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Under the Sails: Sydney Community Foundation event: Saluting Sydney Women

On September 8 2022, Sydney Community Foundation’s Sydney Women’s Fund hosted its flagship event - Saluting Sydney Women - in the Opera House’s Yallamundi Rooms. The Opera House was an iconic and special place for this celebration.

A group of people dressed in saris and suits, gathered for a photo.
Krishan Anand 70th Birthday Celebration
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Under the Sails: Krishan’s birthday celebrations

Under the Sails shares the stories of those celebrate milestones at the Opera House.  Krishan Anand celebrated his 70th birthday in the sweeping surrounds of the Opera House’s Yallamundi Rooms, with sixty of his nearest and dearest.

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Under the Sails: Australian Indigenous Education Foundation 2022 Graduation

AIEF students flew into Sydney from various communities across Australia to celebrate their graduation at the Opera House, with many visiting Sydney for the first time. 

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Sydney Opera House Review - 6 Star Green Star Rating (GBCA)

★★★★★★ 

Home to 5-star performances, the Sydney Opera House is now a 6 Star Green Star rated building. 

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Under the Sails: Roz and Electra’s Wedding

Roz and Electra met through work in 2015 and seven years later they were married under the sails as one of the first female couples to be married at the Opera House, in a bold and beautiful ceremony in the Joan Sutherland Theatre Northern Foyer (JSTNF). 

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Uncovered: Elph Ceramics

Founded by sisters Eloise and Sophie Rankine, Elph Ceramics is a ceramic homewares business that combines artistic sensibility with minimalist design. Locally handcrafted and sustainably made in the Southern Highlands in New South Wales, Elph Ceramics pieces are designed for everyday use - to be cherished and kept forever.

A wall of framed colourful pictures.
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Uncovered: Eggpicnic

We spoke with Sydney-based designers Camila De Gregorio and Christopher Macaluso of Eggpicnic who have been selected for Uncovered’s Prints, Photography & Art category. 

A woman seated in a house, drawing into a notebook at a desk.
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Uncovered: SoulSilk

Queensland-based artist Simin Contractor of SoulSilk has been selected for Uncovered’s Clothing and Accessories category.  We spoke to Simin about her Sydney Opera House Shop collection which features three hand-painted silk scarves inspired by Australian botanicals.

A man in a shirt crafting a blue object in a wooden room.
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Uncovered: Richard Greenacre

With his range of porcelain ceramics, Richard Greenacre is the latest Uncovered alumni in the Homewares and Gifts category. An industrial designer by day and ceramicist by night, Richard experiments with different materials and software to see how he can bring a new take to ceramic craft. 

Five knitted buckets hanging off a branch underneath three colored bowls.
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Uncovered: Yinarr Maramali

Amy Hammond and Lorrelle Munro are the co-founders of Yinarr Maramali, a Gomeroi women’s business based on Country in Tamworth NSW. Meaning “made by Gomeroi women’s hands”, Yinarr Maramali use natural materials collected by hand from Country to make a range of hand-woven baskets, coolamons and dilly bags.

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Uncovered: Mwerre Soap & Skin

Liz Liddle is the founder of Mwerre - Soap and Skin, a First Nations female-owned small business that manufactures artisan soaps based in Creswick, Victoria. Meaning ‘good’ or ‘beautiful’ in Arrernte, a First Nations language group in Central Australia, Mwerre (pronounced Mwah-rah) uses native ingredients to produce handmade soaps with Indigenous clay minerals and botanicals that protect and care for the skin.

Three framed blue pictures resting on a wooden cabinet against a white wall.
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Uncovered: popaboutdesign

With her range of original prints, Jane from popaboutdesign submitted her work to the Prints, Photography and Art category. A Sydney local who’s trained as an architect, Jane exhibits a remarkable level of detail in her prints, with each of the pools and the Opera House sails all drawn to scale and designed to complement each other. 

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At home with Bennelong’s Head Pastry Chef

Reenter the picnic game with these "perfect croissants", courtesy of Bennelong Head Pastry Chef Rhiann Mead's lockdown baking project.

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Meet Winifred Atwell, the first woman to play the Opera House

Legendary pianist Winifred Atwell was the (incomplete) stage's premiere act

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Can mutant food save our planet?

