Domain Review Bayside & Port Phillip - July 05, 2023

ART

FIRST NATIONS COLLABORATIONS

TRAVEL

SEE WHAT’S NEW IN SYDNEY

PROPERTY

ELEGANT

EDWARDIAN

Otway Solid Dining Table & Armchairs by Kett

I was lucky to go to the opening of Connection at The Lume, and as art from First Nations peoples danced across the space, I was in awe of their ties to the land. This NAIDOC week, we talk to more Indigenous artists attracting a new audience – notably children. Also, our cover star Tony Armstrong humbly tells us his tale of fame. Here is a welcome to country –it’s from my daughter’s kinder class: “We would like to say thank you to the Wurundjeri people for letting us share your land. We promise to look after it, the plants, the animals and the people too. Hello land, hello sky, hello me, hello friends.” ●

Compiled by HAILEY COULES

SPECIAL BOND \ Two Girls From Amoonguna, the enchanting story of two childhood friends who are now leading artists, is being told at ACMI through animation and art until August 20. ● acmi.net.au

EASY-PEASY \ Up your chef game with Melbourne brand Supper Supply’s new squeezable Australian extra-virgin olive oil, Main Squeeze. The bottle is 100 per cent recycled plastic. ● suppersupply.com.au

THE EDIT

Things we love about Melbourne

OUR COVER \

Tony Armstrong

Photographed by Hugh Davies

MORE TO LOVE ONLINE

Go to domain.com.au/domain-review

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Editor \ Jemimah Clegg

Editorial producer \ Hailey Coules

Group picture editor \ Kylie Thomson

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National magazine editor \ Natalie Mortimer

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REVIEW

FRESH FARE \ Pipi’s Kiosk in Albert Park is throwing a Celebration of the Bay lunch on July 9, hosted by food writer Richard Cornish. Guests will enjoy a four-course seafood feast. ● pipiskiosk.com.au

CELEBRATING COUNTRY \ The Arts Centre’s stacked NAIDOC Week program includes the digital projection Spirits of the Land and the use of native ingredients at Pawa Cafe & Bar. ● artscentremelbourne.com.au

JAKE RODEN

BAKRI MAHMOUD

RICHARD CORNISH

Sydney boasts a slew of new places and events to explore.

Words DONNA DEMAIO

Heading overseas for a winter getaway is not for everyone. If you’re seeking a closer-to-home adventure, Sydney has undergone a multimillion-dollar spruce-up, and sprouting up across the harbour city are new luxury hotels, buzzing restaurants and elevated experiences. We checked out some of the latest offerings. ●

Harbour city swings

Entertainment

Just days after the Australian premiere of Tina – The Tina Turner Musical in the aptly named Theatre Royal, the world mourned the loss of the Queen of Rock ’n’ Roll. Rising star Ruva Ngwenya brings her powerhouse vocals to channel the late, great Ms Turner. The 23-song show celebrates Turner’s talent and successes, while also chronicling her misery with domestic abuser ex-husband Ike Turner (performed superbly by Tim Omaji) – her musical collaborator for nearly 20 years. There’s no word yet if the musical will tour Australia.

● tinathemusical.com.au

Experience peak Sydney on The Jackson superyacht – the newest way to head out on the harbour. There’s a grand staircase, private dining room, refined outdoor spaces and cool rooftop bar. It oozes sophisticated grandeur while gliding past (or under) landmarks like the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.

● thejackson.com.au

Stay

While glancing at the breakfast buffet at the sumptuous hotel Capella Sydney, staff occasionally appear from nowhere to hand you a plate. It is indicative of the next-levelservice at Brasserie 1930 – a majestic restaurant in the restored and transformed former Department of Education building in the Sandstone Precinct. Capella Sydney manages to be gloriously opulent without being stuffy. There’s artwork galore, the high-ceilinged rooms are refreshingly enormous (each with a spectacular free-standing bath), and there’s a guest lounge no-one wants to leave. ● capellahotels.com/en/capellasydney

Dine

In the heart of the city is glitzy New York-style steakhouse Clam Bar, with mood lighting, cosy booths and the plumpest prawn cocktails. The focus here is on quality Australian produce.

