Issue 29

nt nvironme e d n a re u y, cult communit

free

H AR T � C L IM A TE FO R C H A N G E � 3 M D R � MY BROW N PAPER CLOU DS S O U T H E R N D A N D E N O N G C O M M U N I T Y N U R S E R Y � PROSERPINA BAKEHOU SE

ISSUE 29 * 2018 AutumnHillscene_2018.indd 1

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BELGRAVE

Sunday of the Month

CRAFT . DESIGN . PRODUCE . MUSIC REYNOLDS

LANE

BELGRAVE

DELVE INTO DELIGHTS THIS AUTUMN @ BURRINJA 1

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Burrinja Kids - Stay & Play

The Wonder WigWam - Amy Middleton & Dave Thompson Burrinja Foyer - MAR, APR, MAY The Wonder Wigwam is an interactive visual and sound installation for children and families. Created as a catalyst for imaginary play, The Wonder Wigwam uses books, environment and sensory triggers to evoke imagination and wonder.

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That’s not a daffodil!

Burrinja Sat 7 Apr, 11am | The Memo, Healsville Tue 3 Apr 1.30pm & 3pm A heart-warming story of friendship, planting and playfulness. Funny, full of surprises and alive with music, puppetry and animation, ‘That’s not a Daffodil’ is a captivating music theatre show about trust and friendship between young and old from different worlds.

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The Orchid and the Crow

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Burrinja Fri 27 Apr 8pm | Arts Centre, Warburton Sat 28 Apr 7.30pm Montrose Town Centre Wed 2 May 8pm “Whip-smart, hilarious and deeply moving.”– The Age A comedy about an atheist surviving cancer by finding God in Lance Armstrong. Daniel Tobias effortlessly draws us into the inspiring tale of his near-death experience in this funny, uplifting story of faith, family and survival.

belong...

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Burrinja | Cnr Glenfern Rd & Matson Drive, Upwey | ph: (03) 9754 8723 | w: burrinja.org.au

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editor’s rave When last we left off, the team was taking

a summer break. Refreshed and raring to go after these summer months, we’re happy to bring you this, our Autumn offering of the hillscene.

Looking to introduce a splash of change into the works, Adriana went on a search for a guest editor and designer to take the reins for this edition. When I was invited to step up, I was only too happy – what a fabulous opportunity.

I’ve been working with the hillscene team for a few years now, helping clean up the copy before we go to print. My education lies in editorial, so copy and structural editing are my home ground.

Designing, however, is more of a hobby skill I’ve picked up along the way. Thankfully, I was able to lean on the existing design by the wonderful Adriana, which helped me to bring together what you’re reading today. Hopefully a touch of my personal style comes through, but with the classic hillscene feel. There will be a different guest editor and designer for the following seasons, so keep an eye out for something new and fresh around the corner.

Content-wise, there’s a lot to be excited about.

Talented sculptural artist Jessie Yvette Journoud-Ryan joins us as cover artist, offering an inside look into her inspirations and creative journey. Local recording studio owner Brian Baker provides his expertise in the music scene here in the hills, giving us his hot tips and a run down of where to catch the best events, concerts and live music.

The hillscene is created in partnership with Burrinja

Kel White sits down with award winning indigenous performer Ian Michael for a compelling interview, getting us excited for his upcoming one-man-show HART, coming to Burrinja in March.

These are just a few of our articles this season, and as always we have a generous helping of arts, community and environment pieces that are sure to interest and enlighten.

As Autumn takes over, it’s time to shake off summer vacation mode and get back into the world – the perfect time to visit a new café, join a worthy cause, see a show and discover the favourite artist you never knew you had.

Or, let us do all the hard work and sit back with hillscene this Autumn. We hope you discover something new.

Anna

Editor/Designer Anna James Cover Sculpture: Jessie Yvette Journoud-Ryan Photo: Cathy Ronalds Editorial Committee Adriana Alvarez, Ross Farnell, Hannah Raisin, Toni Main, and Anna James Contributors Jessie Yvette Journoud-Ryan, Toni Main, Jo Brown, Hannah Raisin, Lisa Ford, Kel White, Brian Baker, Tiffany Morris North, Adriana Alvarez and Anna James facebook: The Hillscene www.hillscene.com.au blog: hillsceneblog.wordpress.com/ For submission and advertising enquiries email: hillscene@westnet.com.au Printed by Ferntree Print on Envirocare 100gsm recycled paper. © Copyright 2016

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Photos by Cathy Ronalds

WOW! Great cover Local artist Jessie Yvette Journoud-Ryan joins us to discuss this issue’s cover image. Jessie was based at Burrinja Cultural Centre from 2013—2016 and is a long-standing participant of the Dandenong Ranges Open Studios program. She won the People’s Choice Award for Open Studios in 2015, and is the 2017 winner of the Burrinja Climate Change Biennale Acquisitive Award.

The cover image for this issue of hillscene features my piece In Flight: Nowhere is a Destination Too… This flying crane belongs to an installation of a flock of fifteen birds in flight. It is a reflection on the endangered Japanese Red-Crowned Crane, which is threatened by habitat destruction. This is a reflection on migration, perhaps a forced one, or a sense of displacement: where do we go from here?

As both a French and Australian artist – growing up in the Dandenong Ranges followed by my teens in France – I have always felt a longing for each of these shores. The ongoing presence of birds in my artwork reflects my personal narratives of migration, belonging and displacement. The epic journey, trials and life-lessons along the way. The large floor mosaic in the entrance of my Upwey home is a tribute to my dual heritage.

Residing in the hills has fostered a heightened connection with nature: inevitably, my environment influences my work.

I studied art in France, at a National Ceramics school in the countryside of Burgundy, 25km out of Dijon – hence my fetish for crockery. There, I learnt how to traditionally paint ceramics: plates, teapots…you name it, I painted it. In Melbourne, I pursued further Fine Art studies, being awarded with a Research Master’s Scholarship. I experimented with a range of media, from printmaking and collage to painting. I always leant towards a more sculptural expression, with an unflinching tendency for excess in my work.

I eventually returned to ceramics via sculpture. The studio tenancy at Burrinja launched and consolidated my practice, where I further developed a body of sculptural work using recycled crockery

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alds

predominantly donated by the local community.

This validated my choice to pursue my art. It took me a long time – and much agonising ¬– to prioritise my practice. Upon completion of my Master’s, I realised that from my academic achievements came no job qualifications. I set out to get qualified, and my art practice and I were no longer on speaking terms – so I thought.

