Brisbane Magazines: "Hell Yeah" launch party at Fort Arts Hub, Sun Dec 13

This Sunday a new, free Brisbane lifestyle magazine, Hell Yeah, is having its launch party at the Fort Arts Hub at 57 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley (click here for a Google Map).

It's ten dollars to get in, which apparently includes free beer from 3pm to 5pm. There will be a swimming pool, prizes and live graffiti. DJ Katch from Resin Dogs, Erther from Rude Bwoyz, Tash from Hell Yeah and Tigermoth will be playing.

To get there by bus, catch the 370, 375 or 379 bus from Adelaide St in town and get off at the second stop after the Valley Fiveways (see the Google Map for these landmarks). Just walk a hundred metres or so along Brunswick St to the corner of Water St, cross Water St and you'll be outside the Fort Arts hub. Or, catch a train to Fortitude Valley station, walk out of the shopping mall where the station is, turn right, and walk up Brunswick St past the Valley Fiveways and you'll soon get to the Fort Arts hub. Click here to use the Translink public transport journey planner.

Fish Lane Festival of Cars and Cigars, Sun Dec 13

If you're up early on Sunday December 13th, from 9 AM to 11.30 AM there's a Car and Cigar festival being held for charity at Fish Lane in South Brisbane (click here for a Google Map).

There are going to be all sorts of fancy cars there, and apparently you can bid for joy rides. There will also be coffee and chorizo hot dogs for sale. It's free to look at the cars, so I'll be there with my camera. The event is in aid of Micah Projects.

The best way to get there by public transport is to catch a 199, 197 or 196 bus heading towards West End - there's a bus stop on Melbourne St right near Fish Lane. South Brisbane train station is also a five minute walk away. See the Google Map for bus stop and train station details, and you can use Translink's journey planner to find out public transport times. If you're on Facebook, the event details are here.

Brisbane Art: 6pm Fri Nov 6 2009, Abigael Whittaker's stones bones and a pocketful of storm clouds at Jugglers Art Space

Brisbane artist Abigael Whittaker's new exhibition, stones bones and a pocketful of storm clouds, opens this Friday night, Friday November 6th 2009, at 6pm, at Jugglers Art Space at 103 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley (click here for a Google Map). The picture above shows you what sort of work you can expect - there's also a description of Whittaker's work here, and more examples here and here. The exhibition continues until Saturday November 28th 2009 - Jugglers Art Space is open from midday to 6pm Wednesday to Friday, and from midday to 5pm on Saturday. The best way to get to Jugglers Art Space by public transport is to catch a 370, 375 or 379 bus from stop 17 on Adelaide St in town, near George St, which stops at stop 6 on Brunswick St, about 50 metres away from Jugglers Art Space. You can also catch a train to Fortitude Valley station, walk out the front entrance of the mall the train station is in, turn right along Brunswick St, cross both St Pauls Terrace and Brunswick St at the street at the Valley Fiveways and walk up to Jugglers Art Space. There is a journey planner at the Translink website which can give you timetables. All these stops are marked on the Google Map showing where Jugglers Art Space is.

Brisbane Art: FringeBlac exhibition at the Fringe Bar, 7pm Wed Nov 4

BLAC (Brisbane Local Arts Collective) is holding its third exhibition at 7pm this Wednesday night, 4th November 2009, at the Fringe Bar on the corner of Constance and Ann Streets in Fortitude Valley (click here for a Google Map).

FringeBlac features up-and-coming local artists, including photographer Terri Avery. It's $5 to get in.

To get to the Fringe Bar by public transport, catch the train to Fortitude Valley Station, walk along Brunswick St to the corner of the Mall and Ann St, then turn left down Ann St - the Fringe Bar is on the third corner on the left as you walk down Ann St. Or, there are plenty of buses to the Valley - the best choice is to catch the 300, 306 or 322 from the Cultural Centre or the stop in town on Adelaide near the corner of Edward St, and get off at stop 5 on Wickham St in the Valley. This is right near the corner of Constance St, just walk down to the corner of Constance and Ann. The train stop and bus stops are marked on this Google Map which also shows where the Fringe Bar is. For timetables see Translink's journey planner.

