The T Australia List: Four Things To Have on Your Radar in August

A new exhibition from a highly regarded photo-media artist, a $25 pasta series worth braving the cold for, and a new everyday staple.

Article by T Australia

Room 4117, from the exhibition Hotel Suite, 2008.Room 4117, from the exhibition Hotel Suite, 2008. Artwork courtesy of the artist Anne Zahalka / NAS Gallery, National Art School Darlinghurst.

Try This: Augustinus Bader’s Signature Facial Arrives in Brisbane

The exterior of Ascension Cosmetic Medicine.

Each facial will be customised to meet your needs, performed with signature TFC8®-infused products.

See This: An Exhibition That Celebrates Anne Zahalka’s Career

The Sunbather #1, from the series Bondi: playground of the Pacific 1989.

“Zahalkaworld” features 100 of the artist’s most notable works, along with five new pieces.

Eat Here: “The Hits” Pasta Series at Shell House’s Menzies Bar

The entrance to Menzies Bar.

Pull up a chair in the golden-lit room and savour a new $25 pasta dish each week.

Covet This: Harris Tapper’s New Bomber Is Perfect for All Occasions

The Remus Bomber paired with the The Dru Parka

It comes in a warm mauve, designed to add a pop of colour to any outfit.

The T Australia List: Four Things To Have on Your Radar This Week

A disturbing new exhibition from a Sydney painter, hyperreal dessert candles and more.

Article by T Australia

Madeleine Pfull's new exhibition "Disturbances".Madeleine Pfull's new exhibition "Disturbances". Photograph courtesy of Chalk Horse.

Eat Here: Jackalope’s Famed Yum Cha Returns for Winter

The view from a suite at Jackalope.

It’s part of a six-month culinary series taking over the luxury resort on the Mornington Peninsula.

See This: Madeleine Pfull’s New Exhibition Might Disturb You

Madeleine Pfull / THE TWIST

The Sydney artist explores new territories through the creation of “scary” paintings.

Covet This: July and Oroton’s Summery New Collection

The limited edition Oroton x July canvas tote and Carry On Trunk.

The Australian lifestyle labels have dropped an exclusive collection that pays homage to sun-soaked destinations.

Gift This: A Hyperreal Banana Split Candle With Cherries

Fred Home's Banana Split Candle.

Australian homewares shop Fred Home crafts everything from lifelike wax sausages to stylish tassel cushion covers.

The T Australia List, Curated by Vicky Cheng

Vicky Cheng is the chef-owner of VEA and WING restaurants in Hong Kong and appears as a guest judge on MasterChef Australia as part of Hong Kong Week.

Article by T Australia

Vicky Cheng is a chef at VEA in Hong Kong, a high-end restaurant spotlighting a Chinese-French tasting menu. Photograph supplied.

Hong Kong-based chef, Vicky Cheng, is known for the restaurant VEA, which specialises in Chinese-French fusion and pays homage to native Chinese flavours such as Sichuan peppercorns. It earned a Michelin star in 2017.

Bridging the gap between diners who can afford fine dining and those less privileged, Cheng established the Elizabeth Nutritional Fund (named after his daughter) and the Chicken Soup Foundation, a local charity that helps underprivileged children.

In 2021 Cheng launched his second restaurant, WING, where his dishes offer a reinterpretation of Chinese cuisine.

Start the Day Here: 靠得住 Trusty Congee King

Crispy pork skin from Trusty Congee King in Hong Kong. Photography courtesy of Trusty Congee King.

I really enjoy the congee here, I usually order the pork liver with scallop, 心肝寶貝粥. I love innards, and their pork liver here is really good. My daughters really love their Chinese fried dough.

Workout to: Rap and Hip Hop

Eminem in 2010. Photograph courtesy Chad Batka/The New York Times.

Normally I listen to songs when doing morning workout/running , Eminem and Jay-Z mostly.

