Just About Now is A collection of things happening in our spaces & places, physical & digital, intersecting culture, community & CREATIVITY
“The Yoorrook Justice Commission, represented by the design at the centre of the logo, is central to the truth telling for injustices for First Nations people and in turn is central to making recommendations for healing, system reform and practical changes to laws, policy and education.
“The circles represent meeting and community and they are connected through the songlines of culture and understanding.”
COMMUNITY. CEREMONY. We-Akon Dilinja in St Kilda. Mourning reflection ceremony on Australia Day, 26 January, Alfred Square, St Kilda. “It was not until 1935 that all Australian states and territories adopted use of the term “Australia Day” to mark the date of the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove, and not until 1994 that 26 January was consistently marked by a public holiday on that day by all states and territories.”–Wikipedia
COMMUNITY. HISTORY. The 1938 Day of Mourning was a unique event in Aboriginal history. It was the first national Aboriginal civil rights gathering and represents the identifiable beginning of the contemporary Aboriginal political movement. The Australian Hall, by association, became extremely significant to Indigenous heritage, and is now listed on the National Register of heritage places.
On 26 January 1938, as Australians celebrated the sesquicentenary of European settlement, about 100 Aboriginal men, women and children gathered in a hall at 150–152 Elizabeth Street in Sydney, known as the Australian Hall. At the time, Australian Hall was a popular venue for concerts, dances, and other social activities.
They called the event a Day of Mourning and Protest because, in the words of the organisers of this gathering,
The 26th of January, 1938 is not a day of rejoicing for Australia’s Aborigines; it is a day of mourning. This festival of 150 years of so-called ‘progress’ in Australia commemorates also 150 years of misery and degradation imposed upon the original native inhabitants by the white invaders of this country.
–State Library NSW, Dictionary of Sydney
PLACE. The Australian Hall. “Australian Hall is considered by many to be the birthplace of the Aboriginal civil rights movement in Australia. In the 1990s, a legal battle was waged by local Aboriginal people and their supporters to recognise the social and historical significance of the building. It was listed on the State Heritage Register in 1999 and added to the National Heritage List in 2008.”–Barani City of Sydney
PLACE. Catani Gardens. “The heritage listed Catani Gardens sit next to the world famous St Kilda foreshore. The gardens are named after their designer, Carlo Catani.”–City of Port Phillip
Captain Cook’s Statue by James Tweed in Catani Gardens, St Kilda. “Victoria police are investigating ‘criminal damage’ to a century-old Captain Cook statue in St Kilda in an apparent protest over the Australia Day public holiday.”–The Guardian. Read the news article here.
IDEAS. Why it’s time to start paying the rent. “Between 2016 and 2022 alone, wealth among the top 200 wealthiest people in Australia increased from an average of $1.05 billion to $2.77 billion, while hula hoop-sized loopholes enabled more than $370 billion to be housed in tax haven countries.” –Benjamin Abbatangelo, Crikey, 25 Jan 2024
COMMUNITY. St Kilda Festival. Day 1–Saturday 17 Feb: First Peoples First | Day 2–Sunday 18 Feb: Big Festival Sunday. “Coming off the back of our wildly successful two-day format in 2023, St Kilda Festival will return with an epic weekend of programming featuring some of the best live music acts in the country, family entertainment and all-round fun.”
MUSIC. Mo’Ju | Native Tongue. “I don’t speak my father’s native tongue. I was born in the southern sun. I don’t know where I belong.” Mo’Ju (Wiradjuri/Philippines) at SKF24, Saturday 17 Feb 7.20pm, Main Stage.
MUSIC. Ziggy Ramo feat Christine Anu | That Thing (Lauryn Hill ‘Doo Wop). Ziggy Ramo (Aboriginal Australian) at SKF24, Saturday 17 Feb 6.10pm, Main Stage.