I began teaching French and Art as a qualified secondary school teacher. As an artist who prefers to work in isolation in my studio, this daily exercise in compromise taught me several crucial personal lifelessons. Firstly, working with teenagers can be all at once a harrowing, fulfilling and humbling experience, and a wonderful privilege. Secondly, that your mental health is paramount. Walking away from my art was counterproductive, and this is my focus for my artwork for the Open Studios Exhibition theme: What Lies Beneath.

‘I’m a little teapot…’

Little teapots generally lead a precarious existence once they reach my studio.

Open Studios is a whirlwind. It is a daunting and rewarding opportunity to share what you do in your personal creative space. It provides validation, a priceless opportunity to get your work out there and to let the public momentarily into your world.

If you want a vibrant and authentic insight into an artist’s practice…this is it.

Over the last three years, I have been working on a thirteen-metre outdoor floor mosaic at home, featuring twelve medallions which will represent sightings in my garden for each month. Open Studios visitors will be invited to complete a circuit of spaces in my home which offer insight into the design process. Come and walk on my floor pieces, explore the garden and even salute the chooks surrounded by views of Lysterfield, the Bay and Macedon Ranges. A genuine hills experience.

The last life lesson I have learnt is that my art practice is a non-negotiable in my life. Teaching local secondary school students and reading through their visual art journals reignited a spark, prompting me to re-engage.

I currently work from my home studio and I teach locally and off the mountain in schools, including sculptural mosaic workshops from Burrinja. While my practice can be technically ambitious and physically taxing, I get to repeatedly break things, and rebuild. It is the place that allows me to truly express myself, to focus, and where I am most at home. There is poetry in the process of building something new out of what is broken.

My little niece visits my studio, enthusiastically brandishing my hammer and asking ‘what can we smash today?’

…this brings me joy.

Dandenong Ranges Open Studios returns in May. Learn more at openstudios.org.au. Jessie’s upcoming Mosaic Weekend Workshops at Burrinja will be held in March, April and May. For dates and bookings, visit www.burrinja.org.au. For regular studio updates, join Jessie’s mailing list on jessiejournoudryan.com Jessie is supporting a fundraising auction for 25 year old Josh Davis who recently suffered a life-changing accident.

Amongst his family members are hills locals who have shown tremendous support to many hills artists over the years.

The event will be held at Eltham Community Centre, 802 Main Rd, Eltham on May 12 at 7pm. Tickets will be available through My Cause: https://www.mycause.com.au/page/169484/helping-josh-davis

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The pleasure of play

Free kids dance performance My Brown Paper Clouds is dancing into your local hall soon.

Words by Toni Main.

My Brown Paper Clouds is a professional contemporary dance made especially for young audiences (ages 2—7) accompanied by a musical score played live on stage. The performance takes you on a journey into the imagination through dance, physical theatre, music and play. Drawing inspiration from the everyday to the never-in-amillion-years, this show builds mountains in front of your eyes, takes you on a boat ride down the Yarra River, and has you dancing among the trees.

This, all created using our bodies, our music, our piles of recycled brown paper, and our wonderful imagination. In this age of personal technology, My Brown Paper Clouds is a reminder of the pleasure of play.

In today’s screen dominated entertainment industry, where video games and television are the preferred pastime of our children, My Brown Paper Clouds encourages children to use their imagination and environment to enjoy their play. It does this by creating magic and creativity from the everyday and the mundane.

In Helvetica, the contemporary performance ensemble bringing you My Brown Paper Clouds, believes in the cultural importance of live performance for everyone, no matter where you live or your age. It is the aim of in Helvetica to

create quality performances that can be offered to all. To enable this goal, in Helvetica successfully procured funding from Yarra Ranges Council to provide a free tour of this special performance throughout the region. We are really excited to be presenting seven free performances in seven different venues, from Warburton to Upwey, Olinda to Kilsyth.

Live performance is a significant and enriching tool to be used to inform and include all.

This production welcomes audience members with impaired hearing and English language difficulties.

My Brown Paper Clouds is performed with no spoken text, allowing the physical movement and soundscape to take you on a narrative journey.

This encourages the young audiences to be more observant and to ask more questions, developing their creative and critical thinking. The audience is drawn into the action rather than just sitting back and letting it happen, creating a connection with, and empathy for, the characters. From the feedback, we found the young audience gained satisfaction from not being fed the story but being

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allowed to work it out for themselves. They could form their own opinions about the performance and know that these opinions are merited, that there are no ‘wrong’ responses.

The performance is accompanied by the magical soundscape played live by musician Gene Holland. All the music is completely original, created in improvisation and collaboration in the rehearsals with the dancers.

The production was created as part of the Burrinja Cultural Centre Creative Development Program in 2017.

In Helvetica presented the performance to a full house of delighted children and after the performance we got wonderful feedback through hugs, laughs and lovely drawings depicting the children’s favourite bits. Their response inspired us immensely, and we cherish our scrapbook of pictures.

In 2018, we have taken the performance to Perth, performing in the West Australian Spiegeltent as part of the Fringe World Festival, and to Adelaide, performing

in the Garden of Unearthly Delights as part of the Adelaide Fringe.

During this special tour of the Yarra Valley, in Helvetica will be offering dance and music workshops to the young locals after each performance. The workshops are the artistic platform for cultivating the creative expression of the participating children.

The workshop is designed to aid the imagination of the child through storytelling, improvisation and selfexpression. In Helvetica’s performing artists are practising professional arts facilitators in theatre, dance and music, with over twenty years of experience in arts-ineducation between them. The aims of the workshop are to: • Provide an opportunity to use imagination, creativity and self-expression • Cultivate an inclusive environment where all participants have the opportunity to be a part of the in Helvetica ensemble • Invigorate play through artistic engagement • Provide a safe and nurturing environment without a competitive purpose • Get kids up and moving, using the body to tell stories While the performance itself is free, the 45 minute workshops have a small fee of $8 per child and bookings are essential. To book your workshop or reserve your seat at the performance, head to the in Helvetica website inhelvetica.weebly.com and for more information head to our facebook page facebook.com/In-Helvetica My Brown Paper Clouds will be performed in Warburton, Yarra Glen, Mount Evelyn, Kilsyth, Olinda, Upwey and Monbulk between 4th—14th April, 2018.

Reservations are advised, as seats are limited and you don’t want to miss out. Workshop bookings are essential.

Photos by Sabrina Testani

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THE SDCN &

our local green army Hannah Raisin discovers how our local landscape is inspiring the next generation of young environmentalists and horticulturalists with the help of the Southern Ranges Community Nursery.

