A bone of fact

David Walsh, creator and owner of MONA (Museum of Old and New Art) in Hobart has written this memoir, A bone of fact. Each chapter contains observations about a snippet from his life which together provide a partial insight into the mind of the author. There are references to his early life, the illness of his brother, Tim, his grade five teacher and the poems he taught the class, his gambling and how this helped him create his fortune, early upbringing in the Catholic church and schools plus the creation of his museums to house his collections as well as to give something back to the community and his views on collecting. Don't expect a chronological narrative. The 368 pages of the book provide short glimpses into an unusual mind which together provide a partial introduction to the life and interests and sense of humour of the author, The book contains many photographs. I did not read this book from cover to cover but rather dipped into it and read isolated chapters. This book can be read as a companion book to The making of MONA.

Car spaces at MONA reserved for the owner and his wife Nov 2015

The Vandiemonians: from penal settlements to Marvellous Melbourne

Ian Morison has used his family story to record part of the early history of Australia. The story starts with the arrival of the first family members, James and Anne Hortle, who travelled with the Third Fleet arriving at Port Jackson in 1791. James was a member of the New South Wales Corps and he and his growing family decided to settle in the colony. In 1804 James and his family accompanied Lieutenant Colonel Paterson to found the new settlement at Port Dalrymple (Launceston). Around the same time another expedition was being organised from London to create a settlement at Port Phillip. This expedition was led by  Colonel David Collins of the Royal Marines. Richard Pitt applied to travel with the party as a free settler. His wife and eldest son decided to stay in England but Richard and his three younger children left England at the end of April 1803. The ships arrived at Port Phillip in October 1803 where unsuccessful attempts were made to establish a settlement. On 30 January 1804 most of the settlers were relocated to a new settlement on the Derwent River - Hobart Town.

Ian Morison describes what it was like living in the two settlements at the north and south of Van Diemen's Land over the ensuing years. The two families are united when Elizabeth Hortle and Philip Pitt marry and settled at Green Ponds. Attempts were again made to settle Port Phillip in 1835 and many from Van Diemen's Land took up land across Bass Strait. The Gold Rush of the 1850s saw many changes in the new colony. Salome Pitt, daughter of Elizabeth and Philip, married Alexander Morison in November 1851 Alexander was a preacher with the Colonial Missionary Society until becoming a minister of the new Independent Church in Melbourne.

The time frame of the book covers the period up to 1880 and, as well as telling the family story, the book provides good background information on what it was like living in the various settlements. There are citations for notes in each chapter at the back of the book as well as well as a bibliography and index.              

The Making of MONA

When we were in Hobart in November last year we visited MONA, the Museum of Old and New Art situated on the banks of the Derwent River in a suburb of Hobart.

Adrian Franklin has written The making of MONA in an attempt to explain the vision for the museum of its owner, Davis Walsh, and how the museum was created and promoted. MONA was opened on 21 January 2011 so it is a new feature in Hobart but it has quickly become the major tourist destination when visiting the city.

Visiting MONA is an experience. It is not like any other art gallery in Australia. To start with it is a privately owned gallery designed to store and show the collection(s) of David Walsh. To view the items in the galleries you enter at ground level and then take a lift down to the initial viewing area. There are three levels but the area is designed so that the visitor does not necessarily know where they are in the building. Passages take the visitor in various directions to discover another section of the museum. There is a deliberate policy not to have signage and there is limited use of labels, however each visitor is provided with a device which provides information about items in their present vicinity. Themes of the collection are largely relating to sex and death and some visitors may find some of the exhibits confronting. The general setting of the exhibits is that of Carnival. However it is the arrangement of the items including the juxtaposition of antiquities with modern art that can still intrigue visitors who may not appreciate some of the art works. Visitors can always move on to another section. Standing on the upper balcony viewing Sidney Nolan's gigantic (44.3 metres by 5.6 metres) artwork, Snake, is worth the visit on its own.

The author describes how David Walsh purchased the Moorilla Estate Winery in 1995 and how he developed the property to initially show his collection of antiquities in one of the houses on the property, developed and created a brand for a craft beer (Moo Brew), rebranded the wine from the winery and then, after beginning to collect modern art, decided to build MONA to house the collections of the antiquities and the growing modern art collection. There are also artworks to explore in the area around the main museum building. MONA is more than a museum. The vineyard is a working concern and there are bars and restaurants in the museum and in the grounds. Festivals and entertainments are part of the annual program. Most people travel to MONA aboard the MR-1 Mona Fast Ferry from Hobart to the museum. This is all part of the MONA entertainment experience or package.

The book itself features the black and bright pink colours of the MONA brand. The many illustrations show the concept and building of the property as well as photos of some of the artworks. Having visited the location I found the descriptions of the challenges of the building project particularly interesting and now have a slightly better understanding of MONA and its eccentric owner.For more information on David Walsh, read A bone of fact.

Old Hobart Town and environs 1802-1855

Carolyn R Stone and Pamela Tyson collected selections from official reports and accounts of the settlement of Hobart which have been published with a collection of maps and early drawings and paintings depicting the new settlement. This volume, published in 1978, provides valuable information about the establishment of Hobart Town from the initial colony led by David Collins in 1804 until the end of transportation in 1853 and obtaining self government in 1855.

The first members of my family to live in Tasmania arrived from Norfolk Island in 1805. Consequently it is interesting to read the accounts of what the settlement would have been like when George Guest and his family arrived and how the town developed. Thomas William Birch arrived in the colony in 1808 and prospered as a merchant and land owner. In 1834 the merchant, George Mackillop, brought his family to Hobart Town and lived there for approximately six years before returning to the UK. Simeon Lord junior arrived in Tasmania in 1826, initially to look after some of his father's interests in the colony until developing his own enterprises in the state. Recently I was in Hobart for a week where I spent as much time as I could exploring the area where my ancestors once lived. It has therefore been interesting to read these early accounts comparing the descriptions in the book with the city of today.

I found looking at the maps and illustrations fascinating and there is also a select bibliography listing further reading. Hopefully I will find some of these titles in the State Library. All in all this book is a good introduction for anyone interested in the establishment of European settlement in Hobart.