On the 31st of March I had the pleasure of opening Parole Viaggianti, which is the latest exhibition at Maroondah Federation Estate. Parole Viaggianti, otherwise known as Travelling Words, features artwork by Angela Cavalieri explores the relationship between language, cultural memory and subjectivity drawing upon Angela’s experiences while travelling.
The exhibition was developed in partnership with the La Trobe University Museum of Art and highlights the Gallery’s role in exhibiting promising artists.
Parole Viaggianti will be on exhibition until the 14th of May at the Maroondah Art Gallery, located at Maroondah Federation Estate in Greenwood Avenue, Ringwood.
On the 7th of April I had the pleasure of attending the 21st birthday celebrations of the Croydon Stroke Support Group. The Group, which focuses on providing peer support, has grown rapidly over the past 21 years In recent times, the group has developed an arts focus, uncovering the hidden talents of its members, through painting, drawing and mosaics, as as well as writing.
The group has also pioneered the first choir for people with aphasia, a stroke condition where people are unable to speak but are still able to sing. The choir, which is an Australian first, helps restore confidence for people with aphasia and develops new talents in the arts and singing.
I would like to congratulate the Croydon Stroke Support Group for celebrating its 21st birthday and its innovation, I’m certain the Group will have many more birthdays to celebrate.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Maroondah Federation Estate and the Maroondh Art Gallery. The gallery, which is located in the art room of the former Ringwood Primary School is Maroondah’s premiere art gallery featuring a diverse range of art exhibitions.
This evening I was invited to launch Parole Viaggiante, the latest exhibition at Maroondah Federation Estate, which was jointly curated between La Trobe University Museum of Art and the Maroondah Art Gallery. Parole Viaggiante features works by Angela Cavalieri, which captures her travel experiences, depictions of cities and the multifaceted use of language.
The exhibition which opened tonight will be shown at the Maroondah Art Gallery until the 26th of May. The speech delivered during the opening is available in this post:
Kaleidoscope is the name of an art exhibition hosted by Scope, which showcases the artistic talents of people with disabilities. The exhibition, which is being held across the State, includes a series of exhibits at the Long Gallery at Maroondah Federation Estate.
This morning I was invited to open the Exhibition at Maroondah Federation Estate to encourage members of the community to view artworks that were submitted under the theme of ‘Inspiration Works’. The launch was accompanied by ambient music provided by members of Scope, showcasing musical, as well as artistic talents.
Alex with the first prize winner of the Kaleidoscope Exhibition
The Kaleidoscope Exhibition was widely attended with several members travelling across Victoria to be present at the opening. It was wonderful to be a part of the exhibition and to see Scope celebrating the artistic talents of its members.
Maroondah-based choir Stroke a Chord is celebrating its first birthday by launching a website and announcing its first public performance.
Maroondah Councillor Alex Makin said the choir started in 2010 to allow people with limited or no speech to experience something positive and joyful with their voice in a social and understanding environment.
“Imagine not being able to speak but having the ability to sing perfectly. This is the reality experienced by a number of people living with aphasia,” Cr Makin said.
“The idea for the choir was first raised during Stroke Week 2008. After hearing that several people in Maroondah were living with aphasia, Council took the first tentative steps towards the formation of a choir,” Cr Makin said.
“With the help of a number of external organisations, the choir has gone from strength to strength, with more than 20 members now meeting every week at Maroondah Family Church in Ringwood East,” Cr Makin said.
“Thanks to a $15,000 grant from the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust the choir has a qualified music therapist working alongside the participants to ensure they are getting the most out of the experience,” Cr Makin said.
“After a trial performance in front of a group of family and friends the choir are now ready to perform publicly, with their first performance to be held at Karralyka Theatre during Stroke Week in September,” Cr Makin said.
Last month Stroke a Chord launched its own website, www.strokeachord.com, to raise awareness of aphasia and the choir in the community.
