All the King's Horses...
Not even this fine statue of King George V on his trusty steed can save City Hall. But the government and locals must do their best, as Brisbane life wouldn't be the same without this beautiful old building and its rich history. Not to mention that my own grandfather worked there, so it's more than a wee bit sentimental to me. All is not lost, though. Three years of structural and cosmetic nip, tuck and architectural