Photos by Hannah Raisin

Today is a special day for Southern Dandenong Community Nursery president Garrique Pergl as he shares his passion and knowledge with a new generation of conservation enthusiasts. It’s only 1pm and Pergl and the Green Army have already been to five different sites collecting seeds. I’m joining them to learn more about their project and see how they process the seeds on site at the nursery.

The Green Army is a program for environmentally interested youth ages 17–24. An initiative of the Australian Government Department of Environment and Energy, its intention is to offer a hands-on, practical environmental action program to support local environment and heritage conservation projects across Australia. And it sure has this team on point.

Today, the Green Army is made up of Mikaela Vipond, James Gibbs, Ryleigh Coombs, Tess Bresnaha and Yarra Ranges Council’s Beee Mallia.

It’s such a welcoming collective of young conservationists from diverse backgrounds and I’m completely inspired by their generosity, enthusiasm and dedication. One member describes the difficulties of finding meaningful work in conservation and their journey through various volunteer programs as a young person trying to get a foot in the door. In this instance, the program offers practical knowledge and an opportunity to skill up. It will hopefully feed into her capacity to be engaged in paid employment in the conservation industry.

The Green Army have spent the morning collecting Blackwood, Kangaroo Grass, Daniella Tasmanica, Golden Tip, Prickly Moses, Christmas Bush and Prickly Currant Bush. Pergl explains how each seed requires specialised processing methods, from sweating in a plastic bag in the sun, to reaching high temperatures in an oven (to mimic conditions of a bush fire). The seeds will then be separated and cleaned before storing in climate controlled conditions. Pergl also describes the risk pests present to the seed bank and outlines some of the natural insect deterring strategies they use in the seed bank, including applications of lavender, mothballs and cloves.

Some of the seeds that are being processed today include those from the Dianella fruit, which have been stewed in a bag in the sun to allow the fruit’s natural acids to break down external barriers.

Another iconic favourite, banksia seedpods, have been ‘cooked’ in the oven. As the Green Army work to release and clean the different seeds, Pergl shares some of the traditional uses of the plants, including the many uses of Acacia, which include grinding the seeds into flour and rubbing the leaves with water into a natural soap. Everyone seems to be having a genuinely great time contributing to the regeneration and maintenance of the local environment.

The Green Army works on various conservation projects, from brush cutting to hand weeding and spraying. They tell me they are lucky to be in the Yarra Ranges Council program where they get to

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experience a diverse range of activities and have hands on learning with community leaders like Pergl. As James Gibbs explains, ‘a lot of today was giving us really good knowledge around plant identification’.

However, there are clouds heading toward this rainbow. The Green Army tell me the initiative is a four-year project that started in 2014, and it looks like they might be the last group to experience the program. At home, I do a search on the program and the Australian Government website confirms that the Green Army initiative will shut down at the end of June 2018.

Despite this disappointing conclusion, my short time spent with Garreque Pergl and our local Green Army has given me a great sense of hope for the future of our environment, and faith in our emerging conservation leaders. As the SDCN demonstrates, we don’t have to be part of a green army to engage with conservation projects and contribute to this country’s sustainable future.

Having lived in the region almost my whole life and being the daughter of two dedicated gardeners, including a horticulture graduate, I’m ashamed to admit my first visit to the SDCN was only a year ago.

It was a revelation; I spent a good hour with one of the generous nursery volunteers, exploring the plants and discussing my garden’s unique needs. As a native plant nursery located in a public reserve (Birdsland Reserve), it’s amazing to be able to look around the local landscape to see the established examples of the available tube-stock species.

The nursery’s planting programs not only support the rehabilitation of our local region with native flora, but also are key to the sustenance of critical habitat for local animal species.

Since this initial visit, the nursery has been mapped in my special places bank as a nurturing, inspiring and enriching place to discover native plants and learn about environmental conservation.

Visit the SDCN at Birdsland Reserve (Shire of Yarra Ranges) 271 Mount Morton Road, Belgrave Heights or online at sdcn.org.au

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Images courtesy of 3MDR

3MDR's New Digs

Words by Jo Brown

Mountain District Radio, or 3MDR, has been broadcasting to the community for well over thirty years, but never from a location quite as beautiful as now. As of December, the station moved into the heritage listed Forest Park Homestead in Upwey.

One of the region’s oldest and most elaborate houses, it is believed to have been the summer home of John or James Griffith, of Griffith Brothers Tea. In 1901, the brothers were growing and selling tea from a property in Melbourne’s outer east, producing the nation’s first home-grown tea. Now, the Victorian brick and weatherboard residence plays host to 3MDR, who are feeling overwhelmed by what the building’s ten rooms can offer them.

Neesy Smith, a volunteer producer, says the station’s new home is ‘total heaven’. When compared to the station’s previous two room studio in Emerald, Station manager Phil Ruck jokes they will need to get an intercom system to find each other.

‘Having people be able to work on projects on site is going to make an enormous difference,’ Phil says.

He admits that transforming the heritage listed building into a workable studio has taken ‘a bit of elbow grease’. Working bees and nonstop scrubbing have been the flavour of the month, with the administration team planning fundraisers in the future to recoup wiring costs. ­

‘Hopefully, with this new space, we will be able to move away from government grants. We have all sorts of fundraising ideas, like in-house gigs or verandah parties.’

Forest Park Homestead does have an enviable verandah wrapping around two sides of the building, which would lend itself well to soirees.

In the past, the station has produced their own CDs, including the Mountain of Sound compilation – a fifty-two track, triple disk collection of live Australian music. This received national acclaim.

The station has big plans for the future as well, including regaining their title as an emergency broadcaster. The station was set up in 1985, following the Ash Wednesday fires in 1983. ‘Being a bushfire prone area, we would love to be an emergency broadcaster, but after the Black Saturday bushfires they changed all the rules,’ Phil says. ‘We reapplied, but the state government said no, because you broadcast from a bushfire prone area.’

3MDR still broadcasts in an unofficial capacity, but only has access to the same information as the general public. The solution, Phil says, lies with a mobile van.

‘We need a studio on wheels. That way, when a code red day appears, we can drive it off the mountain.’

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MDR

‘The other advantage of having a mobile van is, for the rest of the year, we can use it for event attendance – outside broadcasts. If a school can’t come to us we can say, don’t worry kids, we’ll come to you, you can broadcast to your mates on the monkey bars.’

In the past, students from local primary schools have been able to come into the studio and create their own broadcasts, although the experience wasn’t a cool or comfortable one.

