Festival Muse
One of our favourite weekends of the year, reagrdless that it’s a long weekend, is Festival Muse, at one of our favourite bookshops and eating haunts. For 2019 there’s a great line-up, with a particular nod to International Women’s Day.
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In 2006, Alice Pung published Unpolished Gem, her award-winning memoir of growing up Chinese-Australian in working-class Footscray. Since then, she has written on everything from the role of grandparents to the corrosive effects of racism; from the importance of literature to the legacy of her parents’ migration from Cambodia as asylum seekers. She’s speaking at 2.30pm on March 9.
Behind the World Heritage listing of Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain — a place now visited by 250,000 people a year — is a remarkable love story. Author Kate Legge talks about Gustav Weindorfer and Kate Cowle who sensed the significance of a place they sought to share with the world. March 9, 4.30pm.
Later that night, 6.30pm, is a bipartisan dinner event, placing a gentle spotlight on how couples, friends and partners nourish both their creativity and their relationship. Join winemakers Wendy Killeen (Stanton & Killeen, Rutherglen VIC) and Nick Bulleid (Hatherleigh, Laggan NSW) for a tasty six-course Festival Muse wine dinner where they’ll reveal how work, winemaking, family and friendship work for them.
On Sunday, Canberra author Sulari Gentill launches the latest Rowland Sinclair mystery, All the Tears in China, set in 1930s Shanghai. March 10, 4.30pm.
In Creating Worlds, meet three Canberra writers creating fantastical words and spaces and hear about their favourite imaginary places, and how they bring their own worlds to life on the page. Featuring Sam Hawke (City of Lies), Leife Shallcross (The Beast’s Heart) and participating chair Kaaron Warren (The Grief Hole). March 11, 2.30pm.
Lucinda Holdforth uses examples from history, literature and her 25-year career as a speechwriter to present a compelling analysis of celebratory, rallying and explanatory speeches in Leading Lines — an ode to the enduring power and relevance of speeches and an argument for their vital role in our democracy. Meet Lucinda to talk about the words of power and leadership with National President of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, Allan Gyngell. March 11, 4.30pm.
For more information head to musecanberra.com.au
The sky above
This exhibition, Clouds: Ethereal Splendor Above, featuring Marilyn Hutchinson and Steffie Wallace, presents imagery of clouds and their diversity, beauty and changing nature. The works are in oil, soft-pastels and photography.
The sky gives perspective to our existence: it is limitless and ever-changing, yet provides a constant in our visual perception. Dark at night, light during the day, the clouds give beauty and substance to the sky, inciting emotions ranging from inspiration to fear, depending on the weather they bring. The sheer magnificence of cloud formations give us an ever-changing landscape in the sky: spiritually uplifting and frequently providing hope when none seems forthcoming. Both in our darkest moments and in celebratory joy, we often turn to the sky above.
Strathnairn Arts Homestead Gallery 1 and 2, Holt, until March 31.
Percussion performance
The “sorceress of percussion” Claire Edwardes will take to the stage alone to present a stunning array of recent solo works by Australian composers in the first 2019 Australian Series concert, The Power of One.
From Michael Smetanin’s Temple for solo temple blocks to Canberra-based composer Benjamin Drury’s Stained Glass for vibraphone and electronics, The Power of One will showcase the remarkable breadth and depth of music written for percussion.
This exciting program includes works by award-winning Netherlands-based composer Kate Moore, rising star Clare Strong and a brand new CSO commission by young indigenous composer Rhyan Clapham as well as two works written by Edwardes herself.
Edwardes is an internationally acclaimed Australian percussion soloist, chamber musician and artistic director of Sydney-based innovative new music group, Ensemble Offspring. She is well known for her powerhouse style of playing and inimitable stage presence.
Following the extraordinary performance by Claire Edwardes, audiences are invited to explore the power of a single photograph in the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2019 exhibition.
National Portrait Gallery, Parkes, March 14, 6.30pm.
