Cultural Trails by Lake Macquarie City

CU LTU RA L TRA I LS

e c a f r u s e h t h t a e n e b e Go i r a u q c a of L ake M WITH OUR CULTURAL TRAILS These Cultural Trails have been created for you from local and visitor feedback. They bring together the very best of Lake Macquarie’s arts, heritage and cultural attractions and will take you on a journey of discovery around the Lake. Get to know Lake Macquarie and find out what makes us so unique. Whether you’re an art fan or a history buff, we have a trail to match.

Front cover: Kelly Ann Lees Norfolk 2019 Opposite: Guy Maestri Facsimilies Darwin 2017

Inside you’ll find these trails: 1

TOP CULTURAL HIGHLIGHTS

PUBLIC ART

SCULPTURE PARK TRAIL

GALLERIES

HISTORIC SITES AND STORIES

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LAKE MACQUARIE VISITOR INFORMATION visitlakemac.com.au 02 4921 0740 or freecall 1800 802 044 tourism@lakemac.nsw.gov.au @lakemacquarietourism #lovelakemacquarie

 @visitlakemac

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be aware that this publication contains the names of people who have passed away.

LAKE MACQUARIE CULTURAL TRAILS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY Dhumaan ngayin ngarrakalu kirraanan barayidin. We remember and respect the Ancestors who cared for and nurtured this Country. Ngarrakalumba yuludaka bibayilin barayida baaduka. It is in their footsteps that we travel these lands and waters. Lake Macquarie Tourism dhumaan Awabakala ngarrakal yalawaa, yalawan, yalawanan. Lake Macquarie Tourism acknowledges the Awabakal people and Elders past, present and future. Wording by the Aboriginal Reference Group and translated by Miromaa Aboriginal Language and Technology Centre.

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CULTURAL HIGHLIGHTS

CATHERINE HILL BAY

UNIQUE COASTAL MINING VILLAGE Catherine Hill Bay is one of only two towns in NSW that is entirely state-heritage listed. Situated on a beautiful cove twice named amongst Australia’s ‘101 Best Beaches’, it is here you will find the township’s most iconic feature; a former coal-loading jetty symbolic of the area’s industrial history.

 Flowers Drive, Catherine Hill Bay

CAVES BEACH

SEE THE CAVES The famed Caves Beach sea caves are one of Lake Macquarie’s most popular natural attractions and a renowned photography location. The area’s tidal pools and striking rock formations provide dreamy subject matter for local and visiting photographers. Caves Beach is also home to Kelly-Ann Lees’ popular sculpture ‘Norfolk’.

 Parking available off Caves Beach Road or at end of Mawson Close, Caves Beach

REDHEAD SHARK TOWER

A UNIQUE SURF LIFE SAVING ICON

Believed to be the only remaining structure of its kind on Australia’s east coast, the Redhead Shark Tower was constructed in the early 1930s. Long past use for observational purposes, the Tower remains an enduring symbol of Lake Macquarie’s beach culture and a perennially popular photography subject.

 Parking available at Redhead Surf Life Saving Club, off Beach Road, Redhead

FERNLEIGH TRACK

LAKE MACQUARIE’S RAIL TRAIL

The disused Adamstown to Belmont train line was given a new lease of life when it was transformed into the Fernleigh Track, one of the region’s most popular shared pathways. Walk or cycle past former stations, interpretive panels detailing the Track’s history and relics from the route’s railway past.

 The Track’s southern start point is located on Railway Parade, Belmont

THEATRES

EXHILARATING LIVE PERFORMANCE Lake Macquarie is home to Warners Bay Theatre, baramayiba and Rathmines Theatre, nawayiba (pictured left), both having recently undergone refurbishments. Visitors can enjoy a year round program of live performances at these venues, including plays, dance, music gigs and more.

 Rathmines Theatre, nawayiba 25 Stilling Street, Rathmines lakemac.com.au/Venues/Rathmines-Theatre

 Warners Bay Theatre, baramayiba Lake Street, Warners Bay 6

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’Little Quirks’ perform at Warners Bay Theatre, baramayiba, Feb 2021

CREATIVE LAKE

LAKEFRONT SCULPTURE TRAIL Creative LAKE is an eclectic collection of contemporary artworks positioned around the lake in popular foreshore locations from Speers Point to Eleebana. Artists hail from Sydney, Thailand, Melbourne and China and detailed information on each installation is contained in the ‘Public Art’ trail within this booklet.

 Sculptures are located around the Lake at Speers Point, Warners Bay and Eleebana foreshores

MULTI-ARTS PAVILION, mima

WHERE ART AND INNOVATION COME TOGETHER Opening in mid-2021, Multi-Arts Pavilion, mima (MAP mima) is Lake Macquarie’s newest contemporary arts venue. Located in beautiful Speers Point Park, MAP mima cements Lake Macquarie’s unique position in the Australian arts landscape as a vibrant and contemporary creative city against a backdrop of natural beauty. MAP mima is a one of a kind creative space that brings art, performance and innovation together – where you’ll find music, art, dance, film, technology, and everything in between.