Glow-in-the-dark popcorn, Instaworthy tuna and other ideas to make your everyday eating more enjoyable.

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Leche Flan Donut recipe

A moreish at home creation by Portside Sydney's Exec Chef Elton Inglis for his wife during lockdown.

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Easy Snowy Rabbit-shaped Mooncake recipe

 

Celebrate Mooncake Festival, one of the most important celebrations in China, with this iconic rabbit-shaped mooncake recipe and handy how-to guide.

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An expert’s guide to eating this Lunar New Year

The 12-year cycle of the lunar calendar means that depending on the year you were born, you are represented by one of the 12 animals of the zodiac, and share affiliation with its character traits and fortunes. In 2021, it’s the Year of the Ox and to mark the occasion we’ve pulled together a summary of what lies ahead for you in terms of career, relationships or love.

The Sydney Opera House's sails illuminated by colorful squares.
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Global Goals - Good for the World & Good for Business

We all have an obligation to be part of the solution when it comes to climate change. We talk to an engineer about how he's helping the Opera House achieve its sustainability goals.

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#Isobread: the trend we didn’t know we kneaded

From sourdough starters to focaccia art, we’re taking a look at #isobread trends in an ode to the humble carb.

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Five seasonal recipes from Bill Granger

As spring draws near, move the slow cooker aside and make room for Bill Granger's deliciously fresh and light everyday recipes with an added twist.

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Five things you may not know about Yotam Ottolenghi

Ahead of his return to the Sydney Opera House in January, we dig into the surprising life of chef superstar and occasional MasterChef guest judge Yotam Ottolenghi.

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Six cocktails to try with an Opera House night in

Recipes for the thinkers, the theatrical, and the purists

American singer-songwriter Angel Olsen standing near a river bed.
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Agents of change

Powerful performances and candid conversations taking centre stage at the Sydney Opera House.

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Three moves in the right direction

Thinking about how we eat can help fix our food system.

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Go native: Delicious Indigenous recipes for your next iso-dinner party

Fancy yourself a freshly minted iso chef extraordinaire? Take your skills to the next level with these mouth watering gourmet recipes from Australia’s top First Nations chefs.

A slice of chocolate cake with a red center on a pkate.
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The 5 best Nigella desserts for your new baking skills

In need of a therapeutic bake or dessert to impress? Now is a better time than ever to fill your kitchen with copious amounts of chocolate.

A woman in a wedding dress and a man in a suit kissing outside of the Sydney Opera House.
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Under the Sails: Christopher and Rajini’s wedding

From an observatory meet cute to a gorgeous multicultural ceremony, we look back on the love story and harbourside wedding of Christopher and Rajini, celebrated in our Yallamundi Rooms.

Two men stood in suits outside of the Sydney Opera House.
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Under the Sails: Andy and Don’s Wedding

Arriving by water taxi and married at sunset 25 years after they met, we look back on the love story and wedding of Andy and Don.

Four roasted vegetables dressed in a white sauce and red fruit on top.
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The 5 best Ottolenghi recipes for isolation as picked by Sydney Opera House staff

Running out of ideas for what to cook? We dish our favourite Otto recipes to guide you through your quarantine meal time journeys.

A black-pink dessert surround by white petals.
Image: Nikki To
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Bennelong’s cherry jam lamington recipe

Peter Gilmore's lamington recipe is the cherry on the cake of the Bennelong menu and now you can make it at home.

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Uncovered: fromBIGthings

fromBIGthings is a Sydney-based model maker studio run by Adrian Veale. Adrian is dedicated to the recreation of architecture and buildings from across Sydney and Australia in plaster as an expression of their design for all to enjoy. Every model is made by hand with a combination of digital 3D printing and eco-friendly resin/plaster casts. Hand finished details are added to each model using traditional handmade techniques.

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How the Sydney Olympics amplified First Nations voices on and off the track

Cathy Freeman’s win was a historic triumph, but it wasn't the only watershed moment at the Sydney Olympics. Hear from Rhoda Roberts, who played a critical role behind the scenes of the 2000 games.

