Darlinghurst blog: Lost and Found: Red Cat

This poster was pasted up at Taylor Square. It's your classic 'Lost Cat' poster, except the choice of pet photography is rather interesting. Someone suggested the cat wouldn't be hard to find with its 'demonic' eyes. Has anyone seen this flashlight-eye feline?

PS. In a bid to explore new blogging frontiers, I'm writing this post on that new whiz-bang mobile phone technology, which may also add a certain weird quality to the format. Basically, it won't allow me to put the pic at the top of the post! Any hints?

Darlinghurst Blog: Detritus: RIP Rainbow Crossing

There was disappointing news this morning that the rainbow crossing at Taylor Square was ripped out last night by the NSW Government. 

The bright, vivid colours - and what they represented - were such a welcome addition to Oxford Street and really brought the road to life, making it a destination for residents and tourists.

The crossing was put in place by the City of Sydney to mark the 35th anniversary of Mardi Gras in March.

But the state government refused to let it remain due to safety concerns and removed it at 10pm last night.

It's so sad that it's now gone and is just a memory.

You can read news stories about its removal here, here and here.

RIP rainbow crossing.

Darlinghurst Blog: Detritus: Winter 2012

Why have I not blogged in so long? Well, let's just say I'm glad winter 2012 is over. I'm going to pretend it never happened and move along. 

But still, it's hard to dismiss a whole three months of my life and there were some OK moments in that bleak time, including the official switching on of the El Alamein Fountain on Saturday 28 July.

Heaps of peeps turned out for the ceremony, which included short speeches by the RSL and family members of the fountain's architect and original manufacturer. There was also lots of people taking photographs and recording footage:

The cameraman on the left is filming me photographing him.

This photograph (above) captures the moment after the fountain was switched back on and everyone cheered. It was a good day so it was lucky it didn't rain.

During winter, I also discovered the joys of the Bandstand Cafe (above) at Green Park and its marvellous owner, Carlos. Please support his business because he is one of the friendliest cafe chaps in the neighbourhood and he makes a good soy flat-white too (with Bonsoy)! I also tried the cafe's lasagne and it was one of the best I've eaten.

Winter also welcomed a new mural on the exterior wall of the Darlo Bar, which features wolves walking all over a woman's face. 

I also spent quite a bit of winter with the animal in my life, Ralf the street cat, who came over to my apartment quite regularly to eat and run. He may only be in it for the food, but I still appreciate his friendship. Meow! This photograph (above) shows him sleeping on some dirty old mattresses that someone dumped at the bin monster in the middle of my street. 

On cold winter nights, a local chap with a telescope could often be found outside Strawberry Cream with the lens trained on the moon or a planet. He let passers-by take a look for free. I don't know the chap's name but he has a dog called Sarah and he's also on the St John's Church board. 

During winter walks I spotted a couple of Will Coles artworks, including the balaclava man at Belmore Street in Surry Hills and the culture teddy near the Taylor Square substation.

Speaking of Coles, this little dog was left in a handbag outside the supermarket in Kings Cross. The poor dog didn't look very happy. Just imagine how embarrassing it must be for him or her stuck there looking like that.

It was also during winter that 18-year-old Thomas Kelly died after being king-hit in Victoria Street, Kings Cross. It's still not known if the alleged offender, Kieren Loveridge, 18, was drunk at the time, but the NSW Government reacted by introducing tougher restrictions on the area's pubs and clubs, including the use of ID scanners at all licensed venues. 

The media went crazy with the story, publishing infographics, like the one below, "Dark Heart", which maps out the different areas of the Cross. Fitzroy Gardens, according to The Daily Telegraph, is known as "Poets and Pimps Corner". And bugger if you happen to live on Kellett Street, because it's known as the "Personal Services Strip". Hehe.

Kelly's death and the massive amount of media it attracted may have also deterred quite a few people from coming to the Cross for their night out. On Saturday nights it is normally impossible to find a parking space in my street, but a few weeks ago there were four empty spaces at about 10pm. 