‘In the old space, you’d have five or six kids in the studio and you would have to open the door every fifteen minutes so they didn’t pass out.’ Yet 3MDR has a policy of not saying no, and is proudly a voice of the community, for the community. Their international community is steadily growing too, with listeners from Poland to Ohio.

‘It doesn’t happen without volunteers. We have a really good crew that help out here, there and everywhere,’ Phil says. With over 90 presenters, and more than one hundred volunteers, the station is reliant on support from the community.

‘Subscribers and sponsors are the backbone of 3MDR,’ volunteer Neesy Smith says.

One subscriber from Seaford has donated and installed signage at the foot of the Forest Park Homestead driveway. Other subscribers include dogs, cats, and even an old Dodge called Horace.

Since 2007, when Phil came on board, the station’s subscribers have grown from sixty-eight, to four hundred and fifty.

‘There is a lot more community awareness now,’ Neesy says. ‘We keep evolving.’

‘Community radio, the whole network around the country, is vital to the development of independent Australian music, because they just don’t get a run anywhere else,’ Phil says.

‘At the moment, we have a really nice balance.

There is something for everyone.’

After coming from Emerald, their temporary home for seventeen years, everyone at Mountain District Radio is excited to enter a new chapter of the station’s history, promising bigger and better things to come.

Stay tuned…97.1FM Chi Generation Tai Chi & Qigong Morning and Evening Classes in Upwey, Belgrave, and Monbulk

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MARKET

A visual arts and musical feast!

Private lessons by arrangement

Gift cards available

Chi Generation G Tai Chi WUDA ANG SAN FENG AUSTRALIA

su@chigeneration.com.au www.chigeneration.com.au

Beside Puffing Billy at Emerald Station in the beautiful Dandenong Ranges

2nd Saturday of each month 9am–3pm Memorial Ave, Emerald, Vic

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Proserpina Prospers A Café Review by Lisa Ford

Proserpina Bakehouse, tucked back from Mount Dandenong Tourist Road, has transformed the old Sassafras nursery site with a bold, fresh, yellow and white café nestled amid a thriving community garden.

Outside, enjoy the unique old-world experience of watching staff freshly milling their own flour, while a bronze statue of Le Coq honours the French art of baking taking place within.

Follow your nose and step inside, where the chefs’ alchemy produces mouth-watering displays of sourdough loaves, seasonal fruity tarts, flaky pastries, delectable teacakes, delicious pies and frittatas, and authentic Italian pizzas.

A mountainous platter of healthy salad graces the counter, perfectly complementing your savoury selection, while on offer underneath the counter is a tempting smorgasbord of fine cheeses and charcuterie.

Take a seat, and your gaze is drawn irresistibly upwards – much in the same way that the Proserpina of Roman mythology must have gazed longingly heavenwards during her months in the underworld. Here though, your eye is caught by the soaring white ceilings flooded with natural light, where paper lanterns sway gently to and fro

amid gorgeous Angus and Celeste ceramic hanging planters cascading their green finery.

You stop and savour the moment, the bustling clatter of dishes and animated chatter of voices interweaving with the soft background music, while tantalising aromas waft around you.

Eventually you drop your gaze downwards, to the simple wooden benches and seats lining the windows. Inside, you notice that the windows are lined by a lifetime’s collection of cookery books and magazines from collaborators Gary Cooper (ex-Bella Verdere) and Carolyn Deutsher (ex-Ripe).

The cookbooks are within easy reach to spend an idle moment while you wait for a friend. Outside, the windows are lined with boxes spilling forth abundant marigolds, rosemary, chives and other herbs. It is clear that Gary and Carolyn want to share their love of good food with you holistically – from its growth, through to preparation and cooking, as well as the pièce de résistance: eating. Which is what you are really here for.

A smiling waiter brings your meal over. Seasonal beef cheek bourguignon pie made with bone marrow pastry, with some of that fabulous salad from the counter. Divine! The food here is biodynamic, organic, locally sourced and made with love. And it shows. Now, about that ginger crème brulee tart you weren’t going to order…

Find out more about Proserpina Bakehouse on Facebook, or visit them at 361 Mount Dandenong Tourist Road, Sassafras.

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Phot

New building on the block Words by Anna James

The Belgrave Community Hub is the result of efforts

by Yarra Ranges Council to provide a community space that centralises the area's vital health and relief services.

Recently constructed, it's hard to miss the big change to Belgrave's street front. Modern and timber-clad, with a striking scultptural piece from Alexander Knox, the new building is certainly eyecatching. I am lucky enough to be getting a quick tour inside the hub. I'm keen to see if it lives up to its bold exterior.

After an appropriate time spent ogling the bright yellow mushrooms towering outside, I meet Angela Stevenson at the door. It's Angela's job to help all of the different services move into the hub.

There will be a range of health and relief resources offered in the building: Maternal and Child Health, Youth Services, Aged and Disability Services, Inspiro Health, and Dandenong Ranges Emergency Relief Service, to name a few. This proximity means that it will be easier for people to access the services they need.

The hub holds a lot of potential for the wider community, with spaces available for collaboration and cooperation.

As I walk through – new building smell fresh in the air – I see a range of spaces for these different purposes. There are clinics, fully equipped dental rooms, physiotherapy spaces and counselling rooms.

They are clean and modern. I pass through large meeting rooms, an open plan office with hirable ‘hot desks’ for community groups, and multiple kitchen facilities.

There is evidence of design for all needs: elevators, accessible toilets and a Hearing Loop.

As Angela takes me through the building, the focus is on the services that will occupy the spaces. The empty building buzzes with potential. Some of the rooms are accounted for, and others are not.

These spaces are hirable; in this way the hub is adaptable based on the community’s needs.

I’m shown a community garden with multiple raised plots. They stand empty, ready and waiting for keen local gardeners to work their magic.

A shiny new playground is tucked into the grounds too, surrounded by nature.

Timber, featured so prominently in the hub's façade, continues throughout the inside of the building in panelling and large timber furnishings. The timber is warm and tactile, but it’s also an environmentally minded choice. The external timber is designed to grey over time, which will visually settle the building into its surroundings.

Like the timber, this new building will soon blend into its environment. As the community utilises the facilities on offer, the hub will evolve comfortably as part of the hills proper.

Photos by Anna James

The building is beautiful and thoughtfully designed – but it is how the community uses and engages with the space that will define its presence on the street.

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Spotlight on the Stolen Generation

Kel White caught up with Melbourne and Adelaide Fringe award-winner and Noongar performer Ian Michael. No stranger to hillscene, Ian lends us a few moments to chat about his critically acclaimed one man show HART, coming to Burrinja in March.