See This: The Best View of Hong Kong

Victoria Peak Hike. Photography courtesy of Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Victoria Peak Hike is a great place to see the classic view of Hong Kong.

Avoid the Crowds At: A Secret Teahouse

Nan Lian Garden. Photograph courtesy of Shutterstock.

Hong Kong is a well developed city with rich biodiversity countryside, abundant opportunities for outdoor leisure in country parks, urban gardens and surrounding waters and islands. Exploring an urban garden in Hong Kong can be a wonderful way to spend an afternoon away from the bustling city centre. One of my personal favourites is Nan Lian Garden, designed in the style of the Tang Dynasty and adorned with unique rock formations and precious trees. After a leisurely stroll through the garden, you can relax at the Song Cha Xie Teahouse located within the garden and savour a pot of traditional Chinese tea.

Enjoy My Favourite Cocktail: At Quinary

Quinary serves multisensory cocktails. Photography courtesy of Quinary.

Quinary is one of my favourites and must visit in Hong Kong. Led by the international award-winning mixologist, Antonio Lai, Quinary is the OG of multisensory mixology. Quirky, fun, the vibe is always great, and they have some interesting cocktail combinations that showcase Hong Kong flavours. I particularly like the Old Fashioned here.

After a Late Night Out: Head To Chiu Hing Restaurant 潮興魚蛋粉

Vicky Cheng says it’s always comforting to have a bowl of hot noodle soup noodle after work. Photography courtesy Network Ten.

A quick supper spot for an authentic bowl of noodle late at night. It is open till 6am in the morning and it’s always comforting to have a bowl of hot soup noodle after work. Originally they sell fish ball noodles, but beef brisket and offal is my favourite order.

Catch Vicky Cheng as a guest judge on MasterChef Australia this Monday as part of Hong Kong Week, from 7.30pm on Network 10 and 10 Play.

T Recommends: How to Celebrate NAIDOC this Week

Our new column celebrates NAIDOC Week with Indigenous arts events, contemporary dance, biting comedy and more.

Article by Lucy E Cousins

Installation view of Maree Clarke: Ancestral Memories open from 25 June – 3 October 2021 at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, Melbourne. Photography by Tom Ross.
Welcome to the T List, a new column from the editors of T Australia. Each week, we share things we’re eating, wearing, listening to or coveting now. Sign up here to find us in your inbox every fortnight. And you can always reach us at [email protected]
Dropbear by Evelyn Araluen, University of Queensland Press is out now.
Author Evelyn Araluen. Photography by Stuart Spence.
Author Evelyn Araluen. Photography by Stuart Spence.

READ THIS
An Innovative Debut Book from a Young Indigenous Poet

Poetry is a challenging medium at the best of times, but Evelyn Araluen, who gave the opening address at the last Sydney Writers Festival, seems to be able to use words like wool to weave in any way she likes. In her recently released debut collection of poems and essays, Dropbear (UQP), she explores the complexity of an unreconciled nation interwoven with personal history. “I like poetry that speaks to the many places that I have loved and am connected to and bound to by blood and by history,” she says. A descendant of the Bundjalung Nation, Araluen is no stranger to success despite her young age. Her previous work has attracted a sway of awards, including the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers, the Judith Wright Poetry Prize, a Wheeler Centre Next Chapter Fellowship, and a Neilma Sidney Literary Travel Fund Grant. And this book will no doubt pick up a few of its own. Dropbear, by Evelyn Araluen, University of Queensland Press, $24.99. 

The Nagnata x Children's Ground collaboration has produced a limited edition t-shirt. Photography courtesy of Nagnata.