“Having a website allows the choir to expand their network and hopefully increase its profile, so more people know what they do and how people can become involved,” Cr Makin said.
“The site provides a background on the choir, information on aphasia, and links to resources which are available to people who have aphasia,” Cr Makin said.
Stroke a Chord will perform publicly for the first time at 2pm, Saturday September 17 at Karralyka Theatre, Ringwood East. For more information www.strokeachord.com
The Stroke a Chord initiative is a partnership between Maroondah City Council, Yooralla, Royal Talbot Hospital, University of Queensland, Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, Croydon Stroke Support Group and Melbourne University.
The Wyreena Community Arts Centre is a Council facility located in Hull Road, Croydon, which provides a range of art and cultural activities for people within Maroondah.
Wyreena was formed due to the dedication of the Croydon community which fought to save the historic building from demolition in the 1970s. A committee was formed which successfully saved Wyreena and was constituted as a Committee of Management to oversee the direction and planning of the Centre. In recent years, the involvement in the Committee of Management has diminished and Council is now forming User Groups, which will provide ongoing community involvement in the planning of Wyreena Community Arts Centre.
This afternoon Council hosted an afternoon tea to acknowledge the dedication of members from the Committee of Management, including the efforts of former Councillors Maureen Naylor and Peter O’Callaghan. Over the past thirty years Wyreena has grown to include a community art gallery, cafe, art based classes and the studios of 98.1 Radio Eastern FM and this is due to the partnership formed between Council and the community to deliver these facilities.
The Mayoral Art Show is an annual art event that supports the Croydon Branch of the Bone Marrow Donors Institute and the work it undertakes in the research of Cancer. The art show, which features 90 artists, includes promising and local artistic talents with a range of mediums.
The Mayor is able to acquire one of the pieces for the Maroondah Art Collection and I acquired a piece by Jazmina Cinina, a promising artist specialising in linocut and drawing upon her Lithuanian heritage and interest in werewolves.
The speech delivered for the opening is available within this entry:
The Maroondah Festival is one of the largest community events within Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, attracting approximately 30,000 attendees and featuring dedicated community, business, sustainability, fitness, teenagers and children.
The weather remained largely pleasant throughout the day, providing a contrast to the hot weather experienced in previous years. The new location at Town Park also provides additional shade and ensures that activities are closer together making the festival easier to attend.
As the Mayor I delivered the opening speech for the Maroondah Festival, welcoming community members and highlights the partners that assisted in delivering the event:
Alex at the opening of the 2010 Maroondah Festival.
On behalf of the Maroondah City Council I would like to welcome everyone to the 2010 Maroondah Festival.
In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge that we are meeting on land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.
We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.
The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.
This year marks the 21st anniversary of this wonderful community event and we invite you and your families enjoy the beautiful sunshine and take part in the huge array of activities available here today, including some fresh new initiatives and of course the old favourites.
I would especially like to extend a warm welcome to Ringwood Honda as the principal sponsor of the 2010 Maroondah Festival. Be sure to visit the Ringwood Honda stand next to the Information tent to collect your free Honda merchandise and check out the latest range of Honda vehicles on display. There will also be an opportunity to talk to the friendly staff from Ringwood Honda and enter the draw to win some fantastic prizes including a Honda lawn mower valued at over $800.
At the Festival today, over 150 local groups and businesses have come together to provide information on their networks, goods and services. With their continued support, the Maroondah Festival has grown to become the most well supported community Festival in Melbourne’s east.
I invite everyone to visit the Denso Australia Group – Community Expo today and learn more about the valuable work undertaken by our fantastic local community groups.