Brisbane Photos - V8 supercars at Brisbane Square yesterday

This photo was taken by flickr user obLiterated yesterday, Monday October 19. It shows one of the V8 Supercars (Australian touring cars) from Triple Eight Race Engineering, sponsored by Vodafone.

The Supercars are going to be part of the Nikon SuperGP event this weekend at Surfers Paradise, about fifty kilometres south of Brisbane. There's some controversy because the SuperGP was supposed to feature the opening race of the A1GP season, but that race has been cancelled at the last minute as the cars remain in the UK.

This picture was taken from Brisbane Square, looking down into Reddacliff place, directly across George St from the top of the Queen St Mall. For more pictures, you can click here to see the car's drivers, Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup, promoting the race.

Brisbane Film Festivals - Palestinian Days

The Justice for Palestine group is presenting the Palestinian Days film festival from this Friday, October 16, to Sunday, October 18, at the Schonell Theatre at the University of Queensland's St Lucia campus - click here for a Google Map.

There are seven sessions over the weekend. The opening session at 6.30pm on Friday October 16 costs $20 or $12 concession, and includes food and will be opened by Ambassador Izzat Abdul Hadi, head of the Palestinian delegation to Australia. All other sessions are $10, or $8 concession. Tickets for the entire festival are $50, or a day pass is $15 or $15 concession. If you can't afford a session, please book and let the organisers know and they'll be able to arrange a discount or free entry for you.

The features at each session are:

Friday October 16, 6.30pm

Lemonade - Palestinian brothers try to transcend their predicament as refugees by selling lemonade in their school break.

Arna's Children: a film about a children's theatre group in Jenin run by Arna Mer-Khamis.



Saturday October 17, 11am

Letter from Sarah - a 12-year old Palestinian girl writes a script about her life.

Palestine Blues - looks at how the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and the building of the Wall, has affected the Palestinian people. By Nida Sinnokrot.

Saturday October 17, 2pm

Frontiers of Dreams and Fears: looks at the life of Palestinian children living in refugee camps.

Jerusalem - the East Side Story: about the Israeli efforts to drive Palestinians out of East Jerusalem.



Saturday October 17, 7.30pm

Palestine, Summer 06: Captures the mood of Palestine as Israel attacked Gaza and Lebanon.

Arus el Jaleel (Bride of Galillee): Story of Fatma HAwari, bombed by Israeli forces in 1948 and left in a wheelchair.

Sunday October 18, 11am

Gaza Strip

Sunday October 18, 2pm

Jenin Jenin: The Palestinian side of 2002's Battle of Jenin.



Since You Left: Mohammed Bakri visits the graveside of his mentor, Emile Habibi and reflects on what has happened since Habibi's death.

Sunday, October 18 6pm

My Beloved Homeland: Features music from Palestinians, including warsinger Rim Banna, Jawaher Shofan, the El-Funoun Popular Palestinian Dance Troupe, Mustafa al-Kurd, and the Sarayett Rammallah Troupe for Performance and Dance.

The Iron Wall.

Brisbane FREE play readings - Seven Deadly Gins, Powerhouse, 1pm Sat 5 Sep 2009

There's a free play reading of "Seven Deadly Gins" this Saturday, September 1 2009, at the Turbine Rehearsal Room at the Powerhouse Arts Centre, New Farm - click here for a Google Map.

The play is by Queensland playwright Yvette Walker - there's a newspaper article about her where she says writing saved her life if you click here. The reading has been developed by Leah Purcell. Actor Deborah Mailman will appear in the reading.

The play is set in the Brisbane suburb of Wynnum, twenty years after the murder of Magenta's mother after a night of storytelling gone wrong. Just before she's going to be married, Magenta calls together her old friends from that night to work out exactly what happened.

After the play there will be a question and answer session with the actors and the director. The notice for the play says to come early to make sure you get a seat.

Brisbane Photos: Bridge to Brisbane fun run

The Bridge to Brisbane fun run is held every year, starting at the Gateway Bridge and ending this year at the Ekka grounds in Fortitude Valley. This year's run was held on Sunday August 30, and there are over 900 photos on Flickr already. Here's a taste.




