HEIDE ART GALLERY

We visited the Heide Museum of Modern Art recently (most often simply referred to as “Heide”). This is only one of Melbourne’s public contemporary art museums and is located in Bulleen, east of Melbourne, only a few minutes drive from our house. It was established as a museum in 1981, and is made up of a number of detached buildings, with surrounding gardens and parklands, which go right up to the Yarra River flats. As well as being a wonderful museum, the site is of historical importance and the whole complex is used as gallery space to exhibit works in various media by contemporary Australian artists.

Heide occupies the site of a former dairy farm that was purchased by the prominent Melbourne art collectors John and Sunday Reed in 1934 and became home to a collective known as the Heide Circle, which included many of Australia’s best-known modernist painters, such as: Albert Tucker, Sidney Nolan, Laurence Hope Joy Hester and others, who lived and worked in the former farm house (Heide I).

Between 1964 and 1967, a new house was built (Heide II), and this is considered to be one of the finest examples of modernist architecture in Victoria, and was designed by acclaimed architects McGlashan and Everist. In 1981, the museum was established on the site, incorporating the existing buildings and surrounding gardens & parklands as exhibition and gallery spaces. The main gallery building (Heide III) was constructed in 1993 and the museum continued to broaden its collection of works to include all forms of contemporary Australian art, including some by contemporary indigenous artists.

The museum underwent major refurbishment in 2005-2006. Part of this renewal was the establishment of several sculptural and installation art pieces, landscaping and redesign of the gardens, construction of a new education centre and gallery space, extension of the Heide III building and various other works.   In 2009 after 19 months of redevelopment, the cafe reopened in November as Café Vue at Heide.

The picture shows the installation piece on the lawns to the north of the museum, entitled “Cows”, by Jeff Thomson, 1987 (photographed by J.Gollings, 2004). The cows are made of corrugated iron, which is integral part of outback Australia (and not only!), being used as a construction material, particularly of house and shed roofs. The rural connections of the material are extended by the subject matter, giving a particularly Australian flavor to the bucolic landscape installation. The piece is quite striking, especially when first seen. There are now many imitations of this piece, with all sorts of animals being up for sale in many a local garden centre so everyone can have a corrugated iron pet in their back yard!

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Travel Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

BAAG FLOWER MURAL

Bulleen Art and Garden (BAAG) is a gallery and plant nursery on Manningham Road in Bulleen. It is easy to spot with its bright red, purple and yellow coloured wall jumping out at you as you drive past. Artwork and fun signs invite you in.

There is a garden specialty store stocking so much more than just a simple mix of products for the backyard. They've got hand-woven baskets, food preserving equipment, cookbooks and kitchen items. There are imported garden lanterns, unusual dining ware and sculptures to complement outdoor dining. There are shoes, gloves and other gardening apparel as well. And all of the nursery supplies and plants you would expect to find as well. A gallery offers quirky artworks for sale and there are always experienced nursery people to talk to regarding gardening queries.

This mural is found in the water garden area and has been painted by Paul Kalemba in 2009. It is unusual as it is painted on copper panel. The waterlily/frog theme suits the water garden section very well!

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Through my Lens meme.

BULLEEN MURAL

Bulleen Art & Garden at 6 Manningham Rd West is a nursery and gallery, which focusses on the environment and creativity. There is a great range of herbs, fruit and vegies and the nursery specialises in edible, indigenous and low water use plants.

Food and habitat gardening is a positive contribution that everyone can make to the environment and their own community and nursery staff have experience and expertise in gardening, the environment and the arts with strong connections to the local community.

The façade of the nursery is very distinctive with its ceramic mural by Meredith Plain, and it gives an indication of the wide range of art that can be found in the gallery within the nursery.

This post is part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.

YARRA RIVER AT 'HEIDE'

The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Aboriginal: Berrern, Birr-arrung, Bay-ray-rung, Birarang, Birrarung, and Wongete) is a perennial river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches. From its source in the Yarra Ranges, it flows 242 kilometres west through the Yarra Valley which opens out into plains as it winds its way through Greater Melbourne before emptying into Hobsons Bay in northernmost Port Phillip.

