Weekend in Sydney - the LotR exhibition
I loved loved loved the costume exhibit! Really “hearting” Alan Lee, John Howe, Ngila, Richard and their teams.
I adored seeing original pencil sketches and watercolours for the design process that I’d seen reproduced on the DVDs and film books on the walls and the Rohan pennants
Frodo’s little travelling costume
Arwen’s clothes
Glady’s clothes
Scale weaving swatches of Frodo’s jacket and braces
The white tree on the royal saddlecloth and the sea-bird wing design etched on the stirrups!
The parchments in the Minas Tirith Library - with a book open at the page about Eorl - squeeee
The double headed horses motif in Theoden’s armour.
Nazgul rings. Nazgul rings!
The bigatures
The costumes of all the armies in Middle Earth
It was also fun to be in an LotR city again. Seeing the ads for the exhibition on the monorail. Arriving on the platform at Town Hall station and looking across to see the screen showing Frodo on his back in Bree stretching out his finger for the Ring and switching to a neat graphic showing the Ring tumbling down over an image of the harbour city to the location of the Power House.
Away from the crowds at the LotR exhibit there was an almost deserted exhibition called Bright Flowers: Textiles and Ceramics from Central Asia. The items came from the State Museum collections of Uzbekistan, Tajakisten and Kazakhstan and were the embroidered works of women from the 19th century, mostly the elaborate dowry items that have survived. Wedding clothes (both male and female) prayer mats, wall hangings, pillow covers. Pillow covers for pillows that a whole family could lie upon. I never think about flowers if I ever think about these regions. I suppose that I think about high steppes and cold barren lands, however, the abundant gardens and flowers of the region inspired these intricate works of beauty in couching stitch, chain and half cross stitches. They also reflected many centuries of cross-cultural trade along the Silk Road network. It was amazing to picture these groups of women. The young girls doing their first simple piece, and then the groups of women working together in their designated parts, piecing the finished panels together.
More info on this exhibit here
And the Powerhouse is such a fun building in itself. It was a few years since I had been there so enjoyed just generally looking around. The child minding area was done up like The Shire - all round doors. Awww!
More costume exhibits at the Australian Maritime Museum with an exhibition covering the evolution of garments worn by sailors from slops to inspiring fashionable 'nautical' pieces. The bookshop was carrying Patrick O’Brian’s Joseph Banks: A Life as a special import item so I picked that up as well as the AE edition of Ernestine Hill’s novel on Matthew Flinders My Love Must Wait.
At the gallery under the Town Hall a catalogue sale of Beatles photographs, including some really early shots. Loved this one of the first recording session at Abbey Road in September 1962. Such babies. Especially George.
Although familiar with the statue of Flinders outside the State Library I had never noticed the little one of Trim nearby. I hadn’t realised it was there until reading Bryce Courtenay’s Matthew Flinders Cat last year. So had to check that out too.
It was also the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations in Sydney so I enjoyed relaxing around Darling Harbour watching the dragon boat races as well. A great weekend.
I adored seeing original pencil sketches and watercolours for the design process that I’d seen reproduced on the DVDs and film books on the walls and the Rohan pennants
Frodo’s little travelling costume
Arwen’s clothes
Glady’s clothes
Scale weaving swatches of Frodo’s jacket and braces
The white tree on the royal saddlecloth and the sea-bird wing design etched on the stirrups!
The parchments in the Minas Tirith Library - with a book open at the page about Eorl - squeeee
The double headed horses motif in Theoden’s armour.
Nazgul rings. Nazgul rings!
The bigatures
The costumes of all the armies in Middle Earth
It was also fun to be in an LotR city again. Seeing the ads for the exhibition on the monorail. Arriving on the platform at Town Hall station and looking across to see the screen showing Frodo on his back in Bree stretching out his finger for the Ring and switching to a neat graphic showing the Ring tumbling down over an image of the harbour city to the location of the Power House.
Away from the crowds at the LotR exhibit there was an almost deserted exhibition called Bright Flowers: Textiles and Ceramics from Central Asia. The items came from the State Museum collections of Uzbekistan, Tajakisten and Kazakhstan and were the embroidered works of women from the 19th century, mostly the elaborate dowry items that have survived. Wedding clothes (both male and female) prayer mats, wall hangings, pillow covers. Pillow covers for pillows that a whole family could lie upon. I never think about flowers if I ever think about these regions. I suppose that I think about high steppes and cold barren lands, however, the abundant gardens and flowers of the region inspired these intricate works of beauty in couching stitch, chain and half cross stitches. They also reflected many centuries of cross-cultural trade along the Silk Road network. It was amazing to picture these groups of women. The young girls doing their first simple piece, and then the groups of women working together in their designated parts, piecing the finished panels together.
More info on this exhibit here
And the Powerhouse is such a fun building in itself. It was a few years since I had been there so enjoyed just generally looking around. The child minding area was done up like The Shire - all round doors. Awww!
More costume exhibits at the Australian Maritime Museum with an exhibition covering the evolution of garments worn by sailors from slops to inspiring fashionable 'nautical' pieces. The bookshop was carrying Patrick O’Brian’s Joseph Banks: A Life as a special import item so I picked that up as well as the AE edition of Ernestine Hill’s novel on Matthew Flinders My Love Must Wait.
At the gallery under the Town Hall a catalogue sale of Beatles photographs, including some really early shots. Loved this one of the first recording session at Abbey Road in September 1962. Such babies. Especially George.
Although familiar with the statue of Flinders outside the State Library I had never noticed the little one of Trim nearby. I hadn’t realised it was there until reading Bryce Courtenay’s Matthew Flinders Cat last year. So had to check that out too.
It was also the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations in Sydney so I enjoyed relaxing around Darling Harbour watching the dragon boat races as well. A great weekend.