COMMUNITY. CEREMONY. Kummargii Yulendji Gadebah. Saturday 17 Feb 8.10pm, Main Stage. “Closing SKF24 Day 1: First Peoples First is contemporary ceremony Kummargii Yulendji Gadebah (together we rise up with knowledge). Douglas & Mackay in close collaboration with Boon Wurrung Elder N’arweet Prof. Carolyn Briggs co-create a sunset celebration of Boon Wurrung culture. Processions, music, fire & dance exhibit the diversity of First Nations peoples & welcomes the broader community who call Naarm home.”–SKF24
MUSIC. Adam Noviello | Fumbling. Genderqueer singer-songwriter Adam Noviello at SKF24, Sunday 18 Feb 7.30pm, O’Donnell Gardens Stage.
MUSIC. Bag Raiders | Saliba. Australian electronic music duo Bag Raiders (Jack Glass and Chris Stracey) at SKF24 Big Festival Sunday Closing Night, Sunday 18 Feb 9pm, Main Stage.
MUSIC. Paul Kelly | How To Make Gravy (2013). Paul Kelly on the wall of The Espy is St Kilda’s most famous local. paulkelly.com
MUSIC. LYRICS. From St Kilda to Kings Cross (1985)
From St Kilda to King’s Cross is thirteen hours on a bus / I pressed my face against the glass and watched the white lines rushing past / And all around me felt like all inside me / And my body left me and my soul went running / Have you ever seen Kings Cross when the rain is falling soft? / I came in on the evening bus, from Oxford Street I cut across / And if the rain don’t fall too hard everything shines just like a postcard / Everything goes on just the same / Fair-weather friends are the hungriest friends / I keep my mouth well shut, I cross their open hands / I want to see the sun go down from St Kilda Esplanade / Where the beach needs reconstruction, where the palm trees have it hard / I’d give you all of Sydney / Harbour (all that land, and all that water) / For that one sweet promenade
FILM. Paul Kelly–Stories Of Me (2012). “Charts the many lives, loves and losses of Paul Kelly, one of Australia’s most gifted singer-songwriters. Kelly has been marking out the Australian landscape and its people through words and music for almost 40 years.”–Shark Island Production
MUSIC. Frank Yamma with David Bridie at George Lane, Saturday 3 Feb 2024. “Frank (Pitjantjatjara/Australia) will be bringing his powerful storytelling to George Lane for one performance only and will be accompanied by David Bridie. Supporting Frank will be Anna Smyrk. With a voice described as ‘truly astonishing’ by Rolling Stone, Anna Smyrk is a powerful singer and song maker from Naarm (Melbourne, Australia). Her songs are anthemic indie bombshells, pairing vulnerable lyrics with explosive arrangements and undeniable hooks.”–George Lane
DOCUMENTARY. MUSIC. Murundak: Songs Of Freedom (2011) directed by Natasha Gadd, Rhys Graham. Available on SBS On Demand until Friday 9 Feb 2024. “The Black Arm Band harness the power of song to rally support to their call for freedom. This landmark in Australian Indigenous history is seen, as the country seeks reconciliation for a difficult past.”–SBS On Demand
Black Arm Band (2019) by James Sharrock. Interviews with Shellie Morris and Fred Havea Bulanyi Leone.
Australian story strikes chord in UK. “The Black Arm Band’s Murundak, a musical journey through the Indigenous Australian experience, was first performed at the Melbourne International Arts Festival in 2006.”–The Age
COMMUNITY. Midsumma Pride March, Sunday 4 Feb 11am-4pm, Fitzroy St and Catani Gardens. “Parade, pride and party come together once a year in Melbourne’s iconic march celebrating solidarity in gender and sexuality diversity.”–Midsumma
MUSIC. COMMUNITY. The Peptides at The Bowlo. Catch The Peptides Punk with front man St Kilda living legend, artist Fred Negro, live and still kickin’ it high every first Sunday of the month, god-willing. Next gig: Sunday 11 Feb 5pm, St Kilda Sports Club, Fitzroy St.