We are also fortunate that we have many businesses in our municipality who support the Maroondah Festival. I would like to thank the following businesses for their generous sponsorship at this year’s festival:
Ringwood Honda: The principal sponsor of the Maroondah Festival
Bankwest – sponsor of the Main Stage
Denso Australia Group – sponsor of the Community Expo
Maroondah Weekly – our media partner
Anaconda – sponsor of the Fun and Fitness Arena
Ventura – sponsor of the Park n Ride service
Jalna – sponsor of the Fun and Fitness Walk breakfast
An event the size of Maroondah Festival requires a lot of planning and hard work and I would especially like to extend a huge thank you to all of the volunteers and staff assembled here today. In particular I would like to acknowledge the assistance of St John Ambulance and Victoria Police, and I would also like to thank the staff of Maroondah City Council and Fruitbowl Productions.
I hope that you enjoy the rest of the day, visit the Festival Information tent to find out about the huge array of activities on offer and be sure to take advantage of the free sunscreen.
Thank you all for being part of this fantastic event and celebrating our wonderful Maroondah community.
I would now like to welcome to the stage, the Yarra Valley School band.
The 2010 Maroondah Mayoral Art Show will be on display at the Maroondah Art Gallery from 11 November to 11 December.
Maroondah Mayor Councillor Alex Makin said the exhibition, now in its 14th year would feature works by some of Melbourne’s best known artists.
“To be featured in the exhibition each artist was asked to make a donation with all funds raised to be donated to the Bone Marrow Donor Institute – Croydon Branch to support further research into leukaemia,” Cr Makin said.
“It is great to be able to give our local artists an opportunity to share their works with the community, while also knowing that visiting the exhibition you are also helping to support a worthwhile cause,” Cr Makin said.
The Mayoral Art Show is sponsored by East Ringwood Bendigo Bank.
The exhibition will be officially opened by Maroondah Mayor Councillor Alex Makin at 6.30pm, Thursday 11 November.
The Mayoral Art Show is on at Maroondah Art Gallery, Maroondah Federation Estate, 32 Greenwood Ave, Ringwood. The gallery has extended its opening hours especially for the exhibition, and is now open Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm and Saturday 12 noon to 4pm.
For more information please contact the Team Leader Arts & Cultural Services, Susan Ryan on 9298 4536.
The Monkami Centre is based in Croydon and provides a range of services for people with intellectual disabilities, with the aim of developing employment and educational opportunities.
Monkami has a strong focus on community development and has established the Monkami Drama Group which holds an annual theatre performance to demonstrate the talents of its clients. The Monkami Drama Group is one example of the organisation’s community focus, which also includes a focus on artistic skills and volunteering opportunities.
This year’s performance was titled ‘Hey Hey It’s Monkami’ and followed the plot of performers auditioning for a part in Red Faces. As the Mayor of Maroondah, I provided a cameo appearance via a video sequence, in relation to Monkami’s suggestions. The Monkami performance is possible due to a partnership between Karralyka and the Ringwood Movie Makers, who have provided ongoing multimedia support including filming sequences to accompany the stage performance.
The annual Monkami theatre performance continues to grow in popularity each year, including a number of external performances to showcase the skills and talents of the performers. Tonight’s show was a tremendous success and Monkami is already planning for their 2011 theatre season.
Monkami is a not-for-profit community organisation that provides services for people with an intellectual disability, including employment and educational opportunities for their clients.
As part of its development programs, Monkami has had a strong emphasis on the arts and recently secured a lease for the former Croydon Fire Station, which will be used to showcase artworks from Monkami’s clients.
This evening I was invited to launch Alarming Art, the new Monkami Centre gallery, located at 14A Croydon Road in Croydon. While plans for Alarming Art are still being developed, Monkami plans to host exhibitions for its clients.
The launch of Alarming Art is part of Monkami’s ongoing focus on inclusion, demonstrating that people with intellectual disabilities are able to contribute positively to the community. This has been evident through Monkami’s arts programs, the nursery and clients that volunteer to improve the ambience of the Croydon Main Street.
Alarming Art will further highlight the work of Monkami’s clients and enhance the organisation’s focus on the community. I congratulate Monkami on securing tenure at the former Croydon Fire Station and for developing Alarming Art.
