Reading handmadelife over toast and tea this morning I realised that if I didn't go today I would totally miss the Victorian exhibition at the Bendigo Art Gallery. So I put my day on hold and hit the road.
Apart from a couple of very strangely wrong descriptions, it was a pearl of a show. This collection is amazing and what was on show is a mere drop in the ocean, tip of the iceberg, seed bead on a wedding dress, of what the collection contains.
Wedding dresses so tiny they would barely fit a child today. Beautiful fabrics. Beaded shoes. Handmade lace. Dead black mourning clothes. A child's cape of violet velvet. A whole different world.
But probably my favourite piece was a plain chocolate silk Quaker maternity dress with handmade buttons.
Bendigo Art Gallery is seriously kickin' arse with its exhibitions.
Small and perfectly formed.
oh - I am a secrete Bendigo reader of your blog - damn it - it would have been lovely to invite you around for a cuppa and a show off of my studio.
ReplyDeleteGlad you had a good day at the gallery but
excited about your upcoming show!
ReplyDeletesad about the cuppa- started to fade on the way home- only 1 cup of tea in the morning doesn't keep me going!
(although it means I didn't have to keep having pit-stops!)
sooooo jealous, but soooo glad you took such great pictures, and that maternity dress just makes me think of deadwood - in the best possible way of course, am also beside self with excitement about the apples! (i'm hoping i'm NOT being too presumtuous - there are a lot of becks out there to be sure but how many of them are knocked up and craving the harcourt goodness eh?)
ReplyDeleteyou are the beezneez miss penpen
xxxb
your quaker dress almost co-incided with my need to be amish!
ReplyDeleteHarcourt apples are heaven, next time your there go to Bress winery/cidery and get some pink lady cider... now that is really good... made the same as champagne, but cider......
I love that there is an alpacary and a cidery on that road! -ry words too cool!
ReplyDelete