But it's still the same old Cross with its proliferation of kebab shops, Chinese massage places, tobacconists, hairdressers and chemists, although some people might like to see an Italian delicatessen or homewares shop on the strip:

This poster was pasted-up on the window of the old Kirketon Road Centre at 38 Darlinghurst Road. I personally wouldn't mind another dress shop or a place where I can buy home-made dinners so I don't have to bother cooking. 

What would you like to see on the strip?

Darlinghurst: People: Windshield Cleaner

I wish I had asked this chap his name. Now he is just one of the many nameless people who spend their days breathing in the traffic fumes at busy intersections to make a few dollars washing motorist's windshields. They are always friendly and I find them quite fascinating. This chap works the intersection of William and Palmer Streets. Say hi if you see him.

Darlinghurst: Retailers: Royalty Prussia Cafe

My friend Ruby Molteno has been urging me to blog about the Royalty Prussia shop on William Street for some time now. Ruby is strangely fascinated by the Royalty Prussia and I must admit it does hold a peculiar - and very small - space in my heart. I suppose it has something to do with its mysterious provenance and unashamed campness. 

Just how Royalty Prussia came to find a home last year among the traffic and street prostitution on William Street - and why it is not located in its spiritual heartland amongst the wealthy of Double Bay - is the first mystery. The second mystery is who runs the shop. The third mystery is who shops there.

Unashamed campness? Simply walk on by its large floor to ceiling windows and you will understand. Royalty Prussia is like a 24-hour, seven day a week party of gilt-dipped, feather-decked over the top campness. The love child of Liberace and Liza Minnelli. A place where Michael Jackson could drop $20 million on a royal-style carriage for Bubbles the chimp - if he was still alive and lived in Sydney. 

But - and I am ashamed to say - I don't really know the true cost of that carriage, which once took pride of place in Royalty Prussia's crowded, eternally lit window. 

And I must admit, that I have never been inside Royalty Prussia, because just passing by its windows was overwhelming enough. 

But that could all be about to change. 

As my spy in the Darlinghurst flatlands, Ruby has been well positioned to observe the recent movements of tradesmen and tradeswomen at Royalty Prussia and this - as well as the signs plastered on the windows - indicate Royalty Prussia is soon to open The Royalty Prussia Cafe. 

And when this happens, Ruby and I will be first at the bar ordering cappuccinos, which will hopefully come served in an ostentatious teacup and saucer befitting the Royalty Prussia aesthetic. 

Royalty Prussia opened on the ground floor of the historic 1926 Chard Building, at 171 William Street, in May last year. It is owned by Isreali-born Galita Yoshia, who as this Sydney Morning Herald article suggests (third item down), is rather fond of retaining the mysterious origins of Royalty Prussia.
Royalty Prussia has not just one, but two websites: one with a .com address, the other with a .com.au address. The two sites are identical and advertise Royalty Prussia's specialty of building and manufacturing exterior and interior designs for ''Luxury Homes, Palaces, Hotels, Yachts and Jets''. 

According to the website Royalty Prussia specialises in ''European-Aristocratic designs with the purpose of reliving the splendour of old times''.

''Our design is influenced by the lives and palatial surroundings of European royalty,'' the website says.

''Our work in art and architecture holds historical value, which today signifies prosperity and affluence.''

Which doesn't explain why they set up shop on the grungy William Street strip. 

And rather than using their website to promote their Darlinghurst showroom - their only showroom as far as I can tell - they instead decorate each web page with that old perfume-advertisement marketing trick:

''Paris. London. Moscow. Monte Carlo. New York. Dubai.''

Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to that cappuccino.

*

Royalty Prussia

171 William Street

Darlinghurst NSW 2010

02 9357 5335

www.royaltyprussia.com.au

www.royaltyprussia.com

Darlinghurst: People: Michael Kelly

My friend Ruby Molteno was out wandering through the back alleys near her home in the Darlinghurst Flatlands, when she came across this wonderful scene. 

