PLACE REPRESENTED: Johannesburg , South Africa
ITEM: Key Holder
NOTES: A two hook steel hanger from Johannesburg with a giraffe, naturally enough. Are two hooks enough? They are if the giraffe is one of the modes of transportation.. Nice.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1990s
MADE FROM: steel
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 5cm X 12.5cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: Brisbane, Queensland , Australia
ITEM: Wall Plate
NOTES: A vivid plate of Brisbane at the time of the Queensland Centenary in 1959. The sites are all intact and not in abundance such was Brisbane in 1959. Accordingly, the plate makers have included Greenmount beach at Coolangatta on the nearby Gold Coast (which was then still relatively underdeveloped). All under the logo (“insert coat of arms or logo here”) of the Greater Brisbane H.T.A (a tennis association now defunct in Queensland) which is quite appropriate as tennis and sunshine mix well.
The plate has some special significance for me as my father and mother came to Australia, from Croatia (well, from Yugoslavia via other countries) in 1959 and 1960 respectively. They met here shortly thereafter and this is what they, no doubt, saw, and it was a lot les developed then what they were used to.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1959
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Japan
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 25.5cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Valparaiso, Chile
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: A vivid little painted print in relief of Valparaiso, Chile looking down to the harbour from the hillside districts. Valparaíso a once major port, and a home for European immigrants, was known as “Little San Francisco” and “The Jewel of the Pacific”. Now it is is known for its tourism, educational institutions, and supportive environment for artists (which this simple but effective ornament suggests). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valpara%C3%ADso
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s
MADE FROM: wood, paper
MADE IN: Chile (no doubt)
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 19cm x 7cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia
ITEM: Bottle Opener
NOTES: The bottle opener, sold in the millions and perhaps the most useful travel souvenir (at least until screw top bottles and pull tab cans came along).. Here we have vibrant colours showing off the Great Barrier Reef.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: steel, plastic.
MADE IN: Japan
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 12cm long
PLACE REPRESENTED: Alabama , USA
ITEM: T Shirt
NOTES: Alabama, the “Heart of Dixie”. Are you allowed to say “Dixie” anymore? Surely someone will be triggered, somewhere. Wear with caution as you will probably be torn down in an attempt to erase the subjective past.
Dixie is an informal name for the states in the U.S. South, especially those that seceded and formed the Confederacy which led to the U.S. Civil war. It is a reference to the Mason Dixon line which marks the north from the South. Eventually it was shortened to “Dixie”. Alabama
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1994
MADE FROM: 100% cotton
MADE IN: Mexico
MANUFACTURER: Jerzees
DIMENSIONS: XL
PLACE REPRESENTED: Sydney, New South Wales (specifically the Sydney Tower) , Australia
ITEM: Drinks Tray
NOTES: A drinks tray depicting Sydney’s third most identifiable feature (the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge probably beat it, if for no other reason than it seems to subject to frequent name changes. As wikipedia says “The name Sydney Tower has become common in daily usage; however, the tower has been known as the Sydney Tower Eye, AMP Tower, Flower Tower, Glower Tower, Westfield Centrepoint Tower, Big Poke, Centrepoint Tower or just Centrepoint”. The Sydney Tower is Sydney’s tallest structure and the second tallest observation tower in the Southern Hemisphere, and was opened to the public in 1981. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Tower
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: metal
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 32cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Saint Malo , France
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: A beautiful wooden wall ornament from Saint Malo the beautiful French walled city in Brittany on the French north coast. The figure central, Bertheleme, is striking but I know nothing about her. Perhaps she is a traditional woman of St Malo and Bertheleme is the artist? She is stunning regardless.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1962
MADE FROM: wood
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 21cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Gold Coast (specifically Warner Brothers Movie World), Queensland , Australia
ITEM: Frame
NOTES: A picture frame celebrating DC comics superheroes and DC Comics Super-Villains tenuously linked to the Gold Coast via the theme park studio. The characters depicted are old school from the golden age of comic design and have a pop art immediacy about them, without any of the cynicism or irony many contemporary superhero variations have. Putting your picture in the middle says what? Or, am I reading too much into this?
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s
MADE FROM: plastic , cardboard
MADE IN: China
MANUFACTURER: Warner Brothers
DIMENSIONS: 25.5cm x 32cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: Rüdesheim (specifically Drosselgasse) , Germany
ITEM: Trivet
NOTES: Rüdesheim am Rhein is a German winemaking town in the west of the country. Drosselgasse is a lane in the heart of Rüdesheim’s Old Town (built in the 15th century). Music and taverns are everywhere along the 144-metre-long narrow cobblestone pedestrian street. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%BCdesheim_am_Rhein
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: steel, tile .
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 17cm x 16cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: Alice Springs, Northern Territory , Australia
ITEM: Coffee Mug
NOTES: A coffee mug, or, rather, half a coffee mug. Has anyone ever asked for half a cup of coffee? Perhaps in pre barista instant coffee days in Australia.
“Central Australia” is often equated with “Northern Territory”. Either way Alice Springs in in its centre and the camel lounging under an umbrella, with an esky and a cool drink is apt. … ie: it’s hot.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 9cm high x a 10cm semi circle