Photo by Julie Zhu

KW: I heard you were in Healesville the other night doing culture tracks.

IM: We did a little excerpt from the show and it was cool to get back. It felt like being back on tour again, and talking to people about it was really special.

KW: You did HillsceneLIVE a couple of years back. Is this the first time you’ve been back since then?

IM: Yeah it was. It was really funny, when I was doing that performance piece it felt like it went on for six hours, but Ross from Burrinja drove us through the main street of where that happened, and it is actually a small street. During the performance it felt like days.

KW: HART started out as a fringe show, tell us a bit about that.

IM: We made it in a lounge room in 2015 from some response to statistics that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were still being taken away from their family and communities. So, we made this verbatim piece of theatre from testimonials we found online. We put it on at Melbourne Fringe in

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2015, won three awards, toured New Zealand and Adelaide and then it kind of blew up. We ended up touring for ten months, and we’ve been touring it for three years now.

KW: And not only that, but now you are on the VCE drama playlist.

IM: I know! It’s so incredible; every year there’s one or two things that really blow my mind about this show. I never even thought people would want to come and see a show like this. I thought people would be confronted or not know how to deal with it. And now students are studying it in school, picking it apart, analysing it and educating themselves about the subject. I feel quite privileged to be part of that.

KW: You mentioned that a lot of it is verbatim, which reminds me of the Seven Stages of Grieving.

Was that connection something you were conscious of when you started making the show?

IM: Not at the time. It’s something I think about now. When we were making the show originally, I Photo by Gabi Briggs

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was going to write an imagined narrative that I created.

But in the process of researching the show, I came across seventy testimonials on one website which I brought to our development meetings. It was a no-brainer that we would use them because we quickly discovered the stories that were really impactful and emotional. It blows my mind that we are even considered alongside Seven Stages of Grieving or Uncle Jack. I feel privileged and honoured to be a part of that Indigenous theatre and storytelling.

Photo by Gabi Briggs

KW: And why bother making something up when these real stories exist and are so powerful.

IM: Exactly. And why imagine something when the stolen generation is real. Indigenous children are still experiencing that now. Since we’ve made the show, another two thousand children are in out-of-home care.

It’s coming up to ten years since Kevin Rudd said sorry, but the number of children being taken away has doubled. The urgency to tell these stories is important.

KW: With all of these verbatim stories, have you actually been in contact with their original tellers?

IM: When developing this story, we had written one script that was six testimonials put together and once we’d written that we knew the most important thing was to get permission from those people to tell their stories.

Sadly, some of those people are no longer with us, and some others weren’t ready to be told. From those six we could only use two. We contact those men every time we are about to go on tour or perform it. We think it’s very important for their stories to be told and to be heard.

I think they feel proud that their stories aren’t silent any more, and can be used as part of an education.

Photo by Julie Zhu

KW: You are about to start your run of shows for students, how are you feeling about that?

IM: It’s exciting. I am from the country and I love the country, so regional touring for me is very exciting. I grew up in a town that didn’t get theatre, so for me going to towns and playing for audiences who may not have seen these stories before is great.

KW: And you will be coming back to play at Burrinja on March 24th.

IM: Yes, and it’s such an amazing venue. It’s a beautiful, beautiful theatre. Burrinja is our last date for that leg of the tour. Then we do a regional WA tour. And then we take it to Sydney, KW: It must be a very surreal experience to be playing and who knows after that. It’s a bit cliché but I’ve someone who is alive and can comment on your had to pinch myself a few times. We made this performance of them. show in a lounge room with no money and now we travel the country. It’s an honour that people IM: Absolutely. We took this show to Perth in 2016, want to come and listen. It really makes me where the stories are taken from, and on opening night believe that people in this country want to listen all the men I play in the show were in the audience and that was crazy. I remember there was one part of the play to each other more, that we want to change.

Our communities want to listen to each other when I am about to start one of the men’s stories, and I and make a difference. looked at him in the audience, and there was a very surreal transaction of something – I was about to tell this To book tickets, visit burrinja.org.au or contact box office on 9754 8723. Discover more from Ian on the man’s life in front of him. It was something I’ll never She Said Theatre website www.shesaidtheatre.com forget.

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Change the Conversation Words by Adriana Alvarez

Have you ever had a conversation with someone that has left a lasting impression on you? One that has made you change your mind about an important issue? That’s the sort of conversation Nicole Robertson is having on a regular basis. It’s part of a program by a not-for-profit, mainly volunteer run group called Climate for Change, whose mission is to create the social climate for climate change action in Australia.

To achieve that goal, they have a program of ‘conversations for change’. A bit like a tupperware party, you invite your family and friends to your home for a meal. This, according to Nicole, is quite an important ingredient in the process.

‘We have a one and a half to two hour discussion,’ says Nicole. ‘We show a short video that we made ourselves, outlining basic research on the topic, so everyone starts at a similar base level and then we have a pretty in-depth discussion afterwards of what that means for us and what we can do as individual people.’

Nicole is one of Climate for Change’s eighty facilitators and has had twenty-six of these conversations. Four of these she has hosted herself, inviting her family and friends. She has found it to be a powerful experience and a great motivator. Even people that were unsure about the program end up thanking her and sometimes hosting their own parties to help spread the word. Climate for Change understand that until the majority of Australia is on board about how serious and urgent climate change is – as well as and the kinds of things we need to do about it – we’re not going to see real political action.

Inviting the right people is very important. Their target audience are people who might host, or who know a bit about climate change, but aren’t sure what to do about it. Sometimes it’s people who don’t know very much about it at all.

They’re not interested in sceptics.

Nicole says that about 7% of Victoria are sceptical about climate change, whereas 90% of Victorians believe that climate change is real and happening now. If you ask those 90% how many people they think agree with them, they’ll say less than 40%.

Sceptics, however, think around 50% are also sceptics.

‘There’s this real imbalance. I see what we do as illuminating to everyone that we meet that actually everybody does care about this.’

Meaning that having a conversation is a way to make a real difference in your immediate circle.

The idea behind this process for change, Nicole says, is based on research that suggests although people take in information all the time, they don’t actually process it until they have a conversation about it. Social research theory indicates that ideas are spread by people talking to someone they know and trust.

‘Which is why it’s so important that it is family and friends. Invites have much more success when they are framed in terms of this is something that’s really important to me and I want to share it with you, rather than you should come to this, it’s the right thing to do,’ says Nicole.

Another theory this model is based on is the social diffusion curve. It’s a theory that talks about the way ideas move through society.