Beginning of the fun run, at the Gateway Bridge - photo by Jesse4870




A rather fancy looking tutu - photo by definatalie (who blogs here, and you should read her blog, because it's awesome)



Vader's Fist is everywhere! Photo by definatalie. (The Australian branch of the 501st Legion, the Galactic Empire costuming group, is here).

If you want to browse the more than 900 photos on Flickr, just click here.

Brisbane Book Launches: Amy Barker's Omega Park at Avid Reader, 6.30 pm Thu Sep 3

Brisbane author Amy Barker is having her new book, Omega Park, launched at Avid Reader bookshop, 193 Boundary St, West End, this Thursday, September 3 2009, at 6.30pm (be there at 6pm). Click here for a map showing where Avid Reader is.

Omega Park is about two boys, Dingo and Jacob, growing up in a housing commission estate near Queensland's Gold Coast, and trying to deal with the horrible life they have there.

The book will be launched by Chris Nyst, the former criminal lawyer who wrote "Gettin' Square", the crime/comedy film set on the Gold Coast. The YouTube clip below shows a scene from "Gettin' Square", featuring David Wenham.

The book launch is free but you have to book - you can call 07 3846 3422 or email books@avidreader.com.au to book. The launch starts at 6.30pm sharp, doors open at 6pm so if you're going, please be there around 6.

Brisbane Anime Society Screenings: Sunday Aug 30 and Saturday Sep 12

The Brisbane Anime Society continues its twice-monthly screenings of anime this Sunday, August 30 2009, and on Saturday September 12th 2009. Screenings are at B Block, Room B119, QUT Gardens Point Campus, Brisbane City (click here for a map).

This Sunday's epsidodes are:

Kurokami, episodes 10-12

K-On! episodes 5-8

and Ghost Hound episodes 10-12

It's $3 to get in, or $2 if you're a member - it costs $10 to join and you can sign up on the day. The screening starts at 12 midday this Sunday, and please be on time as the show starts right on time.

Brisbane Photos: Chapel at St Francis' Theological College, Bishopsbourne, Milton

These photos were taken by Flickr user greenplasticdave. They are of the chapel in St Francis' Theological College, an Anglican college at Milton Rd, Brisbane (click here for a Google Map).

The college is in the grounds of Bishopsbourne, which used to be the residence of the Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane, until a new residence was dedicated in Hamilton in 1964. If you'd like to take some pictures you'll need to ask permission - just contact them via the website link above.

Brisbane Photos: "The Guardian" sculpture by Cezary Stulgis

I've always liked this sculpture, and flickr user grasshopper25 has taken a nice shot of it. It's by Brisbane sculptor Cezary Sturgis.

Brisbane Photo Exhibitions: Queensland Centre for Photography, South Brisbane

The Queensland Centre for Photography has just launched 6 exhibitions which will run until September 20. The QCP is on the corner of Cordelia St and Russell St, South Brisbane - click here for a Google Map.

The picture above is from one of the exhibitions that really caught my eye, the "London Postcode Project" by Gavin Browne. Browne took a disposable camera around London, limiting himself to 3 photos in any one London postcode. Browne says the aim was:

to simply capture an idea of what defined the city at that moment, through people and place - a London largely void of the stereotypical iconography associated with it. I was not concerned with taking the 'perfect' photograph....The resulting images build a unique photo essay on this amazing city.

I  love the idea of this - just by taking an interest in Brisbane photos, I've noticed how many photos are of the same old boring things - the Story Bridge, the Wheel of Brisbane, the Riverside Expressway and so on. It must be a lot worse in London which has so many more famous things to photograph.



This photo is from the "A little bit Bogan" exhibition by Jay Cronan. "Bogan" is an Australian word for a working-class person who typically likes cars and wear tight jeans and flanellette shirts - also called "westies" or "Bevans". A rough equivalent would be "greaser" or "white trash", or "chav" in the UK.

Cronan says:

Often a term used in derogatory manner by those who are of an elitist mentality, I set out to capture the endearing behaviours of Bogans in their natural environment. I have attempted to break down the viewer's own preconceived opinions of what a Bogan is, so they are able to learn to love and embrace their own inner Bogan qualities in the hope that they will occasionally be able to set it free.