● clambarsydney.com

Evoking the subdued elegance of a Parisian Brasserie, Armorica is culinary bliss in Surry Hills. Nibble on beef tartare with horseradish cream or gorge on duck-fat potatoes.

● armorica.com.au

Gaze across the water at Crafted by Matt Moran at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, while munching on roasted globe artichokes or stuffed baked apple. What a view.

● craftedbymattmoran.com.au

Arts

What can’t be missed at the sparkling new North Building at The Art Gallery of New South Wales are the large, bold installations Here Comes Everybody by New Zealand artist Francis Upritchard at the gallery’s meeting place entrance. Explore further, and you’ll find Lee Mingwei’s contemplative Spirit House sculpture.

● artgallery.nsw.gov.au

The Sydney Opera House has just been awarded a 6-star Green performance rating – one of the first among World Heritage listed buildings. Guided tours allow you to “sneak in” to upcoming performance rehearsals (no photos though!).

● sydneyoperahouse.com

Pleasure Club, a much-anticipated basement bar, will soon open its doors on King Street in Newtown. Run by Odd Culture Group, it will have late-night shows (with a rare 4 am licence), every night. “There will be no limitations for us to pull the curtain open at 1am and offer up the coolest band you’ve seen in some time,” says group manager Sabrina Medcalf.

● oddculture.group

Over at Taronga Zoo Sydney is the new immersive Nura Diya Australia, where you stroll past kangaroos along a 400-metre trail or hang with dingo pups. A tree canopy lets you chill with koalas. Soon to be introduced is a Night Walk to view creatures, such as platypuses and feathertail gliders.

● taronga.org.au/sydney-zoo

M c RAE BAR AT CAPELLA SYDNEY

DANIEL BOUD

IWAN BAAN

JENNIFER SOO

ART

Indigenous artists are bringing their work to new audiences.

Words KIM WILSON

First Nations artists are sharing the stories of our country’s rich Indigenous culture through breathtaking work that is being viewed and enjoyed increasingly by a more mainstream audience.

Collaborations with well and lesser-known artists are seeing works that reflect the land and traditions appearing in fashion, homewares, and large-scale interactive installations.

A desire to share the stories of his ancestors inspired artist B.J. O’Toole to reignite his passion for painting when he started working as a cultural heritage representative at the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.

O’Toole started painting when he was a child, but only recently picked up the brush full-time.

“What really inspired me to get back into it was working on Country every day,” he says.

“Learning the stories and walking Country and just wanting to educate people about the stories of Wadawurrung country.

“With my art, I love to incorporate elements that people see visually so when they look at my artwork, they have an understanding of the story that I’m trying to share.”

His latest collaboration with baby and children’s wear brand Homegrown invites children to explore the symbols, stories, and significance behind his artwork – handprints for connection and eucalyptus leaves for welcoming, to animal tracks leading the way and a radiant sun signalling a new day.

Sharing a culture

first] clothing collaboration,”

O’Toole says. “I’ve got three little girls as well, so to be able to do children’s clothing is something I pinch myself about every day. The more aboriginal art that’s out in the public domain, the more people are going to be educated about it.”

Professor Wayne Quilliam, a pre-eminent Indigenous artist and photographer, is curating the latest exhibition at The Lume, Connection

“By listening to our songs, revelling in our art, and walking with us, there is a wonderful opportunity to experience diverse truths and different ways of being,” he says. “My journey as an Aboriginal storyteller is to listen and record these narratives. In essence, each photograph explores self, time, space, place, and connection as a cultural consciousness.”

Quilliam was particularly moved to curate Connection because of the opportunity it gives to share stories with children and families.

“I have three children and four grandchildren who greatly influence my work and I realised that there are very few immersive experiences that embrace and share our culture in a dynamic and educational way,” he says.

Fourth-generation Ngen’giwumirri artist Kieren Karritpul says he was destined to be passionate about art and design.

born,” says the awardwinning painter and printmaker. “My mother, grandmother and great grandmother were already artists and it had already been decided by the ancestors that I, too, would follow that path. It was my chosen destiny.”