 Creek Reserve Road, Speers Point Park 8

MUSEUM OF ART AND CULTURE LAKE MACQUARIE, yapang

THE HUNTER’S ONLY WATERFRONT GALLERY The Museum of Art and Culture, yapang is uniquely positioned within 5 hectares of leafy grounds on the shore of Lake Macquarie. The award-winning art museum has a cafe, retail shop, sculpture park and mosaic pathways. The Museum hosts touring and gallerycurated exhibitions, contemporary First Nations programming as well as creative and diverse art and cultural programs engaging the local community.

 1A First Street, Booragul 02 4921 0382

RATHMINES PARK

Tues – Sun 9am – 3pm mac.lakemac.com.au

WWII HERITAGE SITE OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE Peaceful Rathmines Park was once home to the largest and longest-serving seaplane base in the Southern Hemisphere during WWII. Explore the area’s war history through onsite interpretive signage highlighting both military and recreational facilities used by the RAAF. Learn more at the Rathmines Heritage Centre, open at Rathmines Theatre, Friday - Sunday 10am–2pm.

 1 Stilling Street, Rathmines 11

DOBELL HOUSE

GET TO KNOW WANGI’S ‘GENTLE GENIUS’ At Dobell House, explore the life and work of great Australian artist and long-time Lake Macquarie resident, Sir William Dobell. His state-heritage listed former home and studio contains original furnishings, memorabilia and more.

 47 Dobell Drive, Wangi Wangi

Sat, Sun and selected public holidays 1 – 4pm 02 4975 4115 dobellhouse.org.au CULTURAL HIGHLIGHTS

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All artworks are a part of the Lake Macquarie City Council Urban and Public Art Collection.

Alex Seton Soloist 2012

KELLY-ANN LEES

NORFOLK 2019 Kelly-Ann Lees’ artwork references the seed cones dropped by the Norfolk Island pines growing in the Caves Beach area. These welded steel pinecones are designed to rust and change over time, responding to the surrounding environment. Lees has been exhibiting for almost 20 years, and her art practice is predominantly focused on drawing attention to the beauty of nature.

 Caves Beach, located between the amenities block and the beach

ANTONE BRUINSMA

BEACH BLOSSOM 2016

Beach Blossom was inspired by the native hibiscus flower and symbolises the human spirit rising with the energies of the sun(rise). This granite sculpture is also reminiscent of a large raised hand. The theme is universal, with an emphasis on humanity ‘blossoming’ to its fullest potential while existing synergistically with nature.

 Lions Park, Eleebana

NAIDEE CHANGMOH

THE ASCETIC 2015

Naidee Changmoh’s cartoon-like bronze sculptures represent positive thinking, peace and simplicity. As a Buddhist, Changmoh’s work relates to philosophies of peace and balance. Inspired by children, his artwork The Ascetic was created from memories of Japanese cartoons he used to watch on TV when he was young.

 Warners Bay Foreshore, opposite the Esplanade café strip

ALEX SETON

SOLOIST 2012 Soloist is a hooded figure sitting quietly contemplating the modern world. For some, it is a peaceful and meditative figure, for others, it is more malevolent, face hidden to avoid scrutiny. These differing interpretations reveal much about the judgments we make about each other.

 Warners Bay Foreshore, opposite Lake Street

GUAN WEI

SKY PIG 2017

Globally renowned artist Guan Wei is renowned for large installations and paintings that combine imagery from mythology, fantasy, history and the present day. With delicate details and a uniquely humorous appearance, Guan Wei hopes that his bronze Sky Pig can bring joy and luck to its audience.

 Warners Bay Foreshore, east of North Creek PUBLIC ART TRAIL

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GUY MAESTRI

FACSIMILIES DARWIN 2017

Guy Maestri’s Facsimilies Darwin offers us an unchanging truth. Using painted bronze as a metaphor for how contemporary society honours history with everlasting effigies, Maestri asks if it is still tolerable to revere these frozen monuments to archaic values, as seen with the controversy surrounding the confederate sculptures across the US.

 Warners Bay Foreshore, west of North Creek

DAVID CIANCI

ANTENNA 2018

David Cianci’s Antenna marks a symbolic centre to Charlestown where the youth play a pivotal role in enlivening the place. At approximately 6 metres high the artwork is suggestive of a youthful community, rising up as Charlestown continues to grow and rise with it, both physically and metaphorically. The artworks futuristic aesthetic is supported with the aid of intelligent lighting, which responds to changing local environmental conditions.