Which is a bloody good idea. Far too many inner-city types automatically hate bogans. For instance, there's a ska-hispter song played on radio station 4zzz (to which I subscribe) now and again called "Nobody likes a bogan". Admittedly, some of them aren't people you'd want to hang around with - but how about finding out out who is good and who is a closed-minded bigot BEFORE you decide they're not worth your time and effort - otherwise, you might be acting like a closed-minded bigot, no?

On Saturday August 29 at 3pm, two of the artists will be talking about their exhibitions - Peter Annand will talk about "Air, Sand, Seawater", and Glen Henderson will discuss "Percept". The talks are free but because space is limited you'll need to email the QCP by Friday August 28 to let them know you're coming. The address is admin [at] qcp.org.au

The QCP is open from 11am-6pm Wed to Sat, and Sundays from 11am-3pm. It's closed on Monday and Tuesday, and entry is free.

Brisbane Photos: Jacob's Ladder in the city, painted bright red

Jacob's Ladder is a steep set of stairs in King Edward Park in town, connecting Turbot St and the medical specialist precinct of Wickham St. Click here to see a Google Map.



Jacob's Ladder has recently been done up, after being ignored for a long time. These photos by flickr user Hello J. show the new bright red colour scheme, and some of the art that's been made into part of the stairs.



For all of Hello J.'s photos of Jacob's Ladder, click here. Jacob's Ladder is named after the Bible story - after Jacob had ripped off his brother Esau by fooling their father, he was on the run and saw a ladder reaching to heaven, in a dream.

Brisbane Music: Beat Therapy's "Elemental" from the Wiiware game "Pop"

Elemental (track 07) by beattherapy

Andrew Curnock is the composer behind Beat Therapy,a Brisbane sound studio that produced the soundtrack for the Wiiware bubble-popping game, Pop. Curnock wrote the soundtrack album, "Remote Control", as a chillout album that's worth listening to even when you're not playing the game.

Because the game is designed to be a small game, downloaded onto the Nintendo Wii or DSi, or iPhone, the soundtrack couldn't use too much memory, so

the production style is sometimes stark and exposed when compared to
tracks on your typical chillout compilation. This gives the tracks a
feeling of naive innocence on occasion, like a nightclub scene drawn
with crayons.

Curnock's favourite track is "Elemental", which you can listen to if you press "play" in the player above. If you like what you hear, you can buy the whole album from iTunes (click here if you have iTunes on your computer), or if you don't, you can buy it from eMusic - just click here.

Brisbane Theatre: "The Kursk" at La Boite, a nuclear-sub disaster-thriller

La Boite theatre is putting on the play "The Kursk", about the real-life disaster that happened in August 2000 when the Russian nuclear-powered submarine Kursk sank in the Barents Sea, near Norway and Russia.

According to Critical Stages,

We meet Admiral Popov, a proud and obstinate man, deeply distrustful of the foreigners who have come to help. We meet the sailors, their wives, their friends and their families who wait as the rescuers’ fight against the impossible while the fate of their loved ones hangs in the balance.

Popov has to try and save the trapped submariners while also making sure a nuclear disaster doesn't hit the Barents Sea - a disaster which would affect the whole North Atlantic Ocean.


Tickets are $39 adults, $33 concession and $26 for people 30 and under. The play runs from Tuesday September 1st to Saturday September 12th - click here to see performance details and to book tickets online - or you can book tickets by calling 07 3007 8600. The La Boite Theatre Company performs at the Roundhouse Theatre, Musk Avenue, Kelvin Grove - click here for a Google Map and click here for more info on how to get there.


This YouTube video shows people talking about the play when it was put on two years ago by the Queensland Theatre Company:

Brisbane Stories: Photos, poems, music and more at Brisbane Square library, Mon August 10 2009

Brisbane storyteller Daryll Bellingham is going to be presenting a morning of stories, poems and music at the Brisbane Square library in town on Monday August 10 2009, from 10am - 11.30am. The Brisbane Square library is in the big green-and-black new-ish skyscraper on the corner of George and Adelaide Sts in town - click here for a Google Map.

If you'd like to go, it's free but you have to book - call (07) 3403 4166 to book, and let the staff know if you have a story you'd like to share.