Usually when you come across painters with their easels in public places, the artwork is often dreadful and of a cheap touristic style, never failing to include a well known Sydney landmark. 

But this artist's work, was quite different. It was actually very good, Ruby said. 

Not an Opera House sail in sight, just a romantic depiction of a random Darlinghurst back alley, called Barnett Lane, better known as Ten Buck Alley - after the corner cafe on Bourke Street and the prostitutes who frequent the area. 

There's a picture of the alley on the My Darling Darlinghurst Facebook page here.

The artist's name was Michael Kelly and he told Ruby that he likes to paint old Darlinghurst buildings and streets, but he is worried that these kind of scenes are disappearing. 

Kelly was born in Orange in 1956 and graduated from Darlinghurst's National Art School in 1985. He has since held 11 solo shows and been in countless group exhibitions, and is now represented by Woollahra-based art dealer Eva Breuer. 

Kelly mainly paints en plein air and there is a gallery of his work, ranging in price from $880 to $7700 at the link below. 

*

www.evabreuerartdealer.com.au

Darlinghurst: Detritus: Flying Dream

I had a dream last night that I was flying above Sydney. 

I came in from the harbour and soared over Woolloomooloo.

I wanted to fly home to my bed but the wind was strong and my wings weren't powerful enough. So I glided downwards where I was protected by tall buildings and I flew along the streets back towards Darlinghurst, round the bend of Cowper Wharf Road, over Wylde and on up to William Street.

It was a strange flight. 

The streets were deserted and looked more like they had been torn from the pages of a three-dimensional street directory.

Darlinghurst did not look the same.
Many buildings were missing and there were deep holes in the ground. 

My apartment had vanished, so I flew on, looking for signs of life. 

Even at Central Station and Hyde Park there was no one to be seen. 

So I flew back towards the harbour, from where I had come; over the Opera House I flew and continued on out towards the Pacific Ocean.

*

Darlinghurst: Churches: First Church of Christ, Scientist

Darlinghurst is set to be home to a new mansion after a development application was lodged last month to transform the ''First Church of Christ, Science'' building on Liverpool Street into a private residence.

Merchant banker Mark Howard Carnegie purchased the building from the Christian Scientists in June last year for a whopping $8.75 million and has submitted an innovative proposal to the City of Sydney council to turn the church and its massive auditorium into a six-bedroom house using a unique ''pod'' design.

I have to say it is a pretty impressive proposal and a very clever way to convert a 1927 heritage church into a modern home. 

The Inter-war Beaux Arts-style exterior and ''highly significant internal architectural composition'' would be retained and a dwelling ''pod'' would sit ''lightly within the shell of the former church auditorium'', according to the development application.

The pod would include a ''kitchen module'', with a kitchen, pantry, dining room, laundry; a ''guest module'' with two bedrooms accommodating three bunk beds and a guest bath; as well as a living room, three more bedrooms and a master bedroom with ensuite bathroom and dressing room, which would sit above the kitchen module.

I also like the sound of an indoor bamboo garden, which would be planted in shallow, waterproof containers at the southern end of the auditorium.

''The proposal will require removal and storage on site of all but three or four existing rows of seating in the auditorium and will otherwise be essentially freestanding,'' the application says.

Most amazing of all, is that the entire pod will be able to be removed and recycled if the building is ever converted back into a church or auditorium.

''The challenge for the project is not only to be respectful and subservient to the grandeur and eloquence of the original space but also to ensure that all is done in a manner that is fully reversible,'' the application says.

''The new structure will not touch any of the existing fabric other than bearing on the existing sloping auditorium floor.

''It is intended that the majority of work to construct this new insertion will occur off-site, both to achieve time-savings but also to limit potential risk of damage to the existing building.''

The church is also home to a large, Josiah Eustace Dodd-designed, orchestral-style organ that is considered by the Organ Historical Trust of Australia to be one of the most important historic organs from the post World War 1 period in NSW.