 Charlestown Skate Park, Charlestown Oval, Charlestown 4

SARETTA FIELDING

PUNA YARN 2018

Saretta Fielding’s Puna Yarn is a collection of six works, sharing cultural stories through vibrantly coloured, highly textured artworks which reflect the traditional sand engravings found upon Aboriginal sites of the Hunter.

 Charlestown Skate Park, Charlestown Oval, Charlestown

ALEX UMPEL

EBB AND FLOW 2021 Alex Umpel has used his foundation in traditional artwork to expand his creative practice to include street art, murals, design and motion graphics. Umpel has selected technology instead of traditional materials to replicate natural movement, form and light to spotlight the elegance, structure and drama of nature. This is an illuminated artwork and is best viewed at dusk and early evening.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown

This projection switches on at 5pm and off at 10pm

JOHN FISH STUDIOS

CATENARY LIGHTING 2021 Developed in collaboration with Lake Macquarie City Council, the project’s intention is to enhance Pearson Street with dynamic colour, light and movement. The project utilises over 6,000 individually controllable pixels over its entire 106 metre length.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown PUBLIC ART TRAIL

CODEWISE

INTERACTIVE FURNITURE 2021 In this project Codewise set out to blend gamification with digital technologies to create innovative “digilogue” installations to engage and delight locals and visitors to Pearson St Mall. The installations inspire people to reflect on the way we interact with digital technologies, and the influence algorithms have on our lives. The bespoke interactive furniture was developed via a collaborative approach with Lake Macquarie City Council and their Smart Cities team.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown 4

HUW JONES

VARIOUS 2021 Huw Jones (aka Fox Control) has created six pieces of music to capture the essence of some special places within the Awabakal, Darkinjung, Lake Macquarie region. Each place is somewhere outdoors where communities, families and friends actively get-together. You will hear wildlife and human activity happening in Caves Beach, Charlestown skatepark, the Yuelarbah walking track and Speers Point park.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown

CODEWISE

TWANG 2021 In this project Codewise set out to blend gamification with digital technologies to create innovative “digilogue” installations. Twang is a world made of algorithms. Codewise founder Joe Haig hopes Twang will inspire people to reflect on the way we interact with digital technologies and the influence these algorithms have on our lives. Working collaboratively with local children to create the digital characters and melodic score, Codewise hopes to excite young people about digital technologies and innovation.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown 4

MAJA TILBROOK

LAND OF HOPE 2021 Land of Hope, by Maja Tilbrook, tells the story of Harry the yellow Polar Bear, his love of tuna and library books! Inspired by the ‘Go Wild’ place maker initiative; which saw colourful animals installed at Lake Macquarie Libraries, children were encouraged to write and illustrate the stories behind these animals. Workshop Facilitators, Jess Black and Kirrili Lonergan were integral to the production of these stories, guiding young authors and illustrators through the process of creating their stories and art, for the ‘Go Wild’ book - written for kids, by kids. Maja’s story focuses on the polar bear currently located at Wangi Library Creative Hub. You can hear a sound recording of Land of Hope as part of the Codewise interactive furniture sound experience.

 Pearson Street Mall, Charlestown

MILNE AND STONEHOUSE

CHIMERA 2019 Susan Milne and Greg Stonehouse’s large-scale windvane was commissioned to celebrate the rejuvenation of the Lake. Chimera is inspired by the scales and fins of fish, the feather texture of birds and the sweeping nature of sails. Milne and Stonehouse are nationally renowned artists who have practiced for over 20 years and have won numerous awards.

 Speers Point Park, located near the jetty THE DESIGN LAB (UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY) LED BY DR LUKE HESPANHOL

CATENARY 2021 Catenary is an innovative public art response along the Speers Point Promenade that experiments with interactive, digital and multi-media approaches to art making, storytelling and placemaking. As you stroll along the promenade towards the Multi-Arts Pavilion, zig-zags of colourful light flicker and dance overhead, evoking shapes of the waves and sails that surround Speers Point Park. This welcoming interactive installation is a collaboration between Lake Macquarie City Council and the University of Sydney’s Design Lab.

 Creek Reserve Road, Speers Point 6

HIROMI TANGO

MIMA: BEATIFUL SPACE 2021 Hiromi Tango is a renowned Japanese-Australian artist whose work spans sculpture, drawings, photography, installation and performance. Mima: Beautiful Space responds both to the Awabakal name for the pavilion, meaning ‘cause to stay’, and the homophonous Japanese reading of MI and MA meaning ‘beautiful space’. The work gently glows on the walls of the building, healing colours and circular contours intermingling to create something new and vibrant. Ancient histories of the land, water and sky flow together to create a connection between nature and the architectural space.