Queen Elizabeth at the Sydney Opera House Opening Ceremony 1973. Image: Leo Davis
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Remembering Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

The world has lost a towering symbol of humanity, stoicism and grace with the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

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6 architectural beauties worth the detour on your next NSW road trip

6 architectural beauties worth the detour on your next NSW road trip

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Spare a thought for the birds of Circular Quay

What happens to the native birds of urban Sydney when the entire city goes into hiding? We ask aviary experts how the ibises and seagulls of Circular Quay hold up when the humans disappear.

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The story of the missing Attenborough Opera House film

Made, lost, then uncovered half a century later. This is the story of controversial film 'Autopsy on a Dream'.

A collection of five colorful posters, framed against a white wall.
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Opera House posters: best of the decade, 1960s to now

Four decades of Australian art and ideas in graphic design.

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5 post-apocalypse movies to watch after Mad Max: Fury Road

Has 'George Miller: In Conversation' whet your appetite for gas-guzzling pandemonium? Here's our binge-list for road warriors and wasteland wanderers, courtesy of Stan.

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Leading Man: Michael Falzon remembered by his co-stars, friends

Michael Falzon, a star of the Australian stage, passed away on June 23 this year. Now, on the cusp of the digital debut of Falzon's passion project Swing on This, his co-stars pen a tribute to their departed friend.

A brown octopus.

An octopus’ garden underneath the Opera House

Discover the sea creatures that dwell beneath the harbour in our modular artificial reef along the Sydney Opera House sea wall.

Reef starting to grow on the artificial reef pods made with marine-grade steel.
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How an artificial reef under the Opera House has helped transform Sydney Harbour

This World Oceans Day, meet the diving force behind the Opera House’s underwater revolution. Not many people can claim to have dived beneath the Sydney Opera House, but these two marine ecologists from the University of Technology Sydney sure can.

An orchestra performing on the Concert Hall stage.
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Choosing a career with purpose

We all have an obligation to be part of the solution when it comes to climate change. We talk to an engineer about how he's helping the Opera House achieve its sustainability goals.

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A career in sails: Leonie Bell

Leonie Bell started her career at the Sydney Opera House as a chef-apprentice for Bennelong Restaurant when she was 15 years old. Three years later she was in prime position to experience Sydney's first-ever, world-famous New Year’s Eve fireworks show. Now part of the Front of House team 45 years later, Leonie shares a kitchen secret or two what it was like working in the lead up to that faithful night in 1976.

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A career in sails: Peter Tucker

Peter Tucker has been working at the Sydney Opera House since before it was even complete. Now a part of the Building Operations team, he's worked in an assortment of roles and teams over the years. Along the way has met the Queen, the President and Jackie Chan – just to name a few. This year Peter celebrates 50 years on the job.

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5 Sydney Opera House near misses (in the movies)

From killer sea creatures to crashing UFOs, the Sydney Opera House has been threatened in the most imaginative and unexpected ways. Here are just a few of our close calls.

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5 superb Sydney Opera House hats

Hold onto your hats, we're crowning the best buckets and bonnets that pay tribute to the Opera House. Here are our top five spectacular (impractical) Opera House hats.

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Local artists illustrate your Opera House memories

We asked five local artists to bring your most cherished Opera House memories to life.

A collection of five posters on a white wall.
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Opera House posters: Hidden gems

The Sydney Opera House has a lasting legacy of working with Australian artists to colourfully express the variety of performances under the sails.

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Sydney's seal of approval

The much-loved resident of the Opera House steps has been given a voice.

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Uncovered: Milly Dent

Sydney-based ceramicist Milly Dent has been selected for Uncovered retail program. We spoke to Milly about her work, where she finds inspiration and her Sydney Opera House Shop collection.

Paul Kelly on stage on the Forecourt playing to a full crowd at night, with the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge in the background.
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Transcendence: 50 Years of Unforgettable Moments

We cherish our memories of visiting the Sydney Opera House, whether that’s catching your favourite artist or being amazed by the stories told on stage. But what about the artists’ memories?

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Meet Winifred Atwell, the first woman to play the Opera House

Legendary pianist Winifred Atwell was the (incomplete) stage's premiere act

Joan Sutherland Theatre
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The work that makes magic: Renewing the Joan Sutherland Theatre

One of the world’s great performance venues, the Joan Sutherland Theatre is being renewed for the next generation of artists and audiences.

