Local Photos 30 Local Artist 32 Unreliable Guide

Subject Air Ballet Location La Perouse Photographer Mary Lin

Subject Sunny Moon Location Tamarama Photographer Mark Hunter @bondihunter Subject The Edge Location Bronte Photographer Theresia Hall @theresia.g.hall

Subject Local Heavies Location Coogee Photographer Bob Menzies

Subject Hangin' Out Location Bondi Photographer Kate Murphy @plazasuite1

Subject Backstreet Birds Location Newtown Photographer Debbie Katz

Subject Icebergs Fountain Location Bondi Photographer Peter Hughes Subject Sun Splashed Location Maroubra Photographer Matt Brown

Subject All That Glitters Location Maroubra Photographer Theresia Hall @theresia.g.hall

Subject Balancing Act Location Bondi Junction Photographer Graeme Bogan

Back to the drawing board.

Local Artist... Marko Hrubyj-Piper from Bondi

Interview James Hutton Photo Marko Hrubyj-Piper

Bondi’s Marko Hrubyj-Piper is our local artist this month. He recently completed this edition’s cover piece, a beautiful painting of Bronte Pool. Marko shares his local favourites with The Beast...

How long have you lived here? The first thirty years of my life. I was born in Paddo Womens Hospital and grew up on Campbell Parade overlooking Bondi.

Why do you live here? Living a walk away from the ocean is a must. There’s a kind of placebo effect that salty air provides.

What's your favourite beach?

Bondi was my first for so many things - my first surf, kiss, swim, job, school, artwork...

What's your favourite eatery?

The Saturday morning farmers market at Bondi is awesome, and a great spot to sit down with friends and do the Good Weekend quiz.

Where do you like to have a

drink? I’m not a big drinker, but it’s worth going to an opening at one of the many amazing galleries we have here in the East.

Best thing about the Eastern Suburbs? The Bondi to Bronte walk is a marvel, and I love soft sand running on Bondi beach.

How would you describe your

art? I love to draw figures in a landscape setting and want to work the natural dimensions of the figure in a simplistic form, trying to capture something in the moment and convey that into a work of art.

Where can people see your

work? Instagram (@marko.h.p), www.markohp.com or through representation at Studio Gallery.

Who are your artistic inspi-

rations? Eric Fischl, Grayson Perry, Nicholas Uribe, Adriane Ghenie, Jenny Saville, Ben Quilty, Picasso, Gauguin, the Impressionists... to name a few. I try and understand other artists’ creativity, where they are coming from, and get inspired by that.

What are you working on at the

moment? I just finished a few works - some cool canoe paintings and a large magical Bronte Pool work that is heading to Studio Gallery. Now I’m back to drawing and figuring out some new ideas for my next series.

Do you have any exhibitions

coming up? I’m preparing some work to show with Studio Gallery later this year. I will be giving updates on my Instagram.

When did you discover you had

a gift for your craft? I was always encouraged to create from a young age and I was really drawn to the artbooks of Egon Schiele and Kandinsky that we had around the house. In my mid-teens I started to excel and seemed to have a knack for making works people were interested in. After being accepted into the HSC ARTEXPRESS and selling artworks I applied to the National Art School and have continued my art journey ever since.

Any other local artists to look

out for? Sidney Teodoruk is great, it seems he loves the colour blue.

Any words of wisdom for young

aspiring artists? It’s different for everyone, but I think constantly upskilling is a must. Find a great teacher and learn, then don’t stop practising.

What do you get up to on the

weekends? Wherever the best choc croissants are, that’s where you’ll find me.

Do you have a favourite quote?

“Creativity is mistakes.” - Grayson Perry.

Any other words of wisdom for

readers of The Beast? No regrets in spending more quality time with good mates.

Just keep going!

The Unreliable Guide to... Persistence

Words Nat Shepherd Photo Troy Durante

The recent, startling election result and my personal success in finally getting a novel accepted by a legit publishing house after seven years of trying (woohoo!!!) has got me thinking about the need for persistence. The dictionary definition for this stubborn little noun goes like this: “The fact of continuing in an opinion or course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.” It comes, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, from the word for “continuing steadfastly”. Resolute. Firm. Unwavering.