 Creek Reserve Road, Speers Point 7

DAVID BALL

EOLIAN 2021 Eolian frames the earth and sky, encouraging audiences to explore differing views of the former Pasminco site and Munibung Hill, acknowledging the significance of these sites in Lake Macquarie’s history and its future. The Artist’s use of material is a direct reference to Boolaroo’s industrial history; to make steel, iron ore is first mined from the ground before undergoing a smelting process. The circular shape is a universal form attracting viewers to enjoy the experience of walking near and around this large-scale work.

 corner of Munibung Rd and Lake Rd, Boolaroo, Lake Macquarie.

PUBLIC ART TRAIL

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Located at Museum of Art and Culture Lake Macquarie, yapang

TREVOR WEEKES

GATEWAY SCULPTURE (detail) 2001/02 This sculpture was commissioned to mark the entrance to the gallery and welcomes visitors with symbols of the lake. The right pillar depicts a rock shelf and life under the water. The left is a mooring, a solitary and dignified object with great purpose. Spanning the two is a familiar hull shape, here resembling a discarded wreck. At the top of this skeletal form is a steel rod which hints at the pastime of fishing. At the base is a ripple pattern, evocative of wind combing the surface of the water.

SUSAN MORRIS

MOON AND TIDE 1998 Winner of the gallery’s 1998 Lake Macquarie Biennial Acquisitive Sculpture Prize, this work reflects and echoes the quiet twilight and evening periods in the lakeside park. The three dominant stainless steel rings represent the phases of the moon – waxing, full and waning. The rings are welded to a ‘wave’ bed at ground level that signifies the tide. An abstracted fish is brazed onto the surface of the wave, reminiscent of the marine life moving as the tide drifts into the lake from the sea.

PAUL MAHER AND LOCAL SCHOOL STUDENTS

TED PRIOR

CULTURAL DIVERSITY (detail) 1996 – 2000 The mosaics placed in the pathway to the gallery were designed and constructed during a series of workshops from 1996 to 2000 by Paul Maher and school students from the region. Each work reflects cultural diversity and changing aspects of the environment, as well as aspects of the gallery and its development. The images depicted are of Awaba House, the lake, the vegetation and local Aboriginal stories.

LOVE BOAT 1996 Co-winner of the gallery’s 1996 Lake Macquarie Biennial Acquisitive Sculpture Prize, Love Boat is symbolic of human relationships. It acknowledges the initial closeness of early love but by setting the two figures back to back, suggests a rocky ride could ensue with each partner seeking independence. The implication of unrest is enhanced by the seesaw aspect of the piece, with the puppet-like figures joined by a central vertical core affixed to the boat shape and mounted within a deck anchored by six bollards.

GRAHAM GILCHRIST

WINDRIFT 1997 The artist was motivated by environmental concerns. He felt lake life was under threat: ‘Industrial chimneys are polluting the environment,’ he observed. The sculpture combines the industrial and the organic with staunch uprights suggesting chimney stacks, and silhouettes of stainless steel animal and plant life, rippled by the wind. This engaging work was created and installed during the artist’s residency in 1997. SCULPTURE PARK TRAIL

RICHARD TIPPING

HEAR THE ART 1996 Co-winner of the gallery’s 1996 Lake Macquarie Biennial Acquisitive Sculpture Prize, this environmental sculpture is a visual poem. Growing from the circle of letters are messages and incantations – EARTH, HEART, HEARTH, HEAR THE EARTH and HEAR THE ART. A small grove of tuckeroos (Cupaniopsis anarcardiodes) will eventually form a single canopy at the heart of the work, keeping the viewer in touch with nature and its energies. This meditation focuses on sound and the serenity of the lakeside edge, with its slow time, endless changes and reflections.

BRADDON SNAPE

CARDINAL POINT (detail) 1997

Cardinal Point represents the four major directions on a compass: in this case indicating not only the geographical, but also the historical and cultural significance of the site. The sculpture’s topmost symbol, a west cardinal marker, indicates (in sailing terms) that the safe side is west of the mark. The horizontal surface represents the lake and below the flowing metal rods suggest seepage into the lake and hidden currents. The coal at the base symbolises the final form for all organic life as well as reflecting the industrial history of the region.

JOHN TURIER

AEOLIAN TREE 2001

Aeolian Tree is situated among the trees overlooking the lake. In this location it triumphantly rises and moves like the ebb and flow of the lake. There is a sense of magic in the large and heavy ‘sail’ form balanced on a fine central point, from which it pivots gracefully in the wind as a giant weathervane. Named after Aeolus, the fabled keeper of the winds, the sail form dances between the trees and clouds.

RICHARD TIPPING

MORNING 2007 Richard Tipping’s creative practice explores the combined communicative qualities of text, images and objects. Morning, part of the eight-piece series Imagine Silence, clearly reflects this preoccupation. Like the other sculptural works in the series, it features a four-line poem inscribed on a block of basalt crystal, giving a sense of materiality and ‘weight’ to the written and, by extension, the spoken word. It suggests notions of renewal and the interrelatedness of landscape and memory in shaping our understanding of the natural environment.