I'm going to be there, talking about some photos I've taken right around the area of Brisbane Square, so if you do come along please say hi!

Brisbane Roller Derby: Sun State Roller Girls at Beenleigh, Fri August 7 2009

The Sun State Roller Girls have a bout between the Liquorice Short Shorts and the Golden Roughs at the Beenleigh Arena, Milne St, Beenleigh on Friday, August 7 2009. Door open at 7.30pm, and it's $10 for adults, $8 concession/children and kids under 12 are free. The Beenleigh Arena is at 2 Milne St, Beenleigh - click here for a Google Map.

There's Eftpos available when you buy tickets, but NOT for the market stalls or the food and drink stalls - so it's a good idea to bring some cash for the night. Rock'n'rollers The Jim Rockfords will be playing at the bout.

Don't know the rules? The basics are pretty simple. Each team has a "jammer", who wears a big star on her helmet:



Every time the jammer skates past an opposition team member, her team scores a point - so the other team tries to stop her by blocking her, which can get pretty rough.



If you want more detail on the rules, click here to start off with the basic ideas, or if you want some serious detail, watch this video:

All photos in this article are by flickr user twmpyn, a member of the Sun State Roller Girls. They are from this set of photos on flickr, and show the Golden Roughs and the Liquorice Short Shorts in a bout from April 2009. There's also a group on Flickr devoted to Sun State Roller Girls photos - click here if you'd like to see the group photos, or if you'd like to join.

Brisbane Burlesque: Miss Bertie Page at the Ragtag Revue

This YouTube video shows local burlesque performer Miss Bertie Page performing at the "Myths, Fantasies and Fairytales" show by the RagTag Revue in March 2009.

The RagTag Revue is organised by Miss Lena Marlene who also has a lot to do with the Scoundrelles burlesque school. Scoundrelles have monthly open nights where women new to burlesque performing can come and try (don't worry, you don't have to get your top off) and also a free monthly performance at the Fringe Bar in Fortitude Valley (you can click here for a Google Map) - check their website for details of the open nights, performances, classes, and other functions they do.

Brisbane Photos: Under The Bridge

This photo is by flickr user Archmage01. I liked it because it was an original look at the Riverside Expressway/Captain Cook Bridge. If you get off the CityCat ferry at the Gardens Point/QUT stop, you walk out onto a narrow path under the Expressway - you can just see someone standing on the path on the far right of the photo. The description says this is a "beach in Brisbane". I suppose it's not much less of a beach than anything else in the middle of town.

Brisbane Bellydance: Tribalblossom's Feast of the Senses Gala this Sat Jul 25th at Buranda

The Tribalblossoms belly dance troupe are putting on a Gala Night this Saturday, July 25th 2009, at the Russian Community Club at 19 Lotus St, Wolloongabba - click here for a Google Map.

It's $30 to get in, and that gets you over 3 hours of dance from over 13 different dance troupes. There's food and drink (including alcohol) available to buy on the night.

Tribal Blossoms does a lot of sword dancing - the first YouTube clip below shows a sample of the sword dances, and the second clip shows Tribal Blossoms performing at a festival in Ipswich in April this year.

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Brisbane Museums: Tapa Bark-Cloth Painting from the Pacific at the Museum of Brisbane from Fri Jul 24

The Museum of Brisbane is starting a new exhibition this Friday, July 24 2009. It's about the tapa cloth of the Pacific islands, which is often used to tell stories and make large-scale decorations. The Museum of Brisbane is open 7 days a week from 10am to 5pm and entry is free. The Museum of Brisbane is in the Brisbane City Hall, between Adelaide and Ann Streets in Brisbane City - the City Hall faces King George Square. Click here for a Google Map.



This Creative Commons photo of two birds made out of tapa cloth was taken by flickr user Robyn Gallagher at the Pasifika Festival in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2006. Click here for more photos of hers from the Pasifika Festival in 2006.

The exhibition at the Museum of Brisbane shows wall hangings, old and new clothing including wedding dresses and loin cloths. Decorations include plants and animals, and clan and family patterns.

If you'd like to know more about tapa cloth you can look at the Wikipedia article, or there are some photos here of the Museum of New Zealand's collection held in Wellington, and also some photos if you click here, from the Virtual Oceana website.