Initially you have your innovators, someone who invents the iPhone, for example. Next are early adopters who jump on a new idea when it’s still untested. Once all of the early adopters are on board, they share the ideas by talking about them

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with others. Eventually you reach a tipping point when the early majority start to get on board.

‘Once you’ve got the early majority on board, then it’s basically unstoppable…what we want to do is reach the rest of the early adopters and move into the early majority – and there are actually not that many people left,’ says Nicole.

‘From polling, they think that we’re actually almost there, so it’s really quite exciting. We could be quite close to the tipping point.’

Climate for Change’s idea is that alongside your individual actions, like reducing your meat consumption or composting, the best thing an individual can do to contribute to fixing – or halting – climate change, is to try and change the system instead.

‘We encourage people to do things like write letters to their MPs and reach out to their friends and encourage them to do the same thing. The reaching out is the hosting bit and another conversation.’

There are only two facilitators in the hills, and

they’ve had three or four conversations up here.

People have been very receptive. What they’re looking for, apart from people to host parties, is for people who would like to volunteer and become facilitators. A year and a half ago, when Nicole did her training, there were only twelve people, and the team has grown immensely in a short time. It’s a model that’s designed to spread quickly.

‘If each new facilitator hosts two conversations, and they get two more from each of those conversations, we’ve worked out we can reach about six hundred and fifty people within eight weeks. Just amazing.’

In a time when our leaders are lacking in foresight, it seems it’s up to us to motivate them to action. Starting a conversation about climate change could be the final step towards getting us all over the tipping point, before it’s too late.

To find out more, or if you’re interested in hosting a conversation or becoming a facilitator, contact Nicole Robertson at nicoleleerobertson@gmail.com

The Climate for Change team

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The Autumn Music Review

with Brian Baker

Well, the hills music scene is certainly healthy these days, with performers, venues and recording studios all humming along. I've been known to compare the Dandenong Ranges scene to the Hollywood Hills in the late 60s, where Crosby, Stills and Nash, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and many others came to live, write, create and produce great music in a very creative environment. Artists come to the hills initially because of affordable housing and lifestyle, but end up creating a vibrant, creative community where great work can be produced.

With that in mind, here's a rundown of what's happening in the scene…

The Fat Goat (Upwey) and Kelly’s Bar and Kitchen (Olinda)

Live Venues

Concerts & Festivals

Upwey shouldn’t be forgotten in this live music mix, with The Fat Goat sneaking in a few acoustic acts to create a pleasant afternoon. A very relaxed vibe.

The PAVE Music Festival in Emerald is back this year (April 8th–15th) and features many local artists both visual and musical.

Sooki Lounge is a great place to see live acts, and over the next few months you can catch Frenzal Rhomb and Harry Manx. Comedy Nights and Karaoke are on Wednesday nights, and a great Open Mic is on during Sunday afternoons.

A big concert to look forward to is the handover of the brand new Upwey Tecoma Community Recreation and Sporting Hub (UT CRASH) on March 24th. This promises to be a great family day out with food, children’s activities and performances from Dave Graney, Matt Walker, Gradual, The Pardoners Oscar’s Alehouse not only have an amazing range of and Mast Gully Tree Fellas. It’s a free event running boutique ales, but also have great live acts on a Friday from 12pm–5pm. and Saturday night in an intimate, up-close setting.

The Basin Music Festival is on again this year. It has Kelly’s Bar and Kitchen in Mount Dandenong have live an amazing line up of acts and goes for the entire acts on Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday weekend (March 23rd–25th) with local venues such afternoons. Great food and a cosy atmosphere. as The Acorn, Chocolate Dragonfly, Svaks, The Basin The Skylark Room holds the reputation of being one Progress Hall hosting acts, as well as the fabulous outdoor Basin Triangle in the park. This is an of the best sounding live music rooms in the hills. excellent weekend to wander from venue to venue Upcoming acts include Shane Nicholson, The Eskies and catch some great acts. With over one hundred (all the way from Ireland) and Jeff Lang. While the focus is squarely on the music at The Skylark, a well- acts in seven venues, it’s certainly growing bigger each year. stocked bar and excellent food is always available.

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Up and Coming

Recording Studios

Look out for shows from these two stellar up-andcoming young performers. Clint embodies the Paul Kelly-like, country, laid back style, while Miss May came across as a ready-to-go star in the mould of classic female rockers. Think Chrissie Amphlett meets Robert Smith from The Cure.

David Carr’s Rangemaster Studios in The Patch is an amazing sounding room currently recording and mixing artists including Neesy Smith, Mariah McCarthy, Ben Langdon, Gradual, and Sadie ‘Girl on the Hill’. Not to forget the live CD from Tracey Roberts that was recorded at the Skylark Room.

I attended MissMay and Clint Wilson's joint CD launch at the Sooki Lounge in Upwey in February. It was a great night of excellent songwriting and performing.

Photo by Michelle Bennett

It’s not only the live music that’s active in the hills, there are several very fine recording facilities staffed by exceptional and experienced producers and engineers.

The Bakery is currently completing a new CD from the award winning Cathy Dobson. Other acts recording there include The X Factor finalist Dave Stergo and local artist Michelle Chandler.

The Bakery is a songwriting, recording and production studio where the emphasis is on the singer and the song – a great way to develop songs and music.

nda)

Hillside Music in Belgrave is starting renovations on a new live room. In the meantime, Jeff has been recording new material for Eddie Cole, and has a new project with Ebony King called Chinchilla. Their inaugural gig was at The Innocent Bystander Brewery in Healesville.

an eclectic mix of local culture experience a ‘hillscene’ moment magazine & blog www.hillscene.com.au



www.hillsceneblog.wordpress.com

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A shared public

Hannah Raisin reflects on a creative and productive long-term friendship with local artist Kiera Brew Kurec. Their collaborative project, A Shared Public, is coming to Belgrave, Upwey and Tecoma this year.

Photo by Nicole Breedon

Although I was born in a house a few longitudinal degrees down the hill from her Tecoma home, it took me almost eighteen years to meet Kiera Brew Kurec.

In the flurry of first day art school squirmings and introductions, her independent attitude and style enthralled and magnetically drew me in. Metro Trains also played a prominent role in what has become a long and fruitful friendship – starting with it’s offering of ‘busses replacing trains’ and evolving into three years of shared commute between the Victorian College of the Arts and our local hills stations of Upwey and Tecoma. Our early morning and last train home rail journeys afforded us the luxury of hours of the kind of shared ponderings that are so cherished by those who glance back on their youth with an envy of time.