FATU FEU’U

TANIFA O TAGALOA 2003 Samoan artist Fatu Feu’u has established an international reputation as the ‘father’ of Pacific Island art in New Zealand, his home since 1966. Feu’u’s philosophy is to actively pass on his extensive knowledge of traditional skills. As a part of the 2003 Lake’s Edge project, he invited members of the local Samoan community to join him in making this totem. Tanifa O Tagaloa is the offspring of Tagaloa, the Polynesian creation god, and possesses a tail much like the fish that swim from eastern Polynesia to the coast of Australia.

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Museum of Art and Culture, yapang

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JIM RIDGEWAY, SUE STEWART AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY

JAMIE NORTH

MEETING PLACE 2003 A significant component of the 2003 Lake’s Edge project was the development of the Meeting Place. This permanent installation uses mosaics, ceramics, paving and native grasses to symbolise a coming together of cultures. Designed and constructed during workshops, it accesses information recorded through informal story-telling sessions. It is a place of reflection, and as such was dedicated to the late Uncle Cyril Archibald, a respected local Elder.

SUCCESSION 2016 Jamie North’s cast-concrete sculptures partner the natural and the industrial in a poetic relationship. Untamed native Australian plant species find their way through the landscape of inorganic elements, conjuring a kind of post-apocalyptic hope: nature triumphs among the ruin-like remnants of manmade structures. Equally monumental and fragile, melancholic and joyful, North’s works are immediately compelling.

DR NIGEL LLYWD WILLIAM HELYER

JIM RIDGEWAY, DOUGLAS ARCHIBALD, PAUL MAHER AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY

JANET LAURENCE

RADIOLARIANS 2011 Conceived by internationally renowned sculptor Dr Nigel Helyer, the work closely relates to its location and reflects the artist’s ongoing interest in the symmetry and morphology of microscopic marine organisms. Helyer’s fascination with the subject derives from both the organisms’ complex beauty and their fascinating scientific history.

AWABAKAL DREAMING (detail) 2011 The mosaic was produced as a collaborative project between the local Aboriginal community and members of the non-Indigenous community. Incorporating local Aboriginal stories about the Awabakal people, the mosaic was produced in a series of workshops. The final work features Biame, one of the great Goori ancestral beings of the creation period. It includes symbols of the local environment in the style of the petroglyphs (rock engravings) found in Mt Yango.

GHOST (detail) 2009 This monumental addition to the Sculpture Park was inspired by the Eucalyptus citriodora that stood by the gallery until 2007. Using the height of the blade wall of the cafe, the work echoes the tree’s soaring verticality. Layered elements of glass, imprinted with the tree’s image, and mirror-like steel conjure a memory of the eucalyptus as well as reflect the immediate environment. Consistent with Laurence’s current practice, Ghost speaks of our relationship with the living world and draws on the elemental and ephemeral character of nature.

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FINITE GALLERY

DYNAMIC DISPLAY OF LOCAL ART

Leslie Duffin’s Finite Gallery offers a constantly changing set of works sourced from local artists. If you’ve found a piece you can’t bear to part with, walk away with your new purchase on the day. Finite also offers venue hire, classes and kids’ Arty Parties.

 60 Caves Beach Road, Caves Beach

Fri – Sun and public holidays 10am – 4pm 0419 471 660 finitegallery.com

SEEN@SWANSEA

THE SOUTH EAST EXHIBITION NETWORK SPACE

SEEN is a professional exhibition space that provides a place to share Lake Macquarie’s history, community stories and treasures, as well as art shows and touring exhibitions. Displays change frequently, check the website for up-to-date information on upcoming events.

 Level 1, 228 Pacific Highway, Swansea 02 4921 0400

ARTEA’S GALLERY AND GARDEN

lakemac.com.au

10am – 2pm daily

ARTEA’S GALLERY AND GARDEN A blend of art gallery, gift shop, workshop space and community garden, ARTea’s Gallery and Garden is a unique creative space. There are various areas for hire and an outdoor courtyard for Devonshire teas and refreshments by donation, with proceeds raised supporting this community initiative.

 28 Josephson Street, Swansea Fri – Sun 10am – 2pm

TRISH MENEGAZZO ART STUDIO

02 4971 1229 swanseacommunitycottage.com.au

TRISH MENEGAZZO ART STUDIO Trish Menegazzo Art Studio is set in a beautiful location just a street away from the lake, and has been operating for close to 20 years. Megegazzo works in all mediums and subjects and many of her paintings and drawings are on display and available for purchase in her studio. She has met and tutored many people from all walks of life and can teach beginners to experienced in all mediums.