Tapa cloth in the exhibition will come from Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Samoa, Wallis and Futuna, Tonga, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji.

Brisbane Creative Commons photos: Cactus Dust (beautiful close-up of cactus spines)

I'm not a huge fan of nature photography, but this picture made me stop and look twice. It's a close up of the top of a cactus plant (species unknown) taken at the Mt Coot-tha Botanical Gardens in Brisbane. What really made me look again was the size of the cactus spines you can see rising from the woolly-foamy stuff on the surface. The spines look huge, like small trees, and I had to double-check to make certain of what I was seeing.

This picture was taken by flickr user zayzayem, who licenced it under a Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike licence. This means you can use it for whatever you want, even commercial uses, as long as you give zayzayem credit, but there's one more catch. "Share-Alike" means that you ALSO have to let people use your work for any purpose, including commercial. You've been shared with, so you have to share too.

Brisbane Art: Shaun Weston's "Waiting for Fluffman" show opens at Circle Gallery Fri Jul 24, 6pm

Brisbane artist Shaun Weston is putting on an exhibition called "Waiting for Fluffman" at the Circle Gallery, 274 Montague Rd, West End, on the corner of Scott St, about one block away from the corner of Vulture St and Montague Rd (click here for a Google Map).

The exhibition opens at 6pm on Friday July 24th 2009, and Weston will be giving a talk about his work at 2pm on the afternoon of Saturday July 25th.





The exhibition then runs for six days - the last day is Wednesday July 20th. From Saturday July 25 - Wed July 20, Circle Gallery is open from 9am to 6pm.

You can see plenty of examples of Watson's work at his website - I particularly like "Camp Pocket Constructions", "Single White Male" and "Spilt Milk" from his Recent Work page. The photos in this article are from the "Single White Male" series and will be on show at the exhbition.



The Circle Gallery is open from 10am to 5pm daily. It's a small gallery
in West End where artists can put on their own shows for a short time.
The gallery doesn't collect any commission for work that you sell - click here to find out more information about putting on an exhibition there.

Brisbane Festivals: In The Flesh: Burlesque, hip-hop, fashion parade, cabaret, music +more this Sat Jul 18, The Fort, Brunswick St

I was just listening to the Paper, Scizzzors, Glue show on Brisbane community radio 4ZZZ 102.1FM, and heard an interview about a great-sounding festival, In The Flesh (click here for their MySpace Page), which is on from 2-11pm this coming Saturday July 18 at The Fort, 57 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley, on the corner of Water Street (click here for a Google Map)

Performers include:

Burlesque artist La Viola Vixen - seen in this video performing at Misdemeanours at the Auckland Fringe Festival in February 2009

Banawurun - click here to listen to them free on their MySpace page, or you can listen to and download one of their songs for free from the Banawurun Triple J Unearthed page.



Mr Laneous & The Family Yah, seen in this video clip for their track "Bubblegum" - click here to listen to them on MySpace or click here to download some of their music from Triple J Unearthed. They also have a Facebook fan page if you click here.

The Smokestack Orchestra - click here to listen to their music on their MySpace page or to listen to and download some of their tracks for free from the Triple J Unearthed page, click here.

Liam Griffin - this video clip is of his song "Until You Fall".

The View from Madeleine's Couch, seen in this YouTube video by rkdj2323 performing at Calabash at the Press Club, July 2008. The View From Madeleine's Couch also have a MySpace page, a Triple J Unearthed Page and a Facebook fan page.

Brisbane Creative Commons Photos by Certified Su: Valley meets City meets Spring Hill

I'm always interested in photos of Brisbane that show it from a different angle. There are so many photos of the Riverside Expressway, the Story Bridge and the Brisbane Eye that when I see yet another one I yawn and move on. So these three photos by Flickr user certified_su really caught my eye - in fact, I first saw the top one and commented on how much I liked it, only to find out about the other two.

The photos were taken from the Mantra hotel, which is above the SSS Steakhouse at the corner of Queen St and Ann St - click here for a Google Map.