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Interesting facts about Sydney Opera House

Find out 15 interesting facts about the Sydney Opera House that you never knew.

The famous architect of Sydney opera house Jorn Utzon.
House History Jorn Utzon
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Jørn Utzon AC

His mastery in fusing craft traditions and ancient architecture with modernist thinking infused his designs for the Sydney Opera House.

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Construction begins

On 2 March 1959, a crowd gathered under umbrellas, in the rain, to watch the ceremony that marked the start of construction of the Sydney Opera House.

spherical solution
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The spherical solution

Jørn Utzon’s realisation that the form of the Sydney Opera House could be derived from the surface of a sphere marked a milestone in 20th century architecture.

utzon resigns
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Utzon departs the House

As the sails took shape, Bennelong Point became a battle ground of politics, pragmatism and the quest for perfection.

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Peter Hall and the completion of the Opera House

Peter Hall was one of Australia’s brightest young architects at the time he took up the daunting role of design architect to complete Stage Three of Sydney’s new Opera House.

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50 years of extraordinary moments

From Ella Fitzgerald to Bon Iver, Dance Rites Festival to Nelson Mandela’s address from the steps, the Opera House and the extraordinary experiences on our stages reflect our contemporary culture.

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Decade of Renewal

As we open up the Opera House to more of the community, the Decade of Renewal has helped us live up to the promise of the building itself.

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Conserving and celebrating our heritage

We are transforming the building for future generations while respecting and preserving the very features that make it unique.

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Fine-tuning the acoustics of the Joan Sutherland Theatre

What makes a concert sound good? Here's how our acousticians did it.

Image: Sam Doust
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Tubowgule

Ever since it was a place for ceremony, gathering and celebration in Aboriginal Australia, Tubowgule has always reflected the society tucked in around Sydney Cove.

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Preserving the Grand Organ

Each of the 10,244 pipes will be cleaned by hand – it's a tricky job.

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Beijing through the eyes of Jørn Utzon

A film made by the architect of the Opera House en route to Sydney has, until now, never been publicly seen. Lin Utzon recalls the influence and inspiration her father drew from Chinese architecture.

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How can we solve the problems of the future?

Sydney Opera House BUILD is a new three-part program with the aim of creating a better world through the built environment. Earlier this month, the pilot Tertiary Built Environment Creative Lab saw students from Western Sydney University tackle a future-facing design challenge by collaborating in interdisciplinary teams. Student Emma Moore writes about what she learnt about herself and the Opera House.

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How MADE students are proposing to revitalise the Sydney Opera House

The Australian-Danish exchange program imagines what a future icon might look like.

Man spraying aerosol into a microphone on stage.
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Playing to an empty House

The halls might be closed, but a newly built virtual stage is broadcasting shows from inside the Sydney Opera House

A collage of different images.
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House of Wonder

Sam Doust, Google Arts & Culture curator, reveals his favourite stories from behind the curtain.

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Work begins to transform Concert Hall for new era

Better sound, better access and more ambitious performances will be enabled by a $150 million upgrade and renovations.

New rectangular holes have been added to the ceiling above the stage to allow for the installation of banners and curtains to dampen reverberation and improve the sound for amplified music, image: Chris Bennett
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In it for the long Hall

The Opera House’s biggest venue has been closed for two years, yet behind its shuttered doors the beat goes on. The hum of thousands of excited concert-goers has been replaced with the buzz of thousands of workers, busy future-proofing the venue for decades to come.

Person holding up a light in front of an empty theatre.
Ghost lights illuminate an empty Joan Sutherland Theatre, 2020.
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Keeping the ghost lights shining

“It’s about saying: we haven’t gone forever, we’re coming back and we’re going to leave the lights on to show you that.”

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Why I love LEGO

He's the host of LEGO Masters, the only Lego Certified Professional in Australia, and he's constructed the Opera House more than any other building in the world. As we celebrate his latest work – Christmas baubles on the Forecourt – The Brickman reflects on why he loves what he does.

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Zindzi Okenyo tells House Stories

From audience member to performer to podcast host, Zindzi Okenyo has a unique connection with the Sydney Opera House. She shares her relationship with the building, and what it was like to see the Concert Hall emptied out and reinvented up-close for the new season of House Stories.

