Coastal Journey : Arty Places#14

Towards Nobbys Lighthouse

In my series of blog posts about "Arty Places" the iconic Nobbys Lighthouse is the latest... right in the heart of the city where I live and I didn't really appreciate its beauty until I walked up to the lighthouse last Saturday.

from Nobbys Lighthouse

Harbour entrance, from Nobbys Lighthouse

The day was perfect - clear skies providing a palette for the occasional fluffy cloud, a sea breeze singing of Spring,and the lighthouse shining white at the top of the headland. The lighthouse is usually open to the public only on Sundays and is a popular tourist attraction, adopted as a symbol of Newcastle. It wasn't always ...

Historical image fromlakescan.com.au

Captain James Cook was the first European to note Nobbys Island from the ship "Endeavour" in 1770,and was described by Cook as "a small clump of an island lying close to shore". It was not until the discovery of coal by Europeans in 1797 by Lt. John Shortland, however, that the region was viewed as having any significance. From its early beginnings as an isolated island, Nobbys has changed significantly over the years. Nobbys was joined to the mainland and then reduced to half its original height, now 27.5 metres.
With its prominent position at the entrance to the Port, a lighthouse was built and just after midnight
on the 1st January 1858, the light came into operation. At that time, the light burnt China Tea Oil,
which gave a more brilliant light than kerosene and was less dangerous. It was later replaced by a fixed, incandescent kerosene vapour lamp. In 1935 the 100,000 candlepower light was changed to 580,000 candlepower, visible at a height of 35 metres above sea level.When Governor Macquarie ordered a pier to be built to join Nobbys to the mainland, convict labourwas chosen to do the construction.The building of the pier was a hazardous job with the convicts having to work under all sea andweather conditions, night and day. Many lives were lost to the sea during the 38 years it took to build. The rock taken from Nobbys to reduce its height was used in the pier's construction. (information from www.lakescan.com.au)

In June 2007, we joined the professional and amateur photographers from all over the world, trying to get the best image of the lighthouse headland when the Pasha Bulker ran aground on Nobbys Beach ...

Back to the present.... The walk up to the lighthouse has wonderful scenes to savour - I loved to stop and look at the flowers and the rocks .... and I was catching my breath!

And here is where the "arty" connection is and the real reason for taking the walk to Nobbys - the lighthouse was host to "Coastal Journeys", an exhibition by artists from the Hunter Arts Network. The opening was a tribute to the Aboriginal significance of Nobbys and the legend of the angry kangaroo still residing at Nobbys was retold by Member for Newcastle, Sharon Claydon who officiated at the opening. ( PS my work is visible in the background)

Nothing more to say about a coastal journey to Nobbys but to quote Australian poet, Judith Wright...

Turn home, the sun goes down; swimmer, turn home.

Last leaf of gold vanishes from the sea-curve.
Take the big roller’s shoulder, speed and serve;
come to the long beach home like a gull diving.

Meditations on Mercator

‘ The Timelessness of Stitch’ was an invitational group exhibition at Timeless Textiles Gallery, Newcastle NSW , 1 April – 10 May 2026 …. Across generations and cultures, the act of stitching has woven together stories, traditions and identities. Each thread carries not only aesthetic value but also the memories and emotions of those who crafted it, demonstrating how this simple act transcends time and place. I was honoured and humbled to be amongst the twenty-three artists (national and international) participating in this exhibition. My small installation took some time to develop…. Although I knew about this exhibition for some time, I kept procrastinating, going from one idea to another and not settling on any. Recently, I came across the word “mercator” and while a vague notion of maps was recalled, I really needed to research. Besides the modern commercial connections, Mercator has its origins in cartography, which Is often a source of inspiration for my ...

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as w...

Is it a mutant? Is it an alien? It's an octopus - or is it?

Have you ever thought how strange a creature the octopus is? This week's fascination started when I asked the question, "What colour is an octopus when it's underwater?" The answer is "any colour it wants to be " - An octopus' coloration depends upon its surroundings. An octopus possesses the ability to alter its coloration depending on its immediate environment. This defensive technique protects the animal from predators and entices prey to come close to the animal . ((from https://www.reference.com/pets-animals/color-octopus-be94f74fcdc74ebe) . Why did I want to know the colour of an octopus? Because I wanted to draw octopus tentacles as mermaid hair for my art journal! Then, I began to think it might be considered a little too weird and even perverse to give a mermaid octopus hair.... Facebook friends assured me that this was not so, citing Medusa and her snake hair as a precedent, and even one friend said that she thought it was l...

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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