Hobsons Bay’s collection of public art has a wonderful new work. Whirlpool by Anuradha Patel is a site specific commission as part of the Bay Trail program of markers and public art, located at The Warmies in Newport.

The Warmies is an interesting part of Hobsons Bay. Wide open spaces are framed by the West Gate Bridge to the north, the monolithic Newport Power Station, and facing east dramatic vistas across the bay to the CBD. It has a strong connection to the river and to the port, with huge container ships often in view. It is also a popular fishing and recreational spot. 

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"Small news is big news!" says artist Peter Burke, whose photographic works are the latest instalments in the Conversations billboard project.

"Bin Nite Tonite and Man Tidies Shed broadcast not the big news stories, but mundane events…the artworks utilise the assumed authority of tabloids and billboard ads to raise questions about the way 'news' is interpreted and presented to the public. The project attempts to re-order the social hierarchies we take for granted in an attempt to provoke, amuse and inspire."

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What Do You Think About? (in less than nine words) returns as part of the Mayoral Program. This highly visible exhibition involves the exploration of narrative through typography.

People in the community are invited to provide a brief comment (the 'in less than nine words' bit) about what it is like to live or work in Hobsons Bay.

A selection of entries will be presented on flags that are installed on the flagpoles around the city in October and November. Entries close 5th September.

Tell us what you you think about Hobsons Bay in less than nine words.

Sculptor Pauline Fraser draws inspiration from the marine life of the inter-tidal zones of Port Phillip Bay.

It’s fitting then that her exhibition Moon Shell and a Mermaid’s Purse opens at the Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre, Altona, just metres from the coast, and close to Seaborn, the bronze works at the end of Pier Street that Pauline created as part of the Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail.

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One of the most well attended and much loved events in the busy Louis Joel calendar is It’s Art Wear It – a showcase of textiles, jewellery, beanies (and if we said tea cosies you might get the wrong idea, but believe it, these are tea cosies and then some)…

This year It’s Art Wear It will encompass a Japanese theme in recognition of the twentieth anniversary of the Sister City relationship between Hobsons Bay and Anjo, a city of some 176,000 people in the province of Aichi in Japan.

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This year’s Vibrant Village location is Borrack Square, a well established cluster of shops off busy Millers Road in Altona North.

Vibrant Villages is a project that aims to enhance the physical environment and promote cultural activities in one of Hobsons Bay’s neighbourhood centres.

An artwork designed, developed and constructed with community participation is a key part of the project and Hobsons Bay artist Anne Scambary has been working with local school groups as part of this process.

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Theatre came back to the Old Laverton School in Altona Meadows in July with a comedy performance that involved setting up the historic venue as a café, and yes, afternoon tea was provided.

Local producer and actor Margot Knight presented Wicked Widows, a comedy about three women who meet for a lunch date that holds a few surprises. Written by well known playwright Alan Hopgood, the play is based on the PhD thesis of Dr Susan Feldman, derived from her extensive interviews about widows.

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A funny, nostalgic musical journey that began in 1964 when a then 12 year old Hilary Henshaw set sail on the SS Canberra bound for a new life in Australia. Hilary invites you to relive an era when more than a million immigrants set sail for the land of opportunity! 

To coincide with the performance, an art installation will be at the Williamstown Town Hall. Western region artist Julie-anne Armstrong Roper’s Ten-Pound Packages were first exhibited at Australia House in the late 1990s.

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The resourceful Altona Village Traders' Association is presenting movies at the Altona Theatre each Wednesday commencing 3rd September. 

Upcoming films include Smart People, Miss Potter, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and Made of Honour as well as a great selection of classics.

Screening time will usually be at 11.00am but keep an eye on www.visitaltona.com.au for updates or feel free to ring the traders directly on tel: 0408 317324.

Tickets will be $6.00 available at the door. The Altona Theatre is located next to the Hobsons Bay Civic Centre, 115 Civic Parade, Altona.  

A strong run of theatre is promised towards year’s end.

Williamstown Little Theatre
By special arrangement with Dominie P/L presents Dancing At Lughnasa from 11th–27th September. Find out more at www.wlt.org.au.

Altona City Theatre
Presents Hot Mikado which opens on 3rd October at the Altona Theatre, visit www.altonacitytheatre.com.au for ticketing details.