Here it is seen flowing through the rolling parklands close to 'Heide' Museum of Modern Art in Bulleen. The yellow flowers are wattle trees in bloom, a cheery sight on a Winter's day.

This post is part of the Wednesday Waters meme,
and also part of the Waterworld Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

HEIDE REFLECTIONS

Heide Museum of Modern Art, or Heide as it is affectionately known, is a modern and contemporary art museum located in Bulleen, east of Melbourne, Australia. Established in 1981, the museum comprises several detached buildings and surrounding gardens of historical importance that are used as gallery spaces to exhibit works in various mediums by contemporary Australian artists.

The museum occupies the site of a former dairy farm that was purchased by the prominent Melbourne art benefactors John and Sunday Reed in 1934 and became home to a collective known as the Heide Circle, which included many of Australia's best-known modernist painters, such as; Albert Tucker, Sidney Nolan, Laurence Hope, Joy Hester and others, who lived and worked in the former farm house (Heide I).

Between 1964 and 1967, a new residence was built (Heide II). It is considered to be one of the finest examples of modernist architecture in Victoria. In 1980, the Reeds sold Heide II, most of the adjoining property and significant works from their art collection to the Victorian State Government after several years of negotiations for the creation of a public art gallery and park. The main gallery (Heide III) was constructed in 1993 and the Heide Collection has since expanded through many individual gifts as well as four significant collections—the Museum of Modern Art and Design Collection, the Baillieu Myer Collection of the 80s, the Barrett Reid Collection, and most recently, the Albert Tucker Gift donated by Barbara Tucker.

The museum underwent major redevelopment in 2005-06 which involved significant extensions to the Heide III building by O'Connor + Houle Architecture, construction of the Sidney Myer Education Centre, restoration work on Heide II and surrounding gardens, and the creation of the Sir Rupert Hamer Memorial Garden, the Tony and Cathie Hancy Sculpture plaza and the Federation Way Car Park. In 2009 Chris Connell Design and McCorkell Construction completed the new Heide Cafe, currently occupied by Cafe Vue. This completed the capital works expansion and building upgrades at Heide.

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

AUTUMN AT HEIDE

Heide Museum of Modern Art is a modern and contemporary art museum located in Bulleen, east of Melbourne, Australia. Established in 1981, the museum comprises several detached buildings and surrounding gardens of historical importance that are used as gallery spaces to exhibit works in various mediums by contemporary Australian artists.

The fifteen acres of landscape at Heide have been developed over several decades in tandem with its art and architecture. When John and Sunday Reed purchased Heide in 1934, it was a neglected former dairy farm. They immediately set about establishing a Provençal-inspired kitchen garden adjacent to the original farmhouse and initiated a major planting program. Today, the cultivated landscape includes a sculpture park with over thirty sculptures, several of the original gardens which are now heritage listed, an Indigenous Remnant Conservation Zone and a diverse range of exotic trees, unusual roses, herbs, flowers and vegetables.

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Nature Footsteps Inspiring Photography meme.

BULLEEN ART AND GARDEN MURAL

Bulleen Art and Garden (BAAG) is a gallery and plant nursery on Manningham Road in Bulleen. It is easy to spot with its bright red, purple and yellow coloured wall jumping out at you as you drive past. Artwork and fun signs invite you in.

There is a garden specialty store stocking so much more than just a simple mix of products for the backyard. They've got hand-woven baskets, food preserving equipment, cookbooks and kitchen items. There are imported garden lanterns, unusual dining ware and sculptures to complement outdoor dining. There are shoes, gloves and other gardening apparel as well.

And all of the nursery supplies and plants you would expect to find as well. A gallery offers quirky artworks for sale and there is always experienced nursery people to talk to regarding gardening queries.

This mural is found in the nursery area and has been painted by Lachlan Plain (lachlanplain.com). Jason Smith, CEO of Heide Museum of Modern Art, described L.Plain’s 2012 mural "The Final Journey of Pedro Piscator" as: “On the one hand whimsical, but with a darker side…ambitious and thought provoking.”

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Monday Murals meme.