Like many useful things in life (drinking moderately or only eating a couple of squares of chocolate at a time and not the entire bar), being persistent is more easily said than done. But if we want to succeed at anything competitive (particularly music, art, writing, sport, and that most violent of sports, politics), we either need luck, or a great deal of persistence. I’ve been wondering why I kept going, despite a slew of rejections (or worse still, the silence of indifference) and I think it came down to self-belief. I knew deep down that I had something good. It might be raw, it might need a good dollop of luck to help it over the line, but damn it all, if Dan Brown could get published then so could I.

If you have ever felt similarly unappreciated for your talents, never fear, The Unreliable Guide is here with some tips and tricks to keep you on your path to glory.

Self-Belief

The poet Sylvia Plath wrote that, “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt,” and I couldn’t agree more. If you don’t believe in you, who will? If the key to success is persistence, then the determination that fuels this persistence comes from self-belief. Faith in yourself comes from recognising the fact that you have value as a human being. Once you allow that seemingly simple truth to illuminate your soul you’ll find that you’ll become more self-confident. Nurturing a positive attitude about your talents, qualities, judgment and ability is vital if you want anyone else to recognise these attributes in you. All those self-help gurus focus on this idea (and charge you a fat fee for pointing it out) because it is such a fundamental truth.

Enjoy the Journey

It’s often claimed that keeping your ‘eyes on the prize’ is what makes people persist, but I think there’s more to it than that. If your goal starts to feel impossibly far away, it’s all too easy to feel disheartened and give up on the whole idea. That’s why I think it’s vital to enjoy the journey. My goal was to get published, but I love writing so publication was never the only reward. Writing is a daily pleasure, a success in itself. Whatever your ultimate goal is, I think it’s important to enjoy your practice. Don’t let a lack of tangible results put you off. Maybe you won’t ever get gold at the Olympics, play the Opera House, be a celebrity chef or win the Archibald, but if you enjoy your running, your music, your art or your cooking, you’re already a success.

Finally, The Unreliable Guide would like to take a cringey Oscar moment to thank you all. Without you, dear readers, we writers are nothing. Kiss kiss, darlings! xx

Randwick News

We have plans to make some improvements in Maroubra later this year and I’m keen to hear your thoughts. In September, we’ll turn part of McKeon Street, between Marine Parade and Fenton Avenue, into a pedestrianfriendly plaza for six months. We want to create more space for people to enjoy the beachside area and make it easier for businesses to trade on the footpath. We think the area is perfect for outdoor dining, and if we add public art, music performances and additional street furniture, it will transform the area into a relaxing space for you to meet with friends and neighbours and catch up over a coffee or lunch. If the six-month trial works well, we’ll consider making the change permanent. Head over to yoursay.randwick.nsw.gov.au before Tuesday 28 June to share your thoughts with us. I have some exciting news for our younger cycling and scooter enthusiasts – we’ve included the South Maroubra car park as one of our pop-up pedal parks this year, in addition to Clovelly Beach and Chifley Reserve car parks. They’ll operate until the end of August and will include ramps, jumps and tunnels so you can build your two- and four-wheeled skills.

Beach Breaks, which is also happening in Maroubra, will bring colour and celebration to the coast on Sunday 24 July, starting at 10am. Our annual event celebrates Maroubra as a National Surfing Reserve, which gives us the chance to induct more legends into our Surfing Walk of Fame, so be sure to be there and find out who it will be. It’s great to have this big community celebration back again after taking a break over the past two years and I’m looking forward to seeing the buzz and excitement it will bring.

Councillor Dylan Parker

Mayor of Randwick Randwick Mayor Dylan Parker

What’s On

FRIDAYS 1.30PM GARDENING ON THE WILD SIDE

Randwick Community Centre 27 Munda Street, Randwick Registration required

WEDNESDAY 6 JULY LIBRARY AFTER DARK

6pm, Margaret Martin Library Royal Randwick Shopping Centre, Free

SATURDAY 9 JULY TRADITIONAL BASKET WEAVING WORKSHOP WITH DEIDRE MARTIN

1.30pm, La Perouse Museum 1542 Anzac Parade, La Perouse, $20

SUNDAY 10 JULY BASTILLE DAY

10am-3pm La Perouse Museum 1542 Anzac Parade, La Perouse, Free

SUNDAY 24 JULY BEACH BREAKS

10am-4pm Maroubra Beach Free