ART ETC. NGV Lunar New Year. Saturday 10 Feb 10am to Sunday 11 Feb 5pm. “Join us for Lunar New Year with a free weekend festival on 10 and 11 February. Celebrate the new year over two days with lion and dragon dances, performances of classical and traditional music, guided tours of the Triennial exhibition in Mandarin, English and AUSLAN, art-making activities, food, mahjong games, fashion parades, a dragon bubble party and much more.”–NGV
ART | PERFORMANCE. House Of The Heart by Finucane & Smith. Thursday 15 Feb –Sunday 10 Mar at the Dragon Gallery, Chinese Museum. “Finucane & Smith return with their stunning cocktail of cabaret for the head, the heart and all the senses, to the luckiest place in town, the Chinese Museum’s Dragon Gallery. A cornucopia of extraordinary singers, dancers and storytellers in a work that swirls across language and culture to explore home, family and how we create a sense of place, and heart-felt belonging in this country we all call home.”–F&S
Words On Fire | Moira Finucane. “When do words inspire and when do they incite? When is speech free, and when is it hateful? Fighting words, funny words, insulting words and incendiary words – for better or for worse, language moves us and it matters.”–Wheeler Centre Gala 2018
ART | PHOTOGRAPHY. Jill Orr | The Promised Land Refigured. Linden New Art, St Kilda. 24 Febr–19 May 2024. Opening Reception: Friday 23 Feb 6-8:30pm. “Framed by the impact of Australia’s policy of turning back asylum seekers who arrive by boat, The Promised Land Refigured engages with the anticipated issue of global homelessness, due to the outcomes of mass destruction of homes and environments resulting from climate change.”–Linden New Art
ART | COMMUNITY. Sunday Sessions at the Linden. Until Sunday 11 Feb 1-3pm. Free Workshops.
MUSIC. Tio at George Lane, Friday 16 February 2024. “Tio’s debut album Sorousian, released in 2020, received a 5-star review in Songlines magazine, as well as international acclaim and radio play. Tio (Daakaka/Vanuatu) is in Australia playing at Cygnet Folk Festival and WOMAD. On Fri 16th Feb he will be performing for us at George Lane.”–George Lane St Kilda
DOCUMENTARY. MUSIC. Wide Open Sky (2015) by Lisa Nicol. “Wide Open Sky takes us into the lives of Kyh, Mack, Opal and Taylah, four brave and hopeful primary school children who travel far from home to music camp to prepare for the choir’s big concert. They have just three days to learn a demanding repertoire. Set against a stunning landscape and featuring music by acclaimed band Dirty Three, Wide Open Sky is a funny, heartwarming snapshot of childhood in rural Australia.”–eOne ANZ. Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Sydney Film Festival in 2015. Available on SBS On Demand. Watch the trailer.
DOCUMENTARY. ART. Moko | Tawahi. “The story of the Maori art of tattooing, known as moko, which is seen as a mark of distinction within their culture.” Available on SBS On Demand until Tuesday 5 March 2024.
DOCUMENTARY. Spirit To Soar directed by Michelle Derosier, Tanya Talaga (Canada, 2021). Available on SBS On Demand until Thursday 7 March 2024. “Film introduces audiences to prolific Anishinaabe storyteller and journalist, Tanya Talaga, as she recounts her journey in covering the mysterious, uninvestigated disappearances of seven Indigenous students who died or went missing in Northern Canada.”–Blue Ant Media. More on Spirit To Soar here
MUSIC. Angelique Kidjo at Hamer Hall, Tuesday 5 March 2024. Angelique Kidjo, Yoruba/Fon, Benin. “Forever a voice for change, Angélique Kidjo’s Mother Nature confronts such pressing issues as racial inequity and the climate crisis, again proving her rare power to transform complex subject matter into music that is radiantly joyful.”–Arts Centre Melbourne
MUSIC. Angelique Kidjo at Tiny Desk Concert (12 September 2022)
MUSIC. Gilberto Gil at The Palais, Tuesday 12 March 2024. Afro-Brazilian “multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter who was one of the leading names in Brazilian music and an originator of the movement known as Tropicália (or Tropicalismo).”–Britannica
