I visited Lambley Nursery about which I've heard much praise, on the 24th of September, when Instagram told me the garden was at its loveliest and again on the 2nd of October 2023 when girlfriends - and very knowledgeable - gardeners were free to go. This post is mostly so I can keep the photographs. The gardens were certainly looking lovely in … [Read more...] about Lambley Nursery
Archives for 2023
Ballarat International Foto Biennale
We visited this on the 17th of September, which feels an age ago though it's not really. We only spent a day and so didn't get to see as much as I would have liked. Nevertheless there were lots of terrific exhibits. My favourite was How to Fly by Erik Johansson from Sweden; exhibited in the Mining Exchange which was the perfect venue for his large … [Read more...] about Ballarat International Foto Biennale
Philip Larkin Poems
Andrew Motion in his biography of Philip Larkin (see this post) says Larkin was popular because of the familiar language and syntax of his poems, their ambition to speak from and about 'ordinary life and their tendency to aspire to the condition of epigram. Which made them at once approachable and memorable. But at the same over-simplified them and … [Read more...] about Philip Larkin Poems
Latest Reading: September – October 2023
Philip Larkin: A Writer’s Life, Andrew Motion Reading Andrew Motion's memoir, Sleeping on Islands (see this post) led me to this which I enjoyed very much. One way or another, mostly memoirs and books about literary circles and poetry, I've absorbed some knowledge about Larkin but I've not read much of his poetry. Motion was, along with … [Read more...] about Latest Reading: September – October 2023
MIFF 2023
I'm a bit late with this post but here we go. I had a wonderful time at this year's MIFF until the last week when I caught Joe's cold and was couch-ridden for a couple of weeks. They say colds post covid are worse than usual and I can attest to that. Anyway here are my short reviews. In the order in which I saw the films. I've left the stars as I … [Read more...] about MIFF 2023
Shadow Spirit
We visited this wonderful exhibition, part of Melbourne's RISING Festival, on Thursday the 20th of July just before it closed on the 30th of July 2023. It's described on the RISING program as a new First Peoples exhibition curated by Kimberley Moulton a Yorta Yorta woman from Victoria. The program claimed visitors would: Be immersed in Ancestral … [Read more...] about Shadow Spirit