The past 10 days seem to have gone by in a flash! Events season is well and truly upon us as well as this Indian summer that we seem to be having. La Trobe University turned 5o on Wednesday, which was also International Women’s Day, and I was lucky enough to spend my night at the Hyllus Maris Memorial Lecture which was largely an all-female event save for Isaiah Firebrace’s performance at the end. Indigenous writer Dr Anita Heiss gave the keynote address on Education being the key to a better life, and was also very funny – she could have been a comedian as well referring to VIPs in the audience as ‘very Indigenous people’! For me, the highlight was the Indigenous Academic procession into the Union Theatre heralded by a lone didgeridoo player, I had tears in my eyes both when the academics in full gowns entered and when they left – the significance of such an achievement as one of the most marginalised and disadvantaged people in this country, was incredibly moving.
I spent last Monday night with my fellow Bundoora Homestead Art Centre Board member and Chair Valentina Maxwell-Tansley presenting to Darebin Council at Preston Town Hall in the hope that they may increase funding at the Homestead. Council has a difficult job in determining how monies get allocated across the community but Darebin itself is a very creative municipality which values the social, cultural and economic contribution a visual arts asset such as the Homestead makes so I was very grateful to have been given air time to state our case. Stay tuned for the result.
Valentina has also been run off her own feet organising A Weekend in the Gardens event at the Botanic Gardens which kicks off from 4 pm today with John Farnham, Boy & Bear and Icehouse playing at three different concerts. She’s been working with the same group of people who run the A Day on the Green winery concerts and there will be thousands attending each of the concerts for the first time at the Gardens this weekend.
The Melbourne Moomba Festival 2017 starts today and it’s a beautiful weekend to be in the city if you’re staying in Melbourne this Labour Day weekend. Closer to home, the Heide Makers Market is also on tomorrow and if I didn’t have other things to do, I’d be attending this one. Have a great long weekend and I’ll be back soon as there are stacks of events being held locally over the next couple of weeks as well as the launch of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.
Hyllus Maris was an Aboriginal activist, poet and educator who passed away in 1986. The original Lecture was launched in 1999 in honour of the Yorta Yorta woman, writer and poet, whose achievements in education include the establishment of Victoria’s only Aboriginal school, Worawa Aboriginal College. She was the sister of Lois Peeler AM – a member of The Sapphires – who is now the Executive Director and Principal of the Worawa Aboriginal College for Indigenous girls in Healesville, who will MC the event. The Hyllus Maris Memorial Lecture has largely been organised by Tanya Peeler, Lois Peeler’s daughter and Hyllus Maris’ niece.
Miss Rosanna 