The photo shows the junction of Queen St, Boundary St, Ann St and Wickham St, at the point where Fortitude Valley, Spring Hill and Brisbane City meet at a single point. This is a crucial junction for traffic going to and from both the New Farm/Teneriffe area, and also to the inner north-eastern suburbs like Hamilton, Ascot and Eagle Farm. It's busy in peak hour and often gets clogged with traffic - Brisbane has plenty of choke points for vehicles, and this is one of them.

The larger green space right in the middle of the picture is Centenary Place, a very nice park right in the heart of the busy traffic fumes of this major intersection, which offers a place to relax. The park includes a statue dedicated to the memory of Scottish poet Robert Burns.



The first photo was taken at 6 minutes past 5pm on June 19 2009, and the second one 28 minutes later, showing how quick sunset comes in a city as far north as Brisbane. The third photo was taken about thirteen hours after the second, at 6.25 on the morning of June 20, showing the same intersection absolutely deserted - I bet it didn't stay that way for long.



certified_su has licenced this photo under a Creative Commons Attribution licence, which means you can use it for any reason you like as long as you give certified_su credit and link to the page where the photo originally is.

For more info on Creative Commons in Australia, see the CCau website.

Brisbane Historial Re-Enactment: History Alive Sat Jul 25 - Sun Jul 26, Fort Lytton

History Alive 2009 is on Saturday July 25 and Sunday July 26 2009, from 10am to 4pm each day, at Fort Lytton National Park, Lytton (click here for a Google Map). You'll have to drive or catch a cab, the nearest public transport is Hemmant station, about 4km away from the National Park.

History Alive is a full weekend of historical re-enactors performing for you - people who love to re-enact history including Roman gladiators and legionaries, mediaeval knights and ladies, and soldiers from the American Civil War and World Wars I and II. If you click here there's more info about what you'll see at the event.

This slideshow of photos from flickr shows you some of the action from last year's History Alive in 2008 (click here to see the photos if you can't see the slideshow):

And this video shows a re-enactment of German and Italian forces ambushing Allied soldiers in Italy in 1944

You can see more photos and videos from History Alive events if you click here.

A two day pass for 2 adults and 2 kids is $60, while a one-day pass is $35.

Standard tickets are adults $25 two days, $15 one day, Concession card holders and schoolchildren up to year 10 are $15 for two days and $10 for one day. Children under 5 are free. You can buy food there but you're also welcome to bring your own picnic, so they're not going to try to rip you off and force you to buy expensive stuff just because you've paid to get in. For more info on costs and what to bring, click here.

Brisbane Music: The Del Sonics play The Music Kafe, West End, Sat July 12th 2009

Brisbane surf-rock band The Del Sonics play The Music Kafe, West End at 8pm this Sunday, July 12 2009. The Music Kafe is at 185 Boundary St, West End (click here for a Google Map).

You can listen to 11 free songs and watch five videos if you visit The Del Sonics MySpace page - I really liked "Dawn Swell", it's the song that made me want to write about them.

Brisbane Coffee and Chocolate Markets and Festival at Portside Markets, Hamilton, Sun July 12

There's a "Coffee and Chocolate Affair" happening on Sunday July 12 2009, at the Portside Wharf, Hamilton (click here for a Google Map). It's basically a big coffee and chocolate festival and market with some interesting free events.

There's a competition to find the best home barista, apparently you can win up to six grand's worth of home coffee machines if you win the competition. There are also free masterclasses with Lindt and Sprüngli Australia chocolatier Thomas Schnetzler, and Dean Merlo of Merlo Coffee, and there's a competition for professional baristas that you can watch. I'm afraid the website doesn't say what time these events are on, but you can call the Portside Wharf office on (07) 3868 5111 and ask them (+617 3868 5111 from outside Australia).

The event's website lists 21 different stallholders so far, including Seatonfire Chili Chocolate, the Coffee Education Network, Import Tea, Eumundi Fudge and other upmarket coffee and chocolate sellers, so that sounds like an interesting, if potentially expensive, day of browsing and buying. There's also going to be blues and jazz bands playing. It's free to go and browse, see the free classes or listen to the music. If you're on Facebook, you can check the details of the event here.

