Art in Melbourne

I spent my second last day in Melbourne driving around the city discovering cool stuff.

It started at DFO, the huge direct factory outlet centre at Essendon airport. I resisted the urge to buy anything other than a new bag in order for me to carry home all the extra stuff I've accumulated since I got here!!

Next I dropped off a jacket I found at the footy the other night to it's owner who works in the Docklands area. I found him because in the pocket of the jacket was his Geelong membership card. He was very pleased and relieved when I rang him on Saturday to say I had it. He lives in Newcomb, which is where my brother went to high school.

My next intended destination was the Ian Potter Gallery but on the way there I heard an interview on ABC radio with an artist called Andre Sardone, a plumber by trade, who creates works of art out of Colourbond (a type of metal sheeting used in roofing and building). It sounded pretty cool and it turned out that the exhibition was not far away, in Fitzroy, so I went to check it out, and I'm glad I did because it was fantastic. He cuts everything out with tin snips, freehand, and the results are amazing. I've included a few pics here, and if you want to check out his website, click here.

All of these pictures, including the portraits of Bono and Marilyn Monroe, have been cut out of Colourbond steel with tin snips!! Amazing!

As I was leaving that gallery I picked up a card advertising another exhibition, the Bald Archys, at the City Museum in Spring St. The Bald Archys are a spoof of Australia's most prestigious, and controversial portrait competition, The Archibald Prize. There are some excellent paintings in the Bald Archys, with a strong streak of irreverence and humour running through the entries, and the winner being chosen by a sulphur-crested cockatoo called Maude!

This portrait of Dame Edna is in this year's exhibition.

By then it was getting dark and everything was closing for the evening so I headed back to Gary and Christine's place at Doreen.

After dinner Gary and I compared notes on relationships, mental health and depression, mid-life "crises" and the degeneration of our mid-40's bodies and discovered we have a lot in common and have been on similar journies over the last 6-12 months, and the last 20 years.

His Dad Allan and my Dad Peter were life-long friends from when they were teenagers and Gary and I are carrying on the tradition. I hope Sport Boy and Gary's son Nathan will get to spend some time together when we come back in September, who knows, perhaps the bonds of friendship between the Holts and the Davies may extend to a third generation.

I spent the rest of the night packing! A huge job which I think I've just about finished!

By this time tomorrow night I'll be back in Perth, staying the night at Letchy's, and on Wednesday Sophie and Carolyn will come up to Perth to pick me up, it will be good to see them.