Watching the women in his community weave baskets and fishing nets greatly influenced his art. Karritpul uses lines and circular forms to represent life on the land in paintings, fabrics and ceramics.

“For all First Nations people, connection to country is everything,” he says. “We understand ourselves as woven into the land. We don’t walk on top but move within the landscape. We are part of the land, and it is part of us.”

Karritpul has collaborated with Country Road on a limited-edition homewares range that tells the stories of the traditional lands of the Daly River region, drawing on the cultural significance of its billabongs, mermaids and turtles.

“This is a positive story and will generate more respect and understanding for all of us. I am proud to be part of this and hope that I can help other people, including other white Australians, understand our long, varied and strong culture.” ●

Kieren Karritpul x Country Road

B.J. O’Toole x Homegrown, left; The Lume Connection exhibit, below.

“By listening to our songs, revelling in our art, and walking with us, there is a wonderful opportunity to experience diverse truths and different ways of being.”

WAYNE QUILLIAM

WAYNE QUILLIAM

Former AFL player turned Australian media personality Tony Armstrong is having an out-of-body experience on the ABC News Breakfast set, where he works as a sports reporter.

He’s just been nominated for a 2023 Logie – the Bert Newton award for most popular presenter – yet he hasn’t seen his name on the list after only taking a quick glance at the press release on the morning of the announcement.

“I completely didn’t see my name,” Armstrong says. “Someone at work said, ‘Have another read of it, Tony!’

“You know, it’s pretty humbling to be nominated, particularly against iconic household names in Australia. It’s both cool and weird. I can’t quite describe it.”

Last year, Armstrong won the Graham Kennedy award for most popular new talent, recognised for his sports reporting on ABC News Breakfast. This year, he competes against Shaun Micallef, Sonia Kruger, Julia Morris, Scott Cam and Hamish Blake (the pair are friends away from the limelight).

“I just don’t have a perception of myself and still have the old imposter syndrome, which is probably a good thing,” he says. “It keeps me on my toes a bit.”

Raised by a single, non-Indigenous mother in Sydney’s west, Armstrong wanted to play AFL since he was a kid. He moved to Melbourne 10 years ago to play for Collingwood, and also had stints at the Adelaide Crows and the Sydney Swans.

LEANING INTO LIFE

Logie winner (and current nominee) Tony Armstrong is ready for whatever comes along, even a chat with friendly strangers.

After eight years, and just 35 games into his career, he walked away, saying he was sacked. It was a brutal blow for a young man in his 20s who had given it his all.

“It’s never as good as you think it is, and not as bad as you think it is,” reflects Armstrong, who is now 33.

“A tough lesson I learned with footy is that just because you work hard and do everything right doesn’t mean it will work out, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try,” he says.

“I gave it what I could, and I would never have thought I’d step into this career and have the moment I am having. You just never know in life.”

These days he’s also busy working on his podcast The Pool Room with Tony Armstrong. It’s a chance to tell longer sports stories and not be in the glaring lights of the TV studio.

“What I do in TV is staccato, it’s high level and quick, but you don’t get the chance to do the deep dive into a yarn that a podcast can allow,” Armstrong says.

“The Pool Room allows me to be niche and deliver content that is bitesized – 10 minutes in length, which is great when on a short commute somewhere,” he says.

“People in my circles love to share a sport yarn and these are stories you can retell with ease.”

Armstrong also likes to listen to podcasts when he can. Some on high rotation include The Worst Idea of All Time, produced by two Kiwi comedians who watch the same movie once a week for a year and review it. They’ve done Sex and the City 1 and 2 and are now doing the Fast & The Furious franchise in descending order.

“It’s so funny listening to them descend into a pit of misery and drag themselves out again,” Armstrong says. “They hate each other and the film so much but they always find the humour in it.”

Words JANE ROCCA ● Photos EDDIE JIM

Having just returned from a holiday to Europe, Armstrong is feeling refreshed. He casually reveals he dined at Ciccone’s in Mayfair with comedian John Cleese, whipped off to Spain for a former footy-player friend’s wedding and soaked up the architecture in Copenhagen.