If you're driving, you can park at the Portside Wharf. If you are using public transport, your best option is to either catch a ferry to the Brett's Wharf ferry terminal at Hamilton or the 300 bus to Racecourse Rd, Hamilton, just after it turns off Kingsford Smith Drive onto Racecourse Rd, near the Hamilton Hotel. Click here for a Google Map showing all this locations.

CREATIVE COMMONS: The photo in this article is called "briagdeiro" and it's by flickr user rodrigo senna - he has licenced it under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 licence which means you can use the photo for any purpose, including commercial uses, as long as you credit him.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/negativz/ / CC BY 2.0

New to Twitter in Brisbane? Come to a @btub meet up TONIGHT, Friday July 3, @greystonebar, Southbank

Laura from Greystone Bar

So, you've just signed up to Twitter recently and you're still wondering what the point of it all is? Well, one of the things Twitter people in Brisbane do is have a big meet-up once a month. It's called #btub (which stands for Brisbane Twitter Underground Brigade) and it's at Greystone Bar in Southbank, in between Grey St and Little Stanley St, opposite the Imax Cinema on Grey St (click here for a Google Map).

This month's #btub meetup is on Friday July 3, and starts at Greystone Bar at 6pm and will go through as long as people hang around (last month people were there till about 2am).



One of the great things about #btub is that there are no official leaders. People run smaller btub events as well, and if you think there should be an event, just announce it. If people are interested, they'll turn up, and you've got a #btub.

If you want to keep track of what btub events are on, you can either:

Join the BTUB group on Facebook
Follow @btub on Twitter
Follow the #btub hashtag on Twitter (what on earth is a hashtag? Click here for more info)

There are also plenty of photos from btub events on flickr - you can see the btub group photos here or search for photos tagged with btub here.

I won't be there tomorrow night until quite late, as I have to work until midnight :( But turn up, say hi, introduce yourselves and meet some friendly new people.





Some friendly btubbers



This is me at a btub.

Brisbane Art: IMPRESS Printmakers exhibition at Circle Gallery Fri Jun 26

The Impress Printmakers Studio Brisbane are putting on an exhibition of new work by their members this week at Circle Gallery, upstairs at 274 Montague Rd West End (Click here for a Google Map). The exhibition starts this Friday, June 26 2009, and will be on from 6-8 pm that night. It then runs from Saturday June 27 to Wednesday July 1, from 10am - 4pm daily.

Two of the printmakers that will be showing their new work are Lisa Pullen and Georgina Carter-Leahy. To give you an idea of what sort of work you might see, here's some examples of their older work (these works won't be in the show though, as the show is all about new work)



Lisa Pullen, "Girl on a Swing", 2001 - click here to buy this work.



Georgina Carter-Leahy, "Creation, Temptation, Expulsion", 2004 - click here to buy this work.

If you're a Brisbane artist looking for a space to show your work, Circle Gallery hires out its space for $700 a week and charges no commission. Click here for more details about hiring Circle Gallery.

Brisbane Impro: Prognosis: Death! Relapse at Arts Theatre July 2 - 11

Prognosis: Death! Relapse is a second run of the popular Prognosis: Death! off-the-cuff medical-comedy-melodrama from July 2 to July 11 2009 at the Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane (click here for a Google Map).

The impro show is set in St Love Hospital (which has a Twitter account here), and I'm told you can expect "a cross between Grey's Anatomy and The X-Files, with a dose of 1950s schlock horror and a good measure of fake blood". And the best part is you, the audience get to decide what horrors will endanger the hospital and its town each night - the first season included vampire cats, evil paintings, mummies and time-travelling Nazis.





The photos here are from the first run of Prognosis: Death! in January. There's also a review of the January show at ABC local radio 612AM Brisbane if you click here, and if you'd like a look from a behind-the-scenes point of view, the Musical Hot Spot blog has an article about how the music from the first season worked. The show is directed by Gregory Rowbotham and one of the actors from Impro Mafia is Natalie Bochenski, who directed the successful Arts Theatre run of He Died with a Falafel in his Hand in April 2009.

Prognosis: Death! Relapse is on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at the Arts Theatre from July 2 to July 11 2009. Tickets are $15 adults or $10 children/concession, and you can book by calling the Arts Theatre on 3369 2344. You can also book a season pass - $45 gets you admission to all six shows.