A Day of Two VERY Different Halves…

I’m typing this from Waterview Gardens B&B on the outskirts of Hobart, reflecting on the day, and it’s struck me just how incredibly diverse my experiences have been within my waking hours today ~ the gift of being somewhere totally new and seeking at least to sample local history, people, art, culture, cuisine, nature etc…

So I checked out of the lovely “Bam” hotel and headed off, stopping en route at a recommended cafe for breakfast before ascending to the summit of Mount Wellington / kunanyi. I guess the signs saying the road will be closed this evening due to the forecast snow, should’ve hinted at the weather I’d encounter up there!       

It was rather chilly ~ it is very late autumn here ~ and the wind literally took my breath away; those crazy tourists who’d ventured up there were all struggling to stay upright and breath! But the views… wow!

Needless to say, I didn’t stay up there too long, but descended back to the edge of Hobart and visited the profoundly moving Cascades Female Factory Museum. Around 13,000 female convicts were transported from Britain to Tasmania and a high percentage of them ended up at this truly terrible place. Some of the ‘women’ were as young as 10 or 12, and their ‘crimes’ mostly petty thefts trying to feed their families. Anyway, I’ll stop with the lecture… suffice to say the tour and place deeply affected me, reducing me to tears, as I learnt a little of these women’s horrendous ordeals (living conditions, hard labour, punishments, pregnancies and over 70% infant mortality rate…).

Their stories have been largely been untold, hidden. I met a woman who had recently discovered two female convicts in her family story, women who had been kept a secret.

Phew….

And now for something COMPLETELY different… the afternoon exploring the fantastic and bizarre MONA. It’s almost impossible to explain, but the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) is one man’s creation, that of millionaire-philanthropist David Walsh. The place itself is truly amazing, dug into the sandstone, the galleries descend through three subterranean layers, with stunning spaces, and almost sci-fi corridors with clever lighting and sound installations. 

The art is immersive with sound, vision, engagement, touch ~ experienced with cocktails or other beverage in hand; it seeks to be edgy, provocative, thought-provoking, challenging, sometimes combing ancient and contemporary, weird, engaging…  There were pieces I really liked and others I really didn’t! It was definitely an immersive experience, and I loved the physical space ~ it certainly took me far from the morning’s experience and feelings.

So, I’ll stop with words seeking to describe art, and see if the art speaks in the form of photos ~ if you’d like any explanations, I can try…!!!