Arts & Culture
These posts are about museums, visual arts, literature, music and also Indigenous culture.
-
Majorelle Gardens, Marrakech
This reflective visit to Marrakech’s Majorelle Gardens lingers on Majorelle blue, sculptural cacti, and the dialogue between science and art.…
-
Albi France – Where another little art history story began
A short commute from Toulouse is Albi, the home of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, one of art history’s biggest little people.…
-
Chasing Paolo Veronese
When Paolo Veronese – ascended master in training – one of the most esteemed painters of the Renaissance put a…
-
Francis of Assisi and the wolf of Gubbio
Reflecting on the beloved legend of Saint Francis and the wolf of Gubbio, this piece weaves together art, history and…
-
Who’s really in charge of the National Gallery of Australia?
While the Roman Catholic world commemorates 800 years since the passing of the most popular saint of all time—Francis of…
-
What is the most important depiction of St Francis of Assisi?
From Cimabue’s frescoes in Assisi to Arthur Boyd’s tapestries in Canberra and the wolf of Gubbio, this post explores how…
-
Discovering Indigenous Coogee: What’s here, what’s missing and what’s nearby
From the Koojay Corroboree on Coogee Beach to La Perouse, galleries, and cultural tours across Sydney, this essay maps ways…
-
From ‘souvenir’ to ‘fine art’ – Indigenous women triumph
At La Perouse, finely wrought “souvenirs” of shells reveal a powerful story of Aboriginal women’s artistry, resilience and sea-country knowledge.…
-
Why you must visit La Perouse, Sydney
About 20 minutes from Coogee, La Perouse is my favourite place to walk, swim and think. But it’s far more…
-
The future of La Perouse Museum?
What should the future La Perouse Museum and First Nations Cultural Precinct look like? Drawing on Kamay’s layered histories, I…
-
Dharawal Resting Place: Bringing Aboriginal ancestors home to Country
Since 1970’s Aboriginal Australians have been pressing for the repatriation of the ancestral remains held in museums. Twelve years after…
-
Unexpected cultural depths: Art history at Sydney’s eastern beaches
From the impressionist painters who made Coogee worth picturing, to Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s monumental Wrapped Coast at Little Bay —…
-
Sea Country and the fight for Indigenous sea rights
The Yirrkala Bark Petition of 1963 set in motion a decades-long fight for Indigenous sea rights in Australia. I came…
-
You will never guess my favourite museum
From childhood atlas dreams of Winnipeg to standing inside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, this post traces how one…
-
“A Mile in My Shoes”
In a world lacking in empathy, museums can create opportunities to experience it and build social cohesion. (5 min read)
-
The Path That Led to iluminar
Paul McCarthy’s life changed direction when he visited Brasil to acquire a crystal light healing apparatus in 2008. He learned…
-
Coogee reading list
From the shark murder mystery to the ladies-only ocean pool, Coogee has inspired some remarkable books. Here is my personal…
-
Some great Aussie movies
A curated collection of Australian films — from Indigenous stories and feminist pioneers to larrikin comedies and wartime epics —…
-
Aussie music for the walk from Coogee to Bondi
A curated Spotify playlist of 30 Australian songs — from Gurrumul to Kylie, Paul Kelly to Midnight Oil — with…
-
Some reading suggestions
Paul McCarthy has written two books about saints that have inspired him (St Ignatius of Loyola and St Francis of…
-
Meet me in the library – I love books
Let me introduce myself through my love of books. From novels that survived a flood to saints’ lives, Spiritism, Islamic…
-
Returning a “global citizen” after 3.5 years of travel
After 3.5 years of sacred travel across four continents — what changes, what doesn’t, and why coming home feels like…
-
Singing and dancing in Assisi
A musical theatre production, St Clare and an unexpectedly joyful evening in Assisi — proof that the sacred and the…
-
Musee d’Orsay rehang
A visit to the newly rehanged Musée d’Orsay in Paris — impressionism, the new layout, and personal reflections on what…
-
James Twyman’s ‘Emissary of Light”
Key passages from James Twyman’s 1996 book — on fear, separation, love, surrender and stepping through the Door of Eternity.…