 64 Marks Point Road, Marks Point 2280 trishmenegazzo.com.au

OCEAN BLUE GALLERY

02 4972 1460

BELMONT’S PREMIER GALLERY

Ocean Blue Gallery Belmont is a space featuring wonderful art and shabby chic gift ware. It was created by Sue Price in 2015 and has since grown into one of the area’s most well-regarded facilities for locally crafted goods, exhibitions and events. Ocean Blue has a passion for locally-produced artwork and handicrafts and showcase artists from Lake Macquarie, Newcastle and the wider Hunter region.

 617 Pacific Hwy, Belmont 02 4945 2520

Mon – Fri 9am – 5pm oceanbluegallery.com.au

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THE MAKERS PLACE HUNTER REGION

THE MAKERS PLACE HUNTER REGION The Makers Place supports local artisans, makers and crafters of the Hunter region. Their aim is to bring together those who love to create, with those who love to appreciate hand crafted objects and works of art. The Makers Place has hand crafted items for sale, books for loan, and runs workshops and open days.

 Shop 1, 8 Anzac Parade Teralba, 2284

0438 695 684 Wed - Fri 9.30am - 4.30pm, Sat and Sun 9.30am - 2.30pm facebook.com/themakersplacehunterregion

MUSEUM OF ART AND CULTURE LAKE MACQUARIE, yapang

A TOTAL ART EXPERIENCE

The Museum of Art and Culture, yapang is uniquely positioned within 5 hectares of leafy grounds on the shore of Lake Macquarie. The awardwinning art museum has a cafe, retail shop, sculpture park and mosaic pathways. The Museum hosts touring and gallery-curated exhibitions, contemporary First Nations programming as well as creative and diverse art and cultural programs engaging the local community.

 1A First Street, Booragul 02 4921 0382

TINKAT ALLEY

Tues – Sun 9am – 3pm mac.lakemac.com.au

TINKAT ALLEY Tinkat Alley Art Studio is the teaching studio and gallery of artist Kate Belton. Visitors can purchase art and participate in classes, including acrylic, acrylic ink, mixed media, pastels and watercolour. The studio is open Tuesday to Friday. There is also a small gallery in the heritage listed Station Masters Cottage which is open on the first weekend of every month.

 4 Wallsend Road, Fassifern 9

SARETTA FIELDING HOME STUDIO AND GALLERY

0400 494 490

tinkat.com

UNIQUE AND CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS ART

Visit the studio and gallery of Saretta F ielding, award-winning Aboriginal artist of the Wanaruah Nation. Versatile across fine art, public installations, graphic design, fashion and décor; Saretta’s unique style is fast becoming recognised nationally and internationally.  Jindalee St, Toronto Open by appointment 0407 366 307 saretta.com.au

10 LAUNCHPAD @ LAKE MAC

LIBRARIES, kawumalyikilba

ART IN YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY

Lake Mac Libraries, kawumalyikilba new exhibition spaces provide an opportunity for local emerging and community artists, students and groups to show their drawings, paintings and photography. Launchpad spaces are located at the following Lake Mac Libraries, kawumalyikilba:  Toronto, tirrabiyangba – Corner Brighton Avenue and Pemell Street  Charlestown, walyamayi – Corner Smith and Ridley Streets  Belmont, ngarrabangba –19 Ernest Street  Swansea, kariyawangba – 228 Pacific Highway 02 4921 0400 library.lakemac.com.au

DOBELL HOUSE

A PEEK INSIDE THE LIFE OF AN ARCHIBALD PRIZE WINNER

Visitors to Dobell House can experience Sir William Dobell’s artistic genius through the ‘Dobell, his Life and Art’ exhibition. A must-see from the collection is a sketch circa 1919, believed to be the oldest, signed work completed by Dobell as an adult.

 47 Dobell Drive, Wangi Wangi holidays 1 – 4pm

HELENE RUMA GALLERY& ART SUPPLIES

02 4975 4115

Sat, Sun and selected public dobellhouse.org.au

QUALITY ART SUPPLIES AND GALLERY

For quality art supplies and a charming gallery, visit Helene Ruma, located right at the heart of Wangi Wangi’s rich arts community. Full ranges of major art brands are available, with knowledgeable and friendly staff ready to assist.

 Shop B/236 Watkins Rd, Wangi Wangi

Wed 10am-5pm, Thu 10am-2pm, Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 10am-2pm 0433 744 761 facebook.com/Helenerumaart

WANGI LIBRARY CREATIVE HUB, wanji wanji

WANGI LIBRARY CREATIVE HUB, wanji wanji Re-opened in June 2021 after a major refurbishment, Wangi Library Creative Hub, wanji wanji is a creative space that enables visitors to engage in cultural programs, art practice and workshops, exhibitions and gatherings, as well as browse collections and borrow books and other resources. The new space also provides a flexible delivery service and self-service technologies. Lake Macquarie City Council has commissioned a series of public artworks in celebration of the newly launched Wangi Library Creative Hub, wanji wanji. Artist’s Helene Ruma, Mel O’Dell and Brett Piva will create unique, site-specific artworks that celebrate Wangi Wangi.