BUY THIS
The T-shirt That Works Harder Than You Do

Marlkawo in West Arnhem Land is a community so remote it takes twelve hours to drive to Darwin, accessibility is limited to the Dry Season and early childhood services are three hours away. To raise funds for learning on Country in Marlkawo, Children’s Ground – an organisation led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities committed to creating a new future for First Nations children in Australia – has teamed up with fashion brand, Nagnata. The result is a project titled “Everything Comes From Country” and a limited edition t-shirt. Designed in collaboration with artist Keisha Leon, Waanyi and Kalkadoon woman and founder of Leon Designs (a First Nations owned and operated creative studio), a 100% of profits go towards education, art supplies and a building project for a community art space for the Marlkawo community. $140, nagnata.com

Installation view of Maree Clarke: Ancestral Memories at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, Melbourne. Photography by Tom Ross.
Installation view of Maree Clarke: Ancestral Memories at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, Melbourne. Photography by Tom Ross.

VISIT THIS
Exploring the Extensive Career of Artist Maree Clarke

While it’s common for artists to favour one or two mediums throughout their career, Melbourne-based artist Maree Clarke has found her creativity in photography, printmaking, sculpture, jewellery, video, glass and more. Over the past three decades the Yorta Yorta/Wamba Wamba/Mutti Mutti/Boonwurrung artist has used her multidisciplinary practice to advocate for the reclamation of south-east Australian Aboriginal art and culture. Maree Clarke: Ancestral Memories is the first retrospective of her work, spanning not only her artistic career but the full extent of her deep engagement and reverence for Indigenous culture. “This exhibition not only explores Clarke’s extraordinary career, but it also strongly attests to the power of cultural reclamation,” says Tony Ellwood AM, Director of the National Gallery of Victoria. “As the first living artist to exhibit at NGV with ancestral ties to the Country on which the Gallery stands, this exhibition is a momentous milestone in the NGV’s history.”  Maree Clarke: Ancestral Memories, The Ian Potter Centre: NGV, Until 3 October 2021, Free.

History Bites Back filmmaker Trisha Moreton-Thomas,and comedians Stephen Oliver and Elaine Crombie. Photography courtesy of SBS.

WATCH THIS
The Subtle Genius of a Doco-Comedy with Bite

Tackling not only the lack of Indigenous history taught in our schools, but also the boatload of misconceptions about Indigenous culture that still exist in Australia today, History Bites Back (NITV) is a doco-comedy with serious backbone. Acclaimed Indigenous filmmaker Trisha Morton-Thomas has teamed up with director/writer Craig Anderson and comedians Steven Oliver and Elaine Crombie to present a satirical spin on the historical context of Indigenous Australians today, from social security, citizenship and equal wages to nuclear bombs and civil actions. As Anderson puts it, since colonisation “the whitefellas haven’t really known what to do with the blackfellas and the blackfellas haven’t been able to get rid of the whitefellas… and now there’s other fellas, biggest mob of fellas from all over the world sharing this place called Australia.” History Bites Back, 8.30pm, 11 July on  NITV and SBS VICELAND.

Bhenji Ra, Emmanuel James Brown, Miranda Wheen, Zachary Lopez, Chandler Connell, Feras Shaheen, Issa el Assaad, Luke Currie-Richardson and Ses Bero in Jurrungu Ngan-ga, Marrugeku. 2021. Photography by Abby Murray.

BOOK THIS
Using the Lightness of Dance to Tell the Darkest Tale

With the Sydney lockdown potentially lasting longer than we’d hoped, the only thing to do is plan for the future. Placing bets on August events, Carriageworks resident dance company Marrugeku has just announced the opening of its new performance, Jurrungu Ngan-ga – meaning Straight Talk in Yawuru. The multimedia theatre production, set within a complex large-scale installation, explores the experiences of Indigenous Australians and refugees in custody and inside Australia’s immigration detention centres. While it might not see like the easiest topic to translate into dance, Marrugeku’s cultural team and cast have found a way to express these experiences through innovative choreographing and music selection. “The show reveals how this unique dialogue between Indigenous, settler and refugee perspectives can address the burning issues of our times, investigating that which Australia wishes to isolate and lock away from view,” explains Marrugeku Co-artistic Director Rachael Swain. Jurrungu Ngan-ga, 4 – 7 August 2021, Carriageworks, tickets starting at $40.

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