The best part about being away was not having alarm clocks buzzing at 3.30am.

“It was nice to disconnect from the news cycle too, but let me tell you last Monday’s alarm hit me like a tonne of bricks,” Armstrong laughs.

So, what was it like sitting opposite John Cleese for lunch?

“I remember walking away from that saying to myself, ‘Did that really just happen?’ John ordered a fish dish and I had vongole. We shot the breeze. It was so amazing,” he says.

Armstrong is rubbing shoulders with some big names these days –including a career-highlight 10-minute interview with Irish comedian Dylan Moran.

Home is in Melbourne’s inner north. A quick coffee at Heart Attack and Vine is always on his radar, while a knock-off drink at Gerald’s Bar or a dance at the Night Cat on a Saturday fit the bill. He loves watching the footy with friends on a Saturday, and he loves to cook.

Learning how to better himself in the kitchen came from hours dedicated to watching travelogues and YouTube videos.

He makes a good Sunday lambshoulder roast and a Penang curry, and is a ragu connoisseur.

“I sound like a wanker but, seriously, learning how to cook changed my life,” he says.

What would Armstrong say to his younger self if he could travel back in time?

“I would say to myself, ‘Don’t lose the spark,’ ” he says. “And, ‘Don’t let fear of failure get in the way of trying to do something awesome,’ and, ‘The best is yet to come.’ ”

Maybe that’s an acting career?

“I would never rule it out,” Armstrong says. “I do think about it every now and then. If something came along that looked like fun and something I could work hard at and execute, then I’d love to do it.”

For now, he’s rolling with the good times, but with that comes less ability to hide when out and about in Melbourne.

“I am recognised way more now that I am on TV than when I played footy,” he says. “I am so painfully polite, too. Someone could spill something on me and I’d apologise to them!

“I am conflict-averse and I want everyone to be happy. But yes, if someone comes up and says g’day to me, I will always give them the time of day. Isn’t it humbling that someone wants to come up and say hi? I don’t take any of this for granted.” ●

●

“I would never have thought I’d step into this career and have the moment I’m having. You just never know in life.”

PODCAST \ THE POOL ROOM with Tony Armstrong. Listen on iHeartRadio, Apple, Spotify and Google Podcasts.

ABC TV sports journalist Tony Armstrong is adding podcaster to his resume.

FEATURE HOUSE

SANDRINGHAM \ 42 ABBOTT STREET

Sited in the heart of Sandringham and close to everything that makes the suburb one of Melbourne’s blue-chip areas, this home is ideal for a large and busy household.

The elegant Edwardian property has been renovated and extended to add excellent contemporary functionality to the original period rooms. The result is a spacious home with heritage elements and 21st-century style.

The original rooms, with their traditional high ceilings, open off a central hallway with two bedrooms and the family bathroom on one side. On the other, a third bedroom, with a built-in wardrobe and fireplace, has a lovely bay-window view of the front garden. Following this is the formal living room with a gas log insert in an ornate fireplace surround and double doors to the formal dining room.

A crisp and clever balance of glass, timber and sparkling white defines the new section, and the light pours in. At the rear of the kitchen and living area, floor-to-ceiling glass is supplemented by a large skylight in the cathedral ceiling and windows on the side walls.

The kitchen is designed for easy daily dining and seamless entertaining. It has stone benchtops, a long breakfast bar, Smeg and Bosch appliances and excellent storage.

In the living area, a gas log fireplace is set in a feature wall of exposed white brick – a texture that works beautifully with the timber door and window framing and accents. Stacker doors open to a beautifully detailed and crafted outdoor entertaining deck and the spacious rear garden.

The main bedroom suite shares this view. This luxurious retreat has a full-width window seat with leafy views, a walk-in wardrobe and a lavish en suite with twin basins.

Plantation shutters, period light fittings in the original rooms, timber floors in the living area and an elegant, neutral colour scheme all work together to create an atmosphere perfect for relaxed and stylish family living.

The house, on about 493 square metres, has a fitted laundry with external access, a powder room, ducted heating and cooling, ample storage and off-street parking.