MUSIC. Meshell Ndegeocello at Melbourne Recital Centre, Tuesday 26 March 2024. “With a body of work extending far beyond the early hits and virtuosic bass playing for which (African-American) Ndegeocello is most renowned, her music defies categorisation. (…) Her vocals, a captivating fusion of authoritative raps, pensive spoken word, and ethereal choruses, add yet another layer to her multifaceted artistry in an unmissable performance.”–MRC
MUSIC. Meshell Ndegoncello at Tiny Desk (Home) Concert (10 February 2021)
ART | THEATRE. The Inheritance by Matthew Lopez, directed by Kitan Petkovski, produced by Cameron Lukey and Coady Green. 45 Downstairs, 17 Jan to 14 Feb 2024. “Decades after the height of the AIDS epidemic, The Inheritance tells the story of three generations of gay men in New York City attempting to forge a future for themselves amid a turbulent and changing America. Eric Glass is a political activist engaged to his writer boyfriend, Toby Darling. When two strangers enter their lives—an older man and a younger one—their futures suddenly become uncertain as they begin to chart divergent paths. Inspired by E.M. Forster’s masterpiece Howards End, The Inheritance is an epic examination of survival, healing, class divide, and what it means to call a place home.”–DPS
ART. Joe Whyte | In Waking Hours. “In Waking Hours presents an evocative collection of Melbourne-inspired streetscape paintings from 2023 National Emerging Art Prize winner Joe Whyte.” 45 Downstairs, 13 Feb to 9 Mar 2024
IDEAS. TALK SHOW. David Frost 1969-72. “The David Frost Show is an amazing time capsule of one of the most contentious and creative periods of the 20th century. During the course of the show’s run from 1969 to 1972, David interviewed high profile guests such as Gloria Steinem, Cesar Chavez, Huey Newton, Vice President Sprio Agnew, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Mier, former Nazi Party Official Albert Speer, and a 20-year-old Prince Charles.”
IDEAS. TALK SHOW. Muhammad Ali speaks his mind (and heart) at the Mike Douglas Show 1974. “Mike’s co-host is Family man Sly Stone, who talks about his music, his incredible costumes and his 138 Mercedes, a gift from Doris Day. His friend, Muhammad Ali joins them, but he’s in a fighting mood. And he says exactly what he thinks.” –video box description
IDEAS. I Am Not Your Negro — Future of America [clip]. James Baldwin (2 Aug 1924–1 Dec 1987).
FILM. I Am Not Your Negro, directed by Raoul Peck. “Raoul Peck’s Oscar-nominated documentary is a journey into black history that connects the past of the Civil Rights movement to the present of #BlackLivesMatter. It is a film that questions black representation in Hollywood and beyond. And, ultimately, by confronting the deeper connections between the lives and assassination of these three leaders, Baldwin and Peck have produced a work that challenges the very definition of what America stands for.”–PBS | Independent Lens
IDEAS. James Baldwin Interview (1979). “Buried by ABC at the time, the segment has resurfaced over four decades later, revealing a unique glimpse into Baldwin’s private life—as well as his resounding criticism about white fragility, as blisteringly relevant today as it was in 1979.”–Larry Williams
FILM. 12 Years A Slave directed by Steve McQueen (2013). “In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup — a free black man of Saratoga Springs, New York — is kidnapped and sold into slavery to a malevolent plantation owner in the South.”
IDEAS. Interview At Berkeley (1963). Malcolm X (19 May 1925–21 Feb 1965)
“Malcolm X, being interviewed by Professor John Leggett and graduate student Herman Blake, Dept. of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley in October 1963, discusses being a Black Muslim, the conditions of Blacks in this country, their relation with white people, and states the case for Black separatism. Originally recorded October 11, 1963, Presented for Historical reference.”–Reelblack One
BOOKS. The Autobiography Of Malcolm X | Written by Malcolm X and Alex Haley | Read by Joe Morton, Narration by Roscoe Lee Browne | OOP Audiobook.
