THE NAKED CITY – with Miss Death, Jay Katz and Coffin Ed
PUBLIC ART UNDER ATTACK!
What is it with Sydneysiders? In other great cities throughout the world public art and outdoor statues are generally revered as part of the cultural heritage. Their sanctity is a given and the public themselves are the guardians. Here in Sydney it seems nothing is sacrosanct and only this week attempts were made to crowbar Fatso, the fat arsed wombat, from his perch at Olympic Park.
Immortalised by Roy and HG during the 2000 Olympics, the statue had delighted both kiddies and tourists for the past ten years and it seems shocking that somebody had chosen the anniversary of, ‘The best ever’ Olympics to cart it off for scrap.
Inflated world prices for bronze and copper have placed numerous pieces of outdoor art and historic statues under threat and theft has been common. Take the busts of Latin American leaders installed in Chalmers Street adjacent to Central Railway. Somebody already has – taken that is and the decapitated figure of President Alfredo Garcia has become a gruesome tourist attraction in its own right.
During the last Festive season the City Council went to great expense to protect the Christmas Tree in the Fitzroy Gardens with a twenty four hour security guard. Whilst those precious baubles remained undisturbed hundreds of other outdoor installations were clearly under threat and remain so.
Whilst it’s unlikely that anybody would be so audacious to lift the statue of Queen Victoria that sits pompously outside the building named in her honour, numerous other sculptures are clearly under threat. The Bonds of Friendship sculpture in Loftus Street, often lovingly referred to as ‘the giant doggy doo’ is one icon that should be under constant scrutiny, surrounded by a phalanx of surveillance cameras and doting Council rangers.
Likewise those meatballs on sticks that sit astride the William Street tunnel at the top of Kings Cross – it’s difficult to say what they are actually made of but there has to be some monetary redemption at the local scrap dealer. Also on the endangered list you would have to include the one dimensional Ben Chifley at Chifley Square, the J. Seward Johnson seated bronze businessman at Australia Square and the hog outside of Sydney Hospital.
The Hot List – Soul Showdown at The Basement – Thursday 23 September – $25 – Tina Harrod, Virna Sanzone, Lily Dior, Mitch Anderson. Sydney’s No 1 Sisters of Soul lead an all star band in a huge Soul Funk Extravaganza. With a lineup that includes members of The Godmothers, The Grandmasters and other graduates of Jackie Orszaczkys School of Funk, it’s a night to celebrate the true essence of groove performed by Sydney’s finest.