It is close to the beach, Bay Trail, Sandringham Yacht Club, the shops and cafes of Sandringham village, and transport. The address is zoned for Sandringham Primary School and Sandringham College. ●

BEVERLEY JOHANSON property@domain.com.au

Agent: Buxton, Richard Slade 0419 588 873

Price: $2.4 million-$2.5 million

Auction: 11.30am, July 15

FINAL WORD

Hover your camera over the code to see Domain listings in Sandringham

“THE HOME AND THE LOCATION ARE IDEAL FOR FAMILY LIVING.” RICHARD SLADE – AGENT

ALBERT PARK \ 55 MERTON STREET

A bay window adds balance and beauty to the stunning facade of this Victorian terrace. Inside, it is an even more striking feature, inset with a window seat and framed by a wide and ornate arch. This front room is one of the home’s three bedrooms and has built-in wardrobes and an open fireplace. Next is a sleek white kitchen and the dining and living area.

Floor-to-ceiling stacker doors open to the paved rear courtyard with its retractable awning and roller door to the rear lane. On

the first floor, the two bedrooms have open fireplaces and share the family bathroom with twin showers and basins. There is a small fitted study on this floor. The home has a Euro laundry, zoned heating and cooling and is close to Albert Park Village, schools and transport. ●

BEVERLEY JOHANSON

Agent: Jellis Craig, Simon Gowling 0422 234 644

Price: $2.8 million-$2.9 million

Private sale

BRIGHTON \ 18 HANBY STREET

5 3 5

This one-off, two-storey residence by Marcopolo Property brims with Europeanstyle beauty while providing the utmost in functional family living. Several archways punctuating the arresting facade include two announcing the twin garages and two gracing the entrance porch. In through this porch, and the grand foyer stops one in one’s tracks, with a curved staircase rising against an ornate, wrought-iron balustrade under an eight-metre ceiling dripping with a tremendous chandelier. Living spaces

cover the fully formal and the casually chic. The main bedroom suite comes with an en suite, dressing room and kitchenette. Out of doors, a terrace, barbecue precinct and plunge pool set the scene for entertaining al fresco. With a bathroom and steam room, the separate pavilion makes for fine guest accommodation. ●

KAY KEIGHERY

Agent: Marshall White, Matthew Pillios 0408 145 982

Price: $7.4 million-$7.8 million Private sale

SANDRINGHAM \

3

Presenting prettily with white trims complementing cloud-grey render and a robin-breast-blue front door, Spring Cottage lends 1918 grace to the streetscape. Free-standing parameters bode positively for natural light. The two bedrooms at the front of the house include one with a bay window to garden vistas. Central to the single-level floor plan are connected lounge and dining rooms. Flow on past the two bathrooms and third

bedroom for a kitchen and family area with walls of windows and French doors to the rear deck and garden, wherein what was once the garage now serves for protected outdoor entertaining. An electric fireplace and a butcher’s block come “on the house”. Proximity to parklands and the beach up the family ante. ●

KAY KEIGHERY

SOUTH MELBOURNE \

Agent: Belle Property Sandringham, Stephen Tickell 0418 177 565

Price: $1.89 million-$2.07 million

Auction: 11am, July 22

This Napier Street nest binds inherent Victoriana with a more modernminded extension. Ample living space and a healthy dose of indoor-outdoor connection weigh in its favour. The lounge off the entrance hall has folding doors to the dining room. Both sport fireplaces. Segue on for amalgamated kitchen and family areas opening to a cute sunroom and the rear deck, beyond which a paved courtyard provides for sunny, al fresco

entertaining. A big bathroom/laundry combo separates the two bedrooms upstairs. The bedroom to the fore has a fireplace between built-in wardrobes. Smaller by half but blessed with fresh air, the bedroom to the rear claims a sizeable balcony. Stroll to Albert Park Lake, market, trams and shops. ● KAY KEIGHERY

Agent: Marshall White, Nicholas Hoo 0435 728 272

Price: $1.3 million-$1.4 million

Auction: 12.30pm, July 8