabram and for a long time opposition teams were unaware of the family connection. “That’s probably the best compliment you can get as an umpire. I don’t treat Steph differently to any other player, even when I had to caution her once (though I did have a little smile on my face).

“She might give a little eye roll at times, and our team-mates say they’d hate to be in the car with us on the way home, but it’s fine because we both treat our roles very professionally. Mum taught us integrity is something you have to maintain, and is hard to regain if it’s lost, so it’s important to us.”

Maddie spent nine years at Kyabram, playing 150-plus games, before taking a break to focus solely on umpiring. “I’d been invited to the 17/Under and 19/Under national championships in 2016, which I wasn’t expecting. I got a letter from Netball Australia, opened it and bawled my eyes out. To get that experience felt like I was on the cusp of taking the next step and I decided that while I loved playing, if I wanted to take umpiring more seriously I had to devote more time to it.

“That turned out really well because I got my A badge in 2018 after testing during VNL. I remember going into the rooms and being told I’d passed and just starting to cry.

I’d worked towards it for so long and not many umpires get to that stage, especially from regional areas. It was very gratifying.

“I was thinking about everyone who helped me along the way and all the sacrifices, particularly from family. Early on, I was asked to umpire state team training and practice matches in Melbourne early on Sundays. It was a big opportunity but I 90

couldn’t drive, so Mum was always up for the task; Dad as well, when he was home from work. All those hours spent in the car from Echuca, I’m very fortunate they could do that for me.”

That A-badge opened other doors for Maddie, including selection for the 2019 national championships and being named as a reserve umpire for the Australian Netball League. It also means she is eligible to pursue her AA (All Australia) accreditation, the highest level available.

“Umpiring ANL is my next goal,” she says.

“Even reserving, it was fantastic to be on the sidelines and see some of the top up-and-coming netballers. It’s a whole different level of netball and you have to step up to an even greater commitment of fitness, nutrition and time on the road travelling interstate. But I hope all that’s in the pipeline.”

In the meantime, Maddie looks forward to making her BFNL debut in the midcourt for the Roos. “It’s exciting to be back playing netball at a new club. It’s a fantastic environment with great girls and really good coaches and I can’t wait to get out there alongside them. I also want to do as many VNL games as I can. And being in Bendigo is closer to home so it means I can see my family a bit more, so I’m really excited for what this year holds.”

Her advice for emerging regional netball umpires is to grasp every opportunity.

“Every chance to umpire trials, or attend tournaments, where you can get exposure to Netball Victoria officials is invaluable experience and gets you on their radar.

That’s how it worked for me. Put yourself out there and don’t be afraid to take the next step. You never know where it might get you.”

John Northfield, Paul Robins, Jayd Ingles and Steven Osborne

Paul Maliphant and Jo Burgess

Duncan and Anna

CROWDS IN TUNE FOR WEEKEND

Paul Robins and Janine Holland

Blues and roots favourite John McNamara brought the tunes to Hustler in early March.

Michelle McKee and Pina Davis

Tusker Patterson, Kerri Peacoulakis, Keith McNamara, Hayley and Scotty McFarlane

The burger restaurant’s Live Blues Fridays is set to become a Bendigo favourite as crowds emerge from their 2020 COVID-19 slumber.

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BENDIGO DENTAL PROSTHETICS

the globetrotter A mishap on an overseas school excursion changed his life, but this Bendigo boy has bounced back to become an international professional athlete.

By Raelee Tuckerman - Photography by Leon Schoots

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As a kid, Jontee Brown loved shooting hoops with his mates and dribbling a basketball up and down the Bendigo Stadium courts, where he’d played “just for fun” since he was eight. But a fall in the Philippines at the start of Year 12 in 2015 forced an unwelcome time out on his sporting endeavours.

“I was interested in going to college in the US until one of my teammates in Melbourne mentioned Europe where he played, and helped me get my first contract in Germany, which was wicked.

It was amazing to be paid to live overseas and play in a fully professional league, which isn’t even a thing here in Australia.”

“I cut my leg open and, on returning to Australia, it was infected,” the 23-year-old Catholic College alumnus explains. “I spent six weeks in hospital, had seven surgeries and was diagnosed with a severe case of reactive arthritis, an inflammatory disease that attacks your joints. That whole year, I just rehabbed and hoped to get back to sport and be like a normal kid again. But it didn’t get better, it got worse, and I had to use crutches every day.”