There’s something incomparable to the bonds forged while growing and refining an arts practice, and for me the connections made in those formative years recall something of the intimacy of first kindergarten friendships. Kiera and I shared

ideas, reflections, alter egos, her mother’s early feminist texts, every single opening we could get to and, of course, the cliché barrels of red wine. In all aspects of our desire to usurp expectations and boundaries we pushed each other to go further, deeper, harder. The indulgences and frivolities of our high-octane drama and blustering ambition saw us hold our breaths and leap into many deep unknowns. After art school, Kiera had a bunch of shows in Melbourne before moving to Berlin for a time. She came back briefly for an honours year before to moving to New York for an internship at the Franklin Furnace performance archives.

Brew Kurec’s practice treks terrains through performance, ritual and transformation. She describes her work as utilising ‘live endurance performance, performance for video, photography and installation to explore the middle ground or ‘grey area’ mapping the physical and mental boundaries and the resulting space between two forces.’

With a strong elemental current, one of the things

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edon

I’m most drawn to in her practice is the way she engages space between materials – both inanimate and living. Works like Border Crossings in 2010 reference her Ukrainian Heritage with five different performances including one where litres of beetroot juice were slowly dripped onto her head, and another where she smashed concrete slabs with letters inside.

Each as the Other was a 104 hour performance at Westspace in 2013 where the Brew Kurec spent each day in the grey painted gallery with another performer. Dressed in matching grey uniforms, Brew Kurec and different performers would stand and repeat a simple sequence of actions – in a kind of mirroring between the corners of the room.

Another favourite is Brew Kurec’s An Attempt to Harmonise, presented at Bus Projects in 2015 where Brew Kurec used her body to press clay pillars into the corners of the gallery. For the exhibition, she presented the pillars in the centre of the room, with the remnants of clay in each corner and a framed photograph documenting the performance on the wall. The work embodied a perfect intersection of material, action and record in a search for balance and suspension. It tests and inhabits the kind of ‘in between’ spaces that lure us into the heady float chambers of Brew Kurec’s creations.

Locally, you might recognise her work from the recent Burrinja Climate Change Biennale or her Kids Stay and Play commission for which she created Shapes in Space, an ephemera activity inviting children to creatively engage and make shapes with objects and bodies.

On returning from New York, Brew Kurec spent several months in Central Australia before returning to Melbourne to complete her Master’s by research. It was during this period that she also returned to the hills to establish ‘The Projects’, a year-long exhibitions program in the Belgrave Arcade for which she and artist Nicole Breedon invited over fifty contemporary artists who have lived in the region to exhibit.

Skip forward around three years, and Brew Kurec and I were back in the hood, working locally and living in our retrospective longitudes in Upwey and Tecoma.

With a plenitude of shared interests and creative parallels, we have continued to share and question the world around us and our place in it.

With fourteen years of dreaming, excited plans and crazy ideas, this year we are finally preparing to tear into a brand new local arts project. In the months leading up to winter solstice, Brew Kurec and I will be meeting in public spaces around Upwey, Tecoma and Belgrave as we create performance based video work in and of our hometowns and communities. Supported by the Yarra Ranges Council, the project will culminate in a series of video projections inhabiting public spaces in the three townships.

You can see more of Kiera Brew Kurec’s work online at kierabrewkurec.com Keep an ear out for announcements about our project A Shared Public, coming mid-year to Upwey, Belgrave and Tecoma.

Left: An Attempt to Harmonise – Performance Documentation, Bus Projects, Melbourne, 2015.

Right: Object Permanence – The space between, Performance, hand-died cotton, Sawtooth, Launceston, 2016.

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t

Botanical Calamity Words by Adriana Alvarez

If you’re driving through Selby, you may have noticed a very beautiful and distinct addition to a once drab shopfront. Its pattern emblazoned navy walls may give you a clue as to what lays inside and beckon you in to discover its creative treasures. This is the new studio space of Peaches and Keen.

Inside, the space is light and airy with a sense of contemporary design and organised cool. At a large work table are the duo that make up Peaches and Keen, Lily Daley and Lucy Hearn, working on some card designs for a friend’s engagement party.

Lily, a graphic designer, and Lucy, a gold and silversmith, have been working together as Peaches and Keen for nearly eight years. They had met years earlier, but working together happened, like much of their work, organically.

‘We always knew that we both loved each other’s style and that we probably should do something together and then...’ begins Lucy.

Lily continues: ‘After you had Ada, I was working in a job and wasn’t feeling very creatively stimulated and we sort of decided to do some work together.

We put on an exhibition together and had a really fun time doing it.’

‘And just kept going from there, basically,’ finishes Lucy.

Much of the conversation is started by one and finished by the other, echoing the way their work comes together. Developmentally, they work on everything together, sharing ideas and knowledge, but also working on some things separately, as time allows.

‘We definitely bounce off each other, and if one of us is stuck on something, the other one can come along and finish it. It works really well for us, it’s a good dynamic.’

Their recent artworks have been evolving for the past five years. They find bits of nature – seed pods, leaves and flowers – dissect them, and then put them together in patterns. Making jewellery, photographic prints, some paintings…‘a bit of everything’.

Their work is in an interesting place, somewhere between art, design and craft. Particularly their jewellery. It’s hand-made and one of a kind, but

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imaeImages courtesy of Peaches and Keen made out of plastic, a very cheap material, with precious metals added. Yet it sells in galleries like eg.et al, Studio Ingot and the National gallery.

They have collectors who will buy pieces from each new style, making it more like art, yet they call themselves makers rather than artists. Their work blurs a lot of boundaries and sits in it’s own little league.

Their attitude and work exude a certain quiet calm, and there’s a lot of respect and admiration for each other, which extends to their family life. They both moved up to the hills from Windsor, and their worlds seem intricately connected. Both makers have young families, so working alongside someone who understands the needs of a creative and a parent is also very important.

The space happened quickly and by chance; there was no plan to get a studio together. The building became available and it ‘looked interesting and fun’.

They drove past it every day and it was affordable, so they thought they’d try it out. They share a bit of the

studio with Miranda Skoczek and have some of it dedicated as a retail space. There they sell some of their friend’s handmade works including ceramics, wooden clocks, calendars and cards.

The retail section is just a big experiment, but essentially the space is a studio where they can create and showcase their work. They had previously been working separately at home, and with young children, that can be a challenge. ‘It’s a really nice space to showcase our work and have people come and see it the way we want to show it,’ says Lucy.