''As with the rest of the building fabric (this organ) is to remain untouched, however it is proposed to retain three pews within the space to enable occasional private performances to be held for the groups who have shown particular interest in this instrument and its capabilities.''

Well, isn't that bloody marvellous.

The proposed development for the 2078sqm site is estimated to cost $1.7 million. 

The architect behind this unique concept is Simon Swaney, from Darlinghurst-based Bates Smart, and I highly suggest you read the fascinating proposal - that includes a 63-page conservation management plan and 26-page heritage impact statement by Graham Brooks and Associates - on the council's website here, which also covers the history of this grand building.

But if you don't have time to read all that, let me provide you with a potted summary.

The site, on the corner of Liverpool and Forbes Street was within the original 1800s Edward Riley estate - inherited by Thomas Burdekin - and remained undeveloped until the 1920s. 

During the early part of the 20th Century the site was used by the Burlington Picture Show and hosted political rallies, farewell nights and other events, which were held in a large tent from 1909 to about 1915. 

In 1923, when the site was owned by James Alison and Alexander Hay, it was subdivided and an area of ''one rood, two-and-a-half perches'' was sold to the Christian Science Church.

The religion was founded by American Mary Baker Eddy (above), who became interested in ''healing ministry'', following a childhood bout of illness which was initially cured by a colourfully named faith healer, Phineas Quimby, from the Science of Christ ministry. 

Eddy established her church in Boston in 1875 and by her death in 1910, the church had spread to the majority of English-speaking countries, including Australia. At its peak in the 1930s the Christian Scientists had 3000 churches worldwide. 

In 1898 a few copies of Eddy's Science and Health were in circulation in Sydney and the appropriately named, William Wright Virtue, began hosting church meetings in his home with a handful of people. 

The meetings later moved to a house at 15 Harrow Road, Stanmore, in the inner west, but when numbers increased to about 36 people, the group took over a space in the Queen Victoria Market Building (now the QVB) in the Sydney CBD. 

The church first moved to Darlinghurst in 1916, to a custom built building on Riley Street (since demolished).

''The mother church congregation quickly outgrew the Riley Street accommodation and by 1923 planning was in hand for a much bigger building to house the members,'' according to the DA.

''The site on the corner of Forbes and Liverpool streets was purchased for 9000 Pounds and the architect firm Peddle Thorpe and Walker engaged to design the building.''

The $30,000 development, which included the Sunday School, foyer, pipe organ and furnishings, was built by the Hutcherson Bros and the church officially opened in July 1927.

During construction work, on March 9, 1927, the building was the subject of a lengthy article in the Sydney Morning Herald, which predicted it would be a ''worthy addition to the better type of Sydney's monumental architecture''.

The architect, Samuel George Thorpe, (who later designed Sydney's first skyscraper, the 1962 AMP building at Circular Quay), was believed to be a member of the Christian Science Church.

Thorpe based his design for the Darlinghurst church on the CSC's ''bank-style'' buildings in the United States, of which there were so many in the classical revival-style, they were soon dubbed, ''The Christian Science Church Building Movement.''

''It identifies a certain self-consciousness about the vision of the church, an effort to be perceived publicly as prominent, legitimate, successful and literally profitable to the worshiper, all this making the religious aims of Christian Scientists appear rather superficial,'' the DA says.

''The principal characteristics of building are monumentality and a consequence largeness of scale, symmetry, a thorough consistent application of classical motifs and the use of up to date structural techniques permitting impressive spacial volumes.''

All features of the Darlinghurst church.

The building has changed very little since then. The only minor alterations have included the addition of carriage lights on the outside walls, which were purchased from the old Sun Herald building in the late 1950s. A new entrance door to the reading room on Forbes Street was also added in 1985.

I'm bizarrely excited about the new plans for this site and I hope one day - perhaps posing as an organ aficionado - I can take a look at the pod interior.