Jontee recently moved from Bendigo to Melbourne, where he trains five days a week, starting at 6am. He travels back twice weekly for his role as a teacher’s aide at St Therese’s Primary School and has also worked in disability support for Access Australia.

During that difficult time, Jontee’s grandmother saw Australian Paralympian and multi-sport superstar Dylan Alcott playing wheelchair basketball on TV and suggested he might like to try it.

“Luckily enough, Bendigo had a club so I went to a training night with my brother and best mate for moral support,” Jontee says.

“I wasn’t very good and I was very nervous. There’s that stigma of being 18 and having a disability… it was tough. But five years later, here we are.”

Since taking his Nan’s advice, Jontee has captained Victoria to an under-23 national title, won bronze at a junior world championship, played professionally in Europe, earned a Victorian Institute of Sport scholarship and been selected in the open-age Australian Rollers squad. He is in the running to represent Australia at this year’s Tokyo Paralympics.

“I got my first Australian jersey in 2017 at under-23 level, when I was called up to play in Thailand. It was an unreal experience and one I never thought would happen so quickly, given I only started in 2016.

I went as the 12th man but was put into the starting five after four games. To be fair, I don’t remember much because it was all such a blur.

“I was reselected for the junior world championships in Canada the same year. It was next level but we had some very talented players and we finished third. That’s when I realised how big the sport was internationally and the possibilities available.”

Jontee then spent two years playing in Cologne, Germany, and Meaux, near Paris, though he flew home early from France last year due to COVID.

His current aim is to be named in the final 12-member Rollers team for the Paralympics, after attending his first senior training camp at the AIS in Canberra in February. Also at the camp and vying for Games selection was ex-Bendigonian Bree Mellberg, who has been part of the women’s Australian Gliders squad since 2017. A former junior national diving champion, Bree broke her neck in a trampoline accident and wheelchair basketball played a pivotal role in her recovery. She trains with Jontee in Melbourne and the pair play for Kilsyth Cobras in the national wheelchair basketball league.

Bendigo has a squad of about 10 wheelchair basketballers who have been incorporated into the semi-professional Bendigo Braves program alongside its senior men’s and women’s teams. They play occasional matches against other regional and metro teams. Jontee hasn’t suited up for his home town in a while, but he maintains strong links to the group.

“The support Bendigo Stadium and the Braves have given us has been huge for my own development and everyone else’s,” says Jontee. “They help with everything from training, to uniforms and the expenses of travelling to play, which is incredible.

“If you want to play basketball as an able-bodied athlete, you buy a $100 pair of shoes and uniform and you’re good to go. All those things are added extras for wheelchair athletes on top of the chair we have to buy. Each chair is specifically made for each player and my last one cost $8500.”

Jontee has joined forces with stadium management to help plan future pathways for wheelchair basketballers across the region that could include a domestic competition and national league teams. “That’s a huge goal of mine and Bendigo Stadium and we talk a lot about how we can achieve it. We’d love to see permanent men’s and women’s national league teams based in Bendigo and I think it’s very doable considering the facilities and inclusion we have at the moment.

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“We’re also trying to capture more local athletes who maybe don’t know about wheelchair basketball or don’t know they can play. I have a minimal disability and didn’t realise I’d be eligible.”

Despite its name, wheelchair basketball participants don’t need to be confined to a chair. Athletes are assigned points according to their disability, with a maximum 14 points allowed between the five players on court. Jontee, for example, is classified as a 4-point player. He cannot run, has restricted trunk rotation and walks with a crutch because of joint instability, structural damage and pain.

“The ultimate would be to see it televised like other sports are – the Australian Open wheelchair tennis is now played on Rod Laver Arena and is televised; the national men’s and women’s able-bodied basketball leagues are televised. Even one game a month might mean an extra 10,000 people get to watch wheelchair basketball. I am passionate about the sport.”

Jontee says he still shakes his head when he considers his life journey since that ill-fated school trip.

“If anyone told me all this was possible back then, I’d have laughed at them. I’ve been to 17 or 18 countries through basketball, which I would probably never have got to do. I just played basketball with my mates for fun before. It’s still surreal and I don’t think that feeling will change until I’m retired and look back on everything I did.”

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