“When the Autobiography was published, The New York Times reviewer Eliot Fremont-Smith described it as a “brilliant, painful, important book”. In 1967, historian John William Ward wrote that it would become a classic American autobiography. In 1998, Time named The Autobiography of Malcolm X as one of ten “required reading” nonfiction books. James Baldwin and Arnold Perl adapted the book as a film; their screenplay provided the source material for Spike Lee’s 1992 film Malcolm X.”–Wikipedia
IDEAS. Malcolm X | The Ballot Or The Bullet (April,12, 1964). Malcolm X’s legendary speech, with annotations and subtitles.
“On April 12, 1964, one month after splitting with the NOI, Malcolm X gave his “Ballot or the Bullet” speech at King Solomon Baptist Church in Detroit. In the speech Malcolm X described how Blacks should fight for civil-rights in America. Malcolm X emphasizes the worth of voting as a solution to ending discrimination against Blacks. He addresses both the poor voting decisions and also the denial of legitimate voting rights to Blacks.”
Malcolm X is still misunderstood–and misused | Omar Suleiman, Al-Jazeera (2020)
IDEAS. BOOKS. Killing For Country: A Family History (2023) by David Marr. “David Marr is a Guardian Australia journalist. He is widely regarded as one of Australia’s most influential commentators, writing on subjects such as politics, censorship, the media and the arts. He has been a journalist since 1973 and is the recipient of four Walkley awards for journalism.”
David Marr’s Killing For Country | Australia’s Biggest Book Club (2024). “David Marr discusses his latest novel, Killing For Country, a richly detailed saga of politics and power in the colonial world — of land seized, fortunes made and lost, and the violence let loose as squatters and their allies fought for possession of the country — a war still unresolved in today’s Australia.”–The Australia Institute
MUSIC. Paul Kelly | From Little Things Big Things Grow (1991). “Written by prominent Australian singer-songwriters Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody, the lyrics chart the Gurindji people’s struggle for land rights. The song tells the story of the Wave Hill Walk-Off in 1966, through to Prime Minister Gough Whitlam symbolically handing their land back eight years later – an event which become a catalyst for the Aboriginal land rights movement.”–NFSA
The Story Behind The Image. “The historically significant gesture of pouring of a handful of red soil by Gough Whitlam into Vincent Lingiari’s hand on 16 August 1975, symbolised the legal transfer of Wave Hill station back to the Gurindji people. It also meant the Gurindji became the first Aboriginal community to have land returned to them by the Commonwealth Government and would be a turning point – the start of the Aboriginal land rights movement for the rest of Indigenous Australia, that continues even today.”–SBS NITV
IDEAS. SPEECH. The Redfern Speech. Prime Minister Paul Keating at the launch of Australia’s celebration of the 1993 International Year of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, Redfern Park, 10 December 1992. (Duration 16:50)–NAA
COMMUNITY. National Apology To The Stolen Generations (2008). “On 13 February 2008 Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made a formal apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, particularly to the Stolen Generations whose lives had been blighted by past government policies of forced child removal and assimilation. The journey to National Apology began with the Bringing Them Home report – the findings of an inquiry instigated by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission in 1995.”–NMA
DOCUMENTARY. Pat O’Shane | Rebel With A Cause. “The story of how Pat O’Shane AM defied the odds to become one of Australia’s most brilliant legal game changers, and a look at her ambitious federal election campaign.” Available on SBS On Demand
POST-SCRIPTUM:
ART. MUSIC. BOOKS. Hares & Hyenas? That’s the bookstore tucked under the stairs at the Victorian Pride Centre.
Hours: 10am to 5:00pm –Monday to Saturday. 11.30am to 5:00pm –Sunday.
From their shelves: Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure, presented by the artist’s family, and Queen Uncovered by Peter Hince.
State of the Art – Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat (1986). illuminationsmedia.co.uk
With East Village exhibition, the art of Jean-Michel Basquiat comes home. PBS Newshour | Canvas. “More than 30 years after his death, Jean-Michel Basquiat remains one of America’s most influential contemporary artists. He carved a unique style that challenged traditional views of race, poverty and politics in the U.S. Now, his work has come home, to Basquiat’s old stomping grounds in New York’s East Village, in a brand-new, private museum owned by the Brant Foundation. Jeffrey Brown reports.”–PBS
ART. Jean-Michel Basquiat | King Pleasure (1987, detail). “Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement.”–Wikipedia
Jean-Michel Basquiat died from a drug overdose in August 1988, aged 27.