Nature has always been an important part of their work. When they lived in Windsor, in tiny apartments with no nature, they used to pick up things on their walks that would inspire them. Now that they live in the hills, they are surrounded by what they love. ‘It’s amazing,’ laughs Lucy. ‘Definitely couldn’t go back,’ agrees Lily.

They love the trees and the community – ‘supportive’ and ‘inclusive’ are words that get mentioned a lot in our conversation, especially when talking about the hills.

They mention friends they’ve made at school and kinder, neighbours who will look after their kids, and the ‘gorgeous humans’ they’ve gotten to know at the General Food Store, their local café. ‘I feel so fortunate to have stuff like that,’ says Lily. It all adds up to making this a great place to live, be creative and bring up your kids.

Sitting around the large work table with its beautiful view of the trees outside the window, the colourful jars of beads arranged along the wall on shelves, and the spacious expanse that allows you to breathe, I feel a lot of potential in the air. Whether the future in this studio holds the exhibition they have planned for later in the year, or workshops around the table, you can be sure it will be filled with creativity, connection and community.

Peaches and Keen’s studio, Botanical Calamity, can be found at 133 Belgrave-Gembrook Road, Selby. www.instagram.com/peachesandkeen

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Where Artists Meet

Burrinja Cultural Centre has started a new initiative that invites local artists to meet, greet and connect. To learn more about this exciting new endeavour, we caught up with recently appointed Burrinja Community Cultural Development Officer, Toni Main.

What is Where Artists Meet (WAM)?

WAM is the place to share your stories and opportunities, to make new collaborations, to let off steam together and to talk about life as an artist in the hills.

Offered as bi-monthly events throughout the year, these regular gatherings provide a space for connecting and developing conversations between local creatives.

WAM provides a fun and friendly environment to talk shop with other artists, share tips, discuss creative practice, projects and local arts and culture.

With the Dandenong Ranges’ rich and abundant cultural landscape, Burrinja’s WAM events are a great opportunity to develop new creative networks, find out about potential opportunities and connect with your local arts community.

As well as connecting with other local practitioners over a drink, each event will touch on a different arts issue or skill. Special guests will be invited to share their insight, their secrets and their stories.

We will learn, share and laugh together as we celebrate our rich local arts community.

Why did you create WAM? The Dandenong Ranges is abundant with creative people making and shaping. We are drawn to the picturesque landscape, the gorgeous natural soundscape and the generous cultural community within the region.

With the support of Burrinja, I am making an official space for all artists to come together.

I hope that unexpected artists hit it off and new crazy collaborations come about: the weaver and the animator create a short film, the sculptor and the poet connect to make street art. In the creative industries, it is all about who you know: you get commissions through word of mouth; you get job offers because someone recommended you. I want to make sure you are part of that network of amazing artists.

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What happens at WAM? After a trial event in 2017, we found that WAM works best when we keep the event fairly informal.

The main goal is to create a relaxed and friendly environment where artists can come together and enjoy each other’s company. That said, each event will have a theme, a topical thread to provide a platform for conversation.

So often, meeting other creatives can get stuck in a conversation of who you are, what you do and where one can see your work. These events are more than that. Yes, they are informal, but that doesn’t mean we can’t also develop the capacity of local artists. The themes have come from conversations with local creatives within Burrinja’s networks, with some exciting ideas such as ‘Breaking the Rules’ and ‘What is Cultural Entrepreneurship?’.

Who is WAM for?

All the local artists, creators and makers! It doesn’t matter what your form or medium is, you are invited. Painters, dancers, actors, poets, musicians, illustrators, animators, sculptors, weavers – makers and creators of every kind. All artists need a space to network, share and connect.

Personally, I’ve studied in many institutions, but it’s the anecdote from a peer over a drink from which I learn the most.

I like to find the connecting threads between my work and others, it inspires me to push further. Finding others that challenge my ideas encourages me to risk more in my creative process.

Why the Skylark room?

The Skylark Room is great backer of local arts, with lots of events presenting local talent including gigs, poetry nights and other events. We are only too happy to be working with them to present WAM. The Skylark Room have generously offered to provide drink specials at each gathering. The Skylark has a great dinner menu, so check the Skylark website to see if they will be open for dinner before the event. Bookings are essential as there are other events happening in Burrinja.

Artists of all art forms are invited to these free events, happening on 7 March, 25 May, 24 July, 8 September and 1 November, 8pm at The Skylark Room.

To book, or find out more about WAM (Where Artists Meet), visit burrinja.org.au

Photos by Iesha Corbett Photo by Julie Zhu

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café tarts

Digging for Fire

Digging for Fire started with humble beginnings in the food truck industry. Dave Walsh started the Digging for Fire food truck in 2013. Dave’s love of fresh, ethically sourced produce and modern street food is still going strong today – the truck is a regular sight at events like Strawberry Fields, Zoo Twilights and the Queen Victoria Night Markets. They now have permanent premises in Main Street Upwey, where we can enjoy their offerings regularly.

Tiffany Morris-North checked it out for us.

The Digging for Fire BBQ kitchen is predominantly a takeaway shop with limited seating. It is a casual, family-friendly, relaxed dining space with a modern edge. I love the giant painted pineapples on the wall.

We took the kids along with us for this review and it went down well. We tried an array of burgers – the pulled pork burger with pineapple relish was probably my favourite. The slow-cooked lamb and beef brisket were also delicious, as was the cheeseburger from the specials board. On the side, we couldn’t go without ordering the obligatory chips with lime mayo, a side salad of rice, quinoa and pumpkin (which could’ve been greatly improved with a bit of dressing) and the crispy chicken wings which were hot and crunchy.

Homemade icy pops and choc tops finished the meal nicely.

The burgers are reasonably priced ($14) which makes for a family-friendly meal that is a winner on flavour as well as on your wallet.

If you’re a lover of smokey BBQ meats, then you need to check this place out. There were also some delicious sounding vegetarian options available.

And they’re licensed!

Digging for Fire is open for dine in, takeaway and functions. The truck is available for all kinds of catering. For more info, follow Digging for Fire on Facebook.

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DANDENONG RANGES OPEN STUDIOS 2018 OPEN STUDIOS WEEKEND 5 + 6 MAY EXHIBITION 28 MARCH – 6 MAY Burrinja Gallery 351 Glenfern Road, Upwey

Experience 28 unique studio environments featuring individuals and groups practising across mediums including photography, ceramics, textile, printmaking, painting and sculpture. Get a ‘sneak peak’ into the vibrant creative spaces and incredible architectural dwellings of the Dandenong Ranges.

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Photo by Anna James

Leave it to me AutumnHillscene_2018.indd 28

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