A man sat on the floor moving structural objects around.
Jørn Utzon with his architectural models. Image: The Utzon Archives / Utzon Center
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How Mexico, Iran and China shaped Utzon’s Opera House

In April 2018, the Utzon Center presented Horisont: an evocative exhibition in celebration of Jørn Utzon AC and the poetic, humane layers of his life’s work coloured by his immersive travel studies of foreign landscapes, people and cultures.

Birds eye view of Concert hall in Sydney opera house.
Acoustics Inline and Hero
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Testing the Concert Hall’s acoustic reflectors

Work is underway to make the Opera House sound as good as it looks. Meet the acousticians solving a 40 year-old problem.

Michael Nelson Jagamara wearing a beige suit jacket over a blue and white checked shirt and wide brim hat, standing in front of an artwork in pastel colours.
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A Possum Story

Michael Jagamara was born into and revelled in a time of great change and opportunities. Following the end of World War II, abstract expressionism had arrived in the Australian art world and Sidney Nolan completed his Ned Kelly series. Also in that year, in the north part of Western Australia, in an amazingly unread, event, at least 800 Aboriginal pastoral workers walked off the job and began one of the longest industrial strikes in Australian history.

Jagamara photographed in black and white sitting on carpeted steps in front of the mural 'Possum Dreaming'.
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Michael Nelson Jagamara

For those fortunate enough to meet him, he embodied the qualities of the quintessential bush gentleman. Dressed in his jacket and distinctive Akubra hat, he exuded a dignified presence, often sharing humorous anecdotes and stories. Whether in Papunya or New York, Alice Springs or Brisbane, Sydney or Vienna, Jagamara often struck up conversations with new friends and passers-by alike, introducing himself with a warm smile and a handshake, announcing, “Hello, I'm a famous artist!”

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Can 15,000 plastic straws be art?

Francesca Pasquali creates sculptures from things we throw away.

Interview with filmmaker Arthur Jafa, Sydney Opera House
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For Arthur Jafa, Black art is the heart of America

“There’s an inherent, undeniable power of our music. And owning things is a big deal for us because we were owned.”

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hannah brontë ‘tellus terra’ (2020)

Hannah Brontë's ‘Tellus Terra’ is an original art commission for Sydney Opera House, presented at All About Women 2020.

Stills from 'Austral Flora Ballet'.
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Andrew Thomas Huang decorates the House with floral symbols of Australia

Andrew Thomas Huang's 'Austral Flora Ballet' is an urgent reminder of our natural world

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The case for everyday creativity

To celebrate the opening of the Centre for Creativity, meditation teacher and academic Nadine Cameron writes on casting aside the “fear of the quality of output” and finding fulfilment in everyday acts of art and imagination.

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Spirit of collaboration inspires ground-breaking Vivid LIVE sails artwork

Emily Nicol speaks to the creators of this year's extraordinary Vivid Lighting of the Sails artwork: the Martumili Artists, musicians Electric Fields, and creative technologists Curiious.

A women assessing the Tapestry cloth in a warehouse.
Condition assessment of the Coburn Tapestries, 2017.
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Restoring the Coburn Tapestries

John Coburn was at the height of his fame when the artist was pitched to architect Peter Hall to design the Sydney Opera House theatre curtains in 1969. Hall had taken over from Danish architect Jørn Utzon and was ushering the building towards completion.

A man in a suit staring at artwork on a wall.
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Rosso’s tapestry obsession

Tim Ross, design enthusiast and presenter, has become fixated with the Opera House’s historic tapestries – so much so he’s hosting a podcast about them.

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Song Ling rides the New Wave of Chinese art

Between Hangzhou and Melbourne, the Lunar Lantern artist's real work is politically charged with flairs of Magritte.

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Why I love LEGO

He's the host of LEGO Masters, the only Lego Certified Professional in Australia, and he's constructed the Opera House more than any other building in the world. As we celebrate his latest work – Christmas baubles on the Forecourt – The Brickman reflects on why he loves what he does.

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The inside story of Olsen’s celebrated Opera House mural

When I went to see Kenneth Slessor, he was working as a journalist, his poetical self long since disappeared, and he told me a story. It was the story of an artist who drowned in Sydney opposite the place where the Opera House now stands.