A chance wander through the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne bought me face to face with the amazing photography of Petrina Hicks. She is a Sydney based photographer whose work ” flirts with artiface and perfection.” The scale of her photographs is huge and walking into the exhibition the…

You’ve just celebrated a milestone birthday…for most of our Viva 70 readers that’s men and women over 50. Do you think about how your next decade may be different? Do you imagine what life story you would like to create for your next decade? Do you read books about transition…

“Fashion you can buy, but style you possess. The key to style is learning who you are, which takes years. There’s no how-to road map to style. It’s about self expression and, above all, attitude.” —Iris Apfel   As part of Melbourne Fashion Week I attended a forum of fashion industry…

A weekday ” pop into the gallery moment” and again life delivers jewels. This time in the form of beautiful batiks and paintings. But it’s the paintings that really captured my attention ……… Emily Kam Kngwarray  (1910-1996) was a world renowned indigenous artist who began painting at the age of…

Cristobal Balenciaga was born in the basque country of Spain in 1895  and went on to create one of the most innovative and trend setting fashion houses in the world. Christian Dior, a competitor in the fashion industry described him as ” the master of us all.” He opened his…

Having decided to stay put rather than move house I’m treating myself to a design upgrade and hit the stores for inspiration this week. What’s trending out there? What ideas can I pilfer? What would work for me, my lifestyle and my taste? Three trends stand out in the world…

Margaret Olley  is a much loved Australian artist  with a significant reputation for still life and her ability to capture the richness and intimacy of interior ” landscapes.” Born in the New South Wales town of Lismore, in Queensland in 1923 she had 90 solo exhibitions of her work and…

I love collecting books. Not kindle type reads for me but the joy of holding the book, feeling its weight, touching the smooth paper and the rhythmic turning of pages. Hard covers are a delight  and immediately give the book a presence. As my hands stiffen with age and cold…

In retreat from single digit temperatures, a leaking toilet and an ever-increasing to-do list, I decided to head to Brisbane for a few days to catch up with friends and a city of sunshine. With no big expectations in my luggage I just want times shared, good walking weather and…