Williamstown Musical Theatre Company
Presents Into The Woods in November at the Williamstown Mechanics Institute. Tickets can be booked through www.wmtc.org.au and are selling fast.

For many of the performances at venues in Hobsons Bay, you can purchase tickets from home. Simply log onto www.hobsonsbaytickets.com.au, select which shows you want to see, and follow the instructions to purchase. Options include either printing out your tickets or collecting them from the box office prior to the show.

If you are not computer friendly, phone the Arts Events and Tourism department of Hobsons Bay City Council on tel: 9932 2001 to order tickets.

The Newport Folk and Fiddle Club identified eight venues, yes eight, within the Mason and Hall Streets area, in the creation of the first Newport Folk Festival. This geographic spark of inspiration helped create a wonderful sense of community with performers and the audience wandering from event to event.

The Substation was the venue for a Saturday morning classical music and choral singing session, showing off the venue’s magnificent acoustics, the back garden room at the Junction Hotel proved to be a brilliant function space, to rival the front corner bar (complete with open fire).

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The Newport Islamic Society hosts the Eid Festival at Paisley Park off Mason Street in Newport. All are welcome to attend this celebration of the end of the Muslim fasting period of Ramadan, the most significant month in the Islamic calendar.

Eid Al Fitr is one of the two Eid festivals in the Islamic year, the second being in December 2008. The Eid Festival will be held at P.J. Lynch Reserve within Paisley Park, off Mason Street, Newport.   

The annual Laverton Festival date has been set. Saturday, 15th November will see this community festival take place in and around Aviation Road with cultural activity extending to the Crown Street hub.

A rundown of the festival program will be featured in the next edition of this newsletter. 

And talking about Laverton…the Laverton Arts and Culture Forum has been set up to harness the energy around arts and cultural activities in Laverton, bringing together skills and creative juices to strengthen the existing programs and bring together a new vision for the Laverton community.

The Laverton Arts and Culture Forum meets once a month and is open for new members and ideas. If you would like more information on the forum or to be updated on upcoming arts and cultural events in Laverton, please contact the Arts, Events and Tourism department on tel: 9932 1000.

Did you know that the Time Ball Tower at Point Gellibrand was originally a lighthouse? It came to be a time setting device, so that ships could accurately set their chronometers. The ball from the tower would descend slowly at 1pm every day.

Find out more about the history of Williamstown through a series of guided walks and bus tours. On selected Fridays during September and October local guides with an excellent knowledge of the area will run two tours each day, departing from the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre.

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The Paddock to Port photographic exhibition presented in conjunction with Seaworks, the Williamstown Maritime Association and the Shire of Buloke is at Seaworks, 82 Nelson Place, Williamstown until it moves to Wycheproof in Buloke in October.

For information on opening hours, please call the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre on tel: 9932 4310.

The Hobsons Bay Community Arts Centre Inc. is a membership based volunteer group undertaking the renovation and development of the Newport Substation into an arts facility.

At its recent AGM, president Darren Williams reported that building work is progressing swiftly, and the words 'official opening' can’t be far off.

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The 2008 Indoor Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition will be held on Wednesday, 3rd September from 6.00pm. The exhibition entitled Cryptozoology - in search of the missing link will be officially opened by Ken Scarlett OAM and features the works of 56 artists.

The evening will also feature the announcement of the winner of $10,000 Toyota Community Spirit Artist Travel Award for 2008.

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SUB12 is a new exhibition program that will provide an opportunity for new and emerging visual artists working across a diverse platform to exhibit in one of Melbourne’s most inspiring new art spaces. The Substation is an architecturally distinctive multi-use arts centre located in Newport.

SUB12 will run for a 12 weeks from July 2009 to October 2009. Deadline for submissions is 5.00pm, Tuesday, 30th October 2008. For further information and Expressions of Interest please contact Tania Blackwell or Ilona Rayson on tel: 9932 1000 or tblackwell@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au

Cyril Curtain Reserve in Williamstown has been chosen as the site for the sixth addition to the Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail public art collection. Expressions of Interest will open on 1st October with a closing date of 28th November 2008.

Check out www.artinpublicplaces.com.au for updates on registration for 2009. Applications will be accepted from October through to November 2008.

The Council has an arts directory which is both a promotional tool for arts businesses and community groups and a directory for people looking for arts services.

If you are registered, the Arts and Culture department can keep you informed of interesting developments, launches and opportunities.