I really want to have a peek inside the church before the development begins too. And wouldn't it be great to photograph the final service at the church after 84 years of operation?

*

The exhibition period for the development application closes on April 19.

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First Church of Christ, Scientist

262 Liverpool Street

Darlinghurst NSW 2010

Darlinghurst: Detritus: NSW Election Day 2011

So, it was an historic NSW election, with a massive double-digit swing against Labor.
Independent Clover Moore proved she is as popular as ever, keeping the Seat of Sydney for a sixth term, but Liberals candidate Adrian Bartels wasn't far behind.
Moore had retained the seat in 2007 with a 16.6 per cent margin over Labor, but yesterday she lost votes to Bartels, with a huge 14.9 per cent swing towards the Liberals.
Still, this was a fairly predictable result - for NSW and Sydney - and was preceded by the dullest state election campaign in recent history.
There were no major scandals, no provocative candidates (unless you count the Nudist Party's g-string-wearing Stuart Baanstra- yawn) and no surprises about who was going to win. 

Mother Nature seemed to agree and put on the dullest, greyest, coldest weather for Election Day in recent history too. If I didn't have to vote, I don't think I would have left the house all day.

But I dutifully dragged myself out of bed yesterday and went down to the St John's Church Hall polling place to cast my vote like a good citizen. If I had known there was going to be a sausage sizzle, I would have probably left my apartment earlier. 

Interestingly, of the three how to vote cards I saw - the Greens' De Brierley Newton, Labor's Sacha Blumen and independent Clover Moore  - there were no preferences given. 

I didn't bother with a how to vote card anyway, and not many people around me did either. It just seemed that everyone knew they weren't going to vote Labor.

In the last state election in 2007, Labor won 52 of the 93 seats in the lower house, or legislative assembly, while the Liberals won 22 seats. 

Yesterday, exit polls were predicting a massive 21 per cent swing against Labor, leaving Kristina Keneally's party with less than 15 seats in the lower house and the Liberal-National party with over 70 seats.  

But last night, about 10.30pm, the ABC was projecting an almost 17 per cent swing against Labor, with the ALP winning just 21 seats, compared to the Liberal-National coalition's 69 seats. 

The remaining three seats went to independents, including Clover Moore, according to the ABC. 

The Greens didn't smash Labor in the seats of Marrickville and Balmain, in the inner-west, as predicted, although last night it was still too early to announce the winners. 

So Barry O'Farrell is the new Premier and he wore a ghastly, wide-striped tie during his acceptance speech at the Parramatta Leagues Club, in Sydney's western suburbs. Most of his speech was devoted to thanking his party and announcing how many seats the Liberal-Nationals had won. 

By comparison, outgoing Premier Keneally's speech was far more emotional, as she talked about the people of NSW and the Labor party's downfall. 

Keneally won her seat of Heffron, in Sydney's south, but has decided not to contest the leadership of the Labor party. 

My bet's on deputy Labor leader Carmel Tebbutt taking over the Labor leadership (so long as she retains her Balmain seat against the Greens). The other potential candidates would be former police minister Michael Daley and Blacktown MP John Robertson, who are just boring, old school Labor men-in-suits. Yes, Tebbutt is married to Federal Labor's Anthony Albanese, but I would much prefer the job to go to a woman.
Regardless of who becomes the opposition leader, it will be interesting days ahead as NSW is run by the Liberal Party for the first time in 16 years. 

Here are the Seat of Sydney election results (as of 10.30pm Saturday):

Clover Moore (Independent): 12,344

Adrian Bartels (Liberal): 11,509

De Brierley Newton (Greens): 3977

Sacha Blumen (Labor): 3445

Andrew Patterson (Sex Party): 530

Peter Madden (Christian Democrats): 341

After preferences:

Clover Moore: 16,455 (56.5 per cent of the vote)

Adrian Bartels: 12,685 (43.5 per cent of the vote)

There was a 9.3 per cent swing against Labor and a 14.9 per cent swing to the Liberals.