“2,231 drug-induced deaths were reported in Australia in 2021, with 1,675 of these deaths unintentional.”
“Overdose deaths are not spread equally through society. Over one third of all unintentional drug-induced deaths occurred among residents from the most disadvantaged areas. The rate of unintentional drug-induced deaths among Indigenous Australians was almost four times that of non-Indigenous Australians (20 per 100,000 population, compared with 5.9 per 100,000 for non-Aboriginal people). Males are also over-represented, with 70% of unintentional drug-induced deaths in 2021 being men.”–Australia’s Annual Overdose Report 2023
“There were 1,559 alcohol-induced deaths recorded in 2021, a rate of 5.4 deaths for every 100,000 people living in Australia.”
“Alcoholic liver disease was the highest underlying cause that contributed to alcohol-induced deaths (1,008 deaths) in 2021 (Table 1). This is followed by mental and behavioral disorders due to alcohol use (327 deaths), accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol (118 deaths), and exposure to alcohol, undetermined intent (3 deaths) and intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to alcohol (1 death). The remaining 102 alcohol-induced deaths have resulted from cardiomyopathy, degeneration of nervous system, acute pancreatitis, chronic pancreatitis, myopathy, polyneuropathy, gastritis and Cushing’s syndrome.”–Alcohol-induced deaths in Australia, FARE
ART. Hungry Ghost (2006, detail) by Helen Norton. Australian artist Helen Norton was born in St Kilda in 1961.
“In Buddhism, hungry ghosts, or pretas, are beings who are tormented by desire that can never be sated. (…) The preta realm is defined by attachment, and the truth that we can never end the suffering of unquenched desire, no matter how much we consume.”–Lion’s Roar
BOOKS. In The Realm Of Hungry Ghosts by Dr Gabor Maté. “The question is not why the addiction, but why the pain.”
“From street-dwelling drug addicts to high-functioning workaholics, the continuum of addiction cuts a wide and painful swath through our culture. (…) Countering prevailing notions of addiction as either a genetic disease or an individual moral failure, Dr. Gabor Maté presents an eloquent case that addiction – all addiction – is in fact a case of human development gone askew.”
Next time you walk our streets, it may be helpful to look at the homeless and roughsleepers from a different lens.
When you come home, it may be helpful to look at members of your household with the same lens.
Gerome Villarete, Secretary
POST-POST-SCRIPTUM:
MUSIC. Palestine by Yann Tiersen | Live in Berlin Tempelhof Airport ARTE Concert. “Passengers invites Yann Tiersen under the steel canopy of Tempelhof Airport. An expansive setting for the sound of album 11 5 18 2 5 18 the electronic version of his album Kerber, an ode to the Breton island of Ushant.“
IDEAS. Louise Adler on the place of politics in the arts. Laura Tingle | 7.30 Report, 4 Dec 2023. “Louise Adler AM is an Australian publisher. She was CEO of Melbourne University Publishing (MUP) from 2003 until 2019, when she became editor-at-large at Hachette Australia. In March 2022 she took up a three-year appointment as director of Adelaide Writers’ Week, starting with the 2023 edition of the event. Louise Adler was born in Melbourne to Jacques and Ruth Adler, Jewish immigrants from Paris, France, who arrived in Australia in 1949.”–Wikipedia
MUSIC. Be Free by Ten City (Emmaculate & Shannon Chambers Mix). “The pursuit of happiness is a basic right. The right to live with dignity, why would anybody want to take that from me? How about I’ll respect you, then you’ll respect me. Then Together–Life, Love, Laughter and Liberty. I expect that. And I want that. For everybody.”
Also from Ten City for lovers old and new for this Valentine’s Day, Wednesday 14 Feb, That’s The Way Love Is. “There’s no use in pretending what’s behind the curtain lol.”