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Staffed hours Mon and Thurs 9am – 1pm, Wed 1 – 5pm. Please see website for self-access hours. 295 Watkins Road, Wangi Wangi 02 4921 0111 lakemac.com.au/Venues/Wangi-Library-Creative-Hub

ARTSPACE art classes for kids, Museum of Art and Culture Lake Macquarie, yapang

GALLERIES TRAIL

Max Dupain: Art and War exhibition, Rathmines Heritage Centre 2021

s e t i s c i r o t His ies trail r o t s and LAKE MACQUARIE

Aerial view of Rathmines RAAF Base, 1960s

HISTORIC SITES AND STORIES TRAIL

CATHERINE HILL BAY

CHARACTER-FILLED, HERITAGE LISTED COASTAL MINING VILLAGE

Named after an 1867 shipwreck, Catherine Hill Bay township was born when coal mining commenced in the area in 1873. The Wallarah Hotel (now Catho Pub) has existed on the same site since 1874, and became famous in the 1970s as the first pub in Australia with an Aboriginal Licensee; David Edward Wotherspoon.

 Catho Pub is located at 24 Clarke St, Catherine Hill Bay Image: Photograph from the collection of the Noel Butlin Archives Centre, Australian National University

SWANSEA HEADS

THE STORIES OF SWANSEA HEADS

The name ‘Reids Mistake Head’ comes from 1800, when Captain William Reid erroneously sailed into Lake Macquarie believing it was the Hunter River. Swansea Heads includes two forms which were once women, according to Awabakal lore. The women keep watch for any danger and protect nearby burial sites.

 End of Lambton Parade, Swansea Heads

REDHEAD

HERITAGE BY THE OCEAN The small beach community of Redhead is home to several notable historic sites, including the Redhead Shark Tower, constructed during the Great Depression, and Lambton Colliery, site of Australia’s first fully mechanised mine.

 Redhead Shark Tower is located on Redhead Beach, off Beach Road.

View Lambton Colliery on the corner of Collier Street and Geraldton Drive.

GREEN POINT FORESHORE RESERVE

NATURE RESERVE WITH AN INDUSTRIAL PAST Green Point takes its name from ‘The Green Hills Coal Works’, which operated there in the 1860s. Today it is one of the City’s most treasured green spaces, a nature reserve full of bushland, walking trails and secluded picnic spots.

 Parking located off The Shores Way, Belmont

FERNLEIGH TRACK

WALK OR CYCLE THIS HERITAGE RAIL ROUTE The Adamstown to Belmont train line opened in the early 1890s and for years was used to transport coal from numerous Lake Macquarie mines to the port of Newcastle. Following the closure of Lambton Colliery in 1991, the train line closed completely and was disused until it was redeveloped into the Fernleigh Track we know today from 2003–2011.

 The Track’s southern start point is located on Railway Parade, Belmont 28

s e t i s c i histonr d stories a

VISIT THE

TRAIL

TO RICHMONDVALE RAIL MUSEUM

WEST WALLSEND

7 6

SPEERS POINT

11 TO MT

SUGARLOAF

5 TORONTO

RATHMINES

3 BELMONT

WANGI WANGI

REDHEAD

Lake Macquarie

SWANSEA HEADS

CATHERINE HILL BAY

HISTORIC SITES AND STORIES TRAIL

LAKE MAC LIBRARIES ,

kawumalyikilba

LOCAL HISTORY ARCHIVES

SEARCH LOCAL HISTORY Discover more about local history and the people who have shaped Lake Macquarie. The Lake Macquarie Council Community History team offers outreach services, and can assist residents and visitors with research enquiries. Historic photographs, scanned maps, rate records, suburbs and street names can be searched on the Lake Macquarie History website.  Speers Point Library, milyaba: 139 Main Road, Speers Point  Swansea Library, kariyawangba: 228 Pacific Highway, Swansea (02) 4921 0541 history@lakemac.nsw.gov.au history.lakemac.nsw.gov.au Image: Families picnicking at Speers Point Park.

LAKE CINEMA

FROM COMMUNITY HALL TO CINEMA Lake Cinema was opened in 1974 by then Mayor of Lake Macquarie, Ald. Geoff Pasterfield. The cinema building began as a community hall, believed to be built in the 1920s. Throughout it’s almost 100 year life, it has been a hall, a distribution point for clothing and food in the Depression, a cultural centre and a dance hall in the 1950s. Today it is a popular independent single screen cinema showing blockbusters and a range of arthouse films.  62 Main Road, Boolaroo Check website for screening times (02) 4958 5810 lakecinema.net.au

SPEERS POINT PARK

A PLACE FOR RECREATION In 1887 nine acres of land was set aside at Speers Point for recreation. The area now known as Speers Point Park, was initially named Lake Macquarie Park. In 1912 a tram line was built between West Wallsend and Speers Point to transport passengers to this popular recreational area. The park is also home to a significant war memorial; a German gun captured by Australian soldiers during WWI.

 Park Road, Speers Point

WEST WALLSEND

WANDER ‘THE GOLDEN MILE’ West Wallsend township was founded on coal mining, with its first mine opening in 1888. The Golden Mile was a well-known street in the area; its sandstone kerb and guttering constructed in the 1930s by local ex-miners affected by the Great Depression.

 ‘The Golden Mile’ is now Withers Street, West Wallsend.

RICHMOND VALE RAIL MUSEUM

ALL ABOARD! The Richmond Vale Railway Museum is a volunteer non-profit organization, formed in 1979 with the aim of preserving the Railway and Mining Heritage of J&A Brown and the Hunter Valley. The museum is a family-friendly location and in addition to the historical displays, the site offers full-sized train rides, miniature train rides, signalling activities and historic film screenings, as well as on site picnic facilities.

 262 Leggett’s Drive, Richmond Vale 30

(02) 4018 7230 Open first three Sundays of each month from 9.30am. Also open richmondvalerailwaymuseum.org school holiday Sundays

MT SUGARLOAF

SWEEPING VIEWS OF LAKE MACQUARIE AND NEWCASTLE Historically, Mt Sugarloaf was an important teaching and ceremonial place for the people of Awaba, as it provided a vantage point over the whole region. These days, with a height of 412 metres and its distinctive transmission towers, the mountain is still frequently used as a landmark and is heritage-listed due to its visual significance. A great spot for a picnic and bushwalk!

 Mount Sugarloaf Road, West Wallsend 12

TORONTO HOTEL

A HISTORIC HOLIDAY DESTINATION One of the oldest buildings in town, Toronto Hotel has been called the birthplace of Toronto. Following the opening of the Hotel and Pleasure Grounds in 1887, Toronto became a popular day-trip destination for Novacastrians, experiencing a tourism boom in the 1890s, being promoted as the ‘Riviera of Australia’.

 74 Victory Parade, Toronto Image: Ralph Snowball photograph, Norm Barney Collection, Cultural Collections, Auchmuty Library, University of Newcastle.

RATHMINES PARK

EXPLORE LAKE MACQUARIE’S WARTIME HISTORY

The most intact example of an RAAF WWII seaplane base in Australia, Rathmines is significant through its association with notable WWII events including the Battle of the Coral Sea, and synonymous with the Catalina, one of the most successful flying boats ever produced. Learn more at the Rathmines Heritage Centre, open at Rathmines Theatre, Friday - Sunday 10am–2pm

 1 Stilling Street, Rathmines Rathmines Image: Main Hanger, RAAF Base Rathmines, 1940s

RATHMINES HERITAGE CENTRE

EXPLORE LAKE MACQUARIE’S WARTIME HISTORY Rathmines Heritage Centre is Lake Macquarie’s newest exhibition venue. Based in Rathmines Theatre, the centre hosts a range of changing exhibitions focused on the history of Rathmines RAAF base and the wider story of Lake Macquarie during World War II.

 25 Stilling Street Rathmines 2283 (02) 4921 0400

WANGI WANGI GUN EMPLACEMENT

Friday to Sunday 10am – 2pm

lakemac.com.au

A WWII COASTAL DEFENCE The Wangi Wangi Gun Emplacement was part of a coastal defence network constructed during WWII to defend the Rathmines RAAF Flying Boat Base. Constructed in 1942, the site included a command post and four static guns; remnants of which can still be seen today.

 Entrance off Dobell Drive, Wangi Wangi Image: Sydney, NSW. 1943-05-30. Members of the volunteer defence corps loading a 3.7 inch anti-aircraft gun during training on Kensington golf links. Australian War Memorial (052209).

HISTORIC SITES AND STORIES TRAIL

C O M I N G

S O O N

A SPACE WHERE ART AND INNOVATION COME TOGETHER For more info go to

lakemac.com.au/Projects/Multi-Arts-Pavilion  (02) 4921 0333  Park Road, Speers Point NSW 2284

MI*MA : Beautiful Space, 2021, Hiromi Tango, courtesy of Sullivan Strumpf

Lake Macquarie Visitor Information Centre  228 Pacific Highway, Swansea NSW 2281 02 4921 0740 or 1800 802 044 tourism@lakemac.nsw.gov.au visitlakemac.com.au  facebook.com/visitlakemac @visitlakemac #VisitLakeMac #LoveLakeMacquarie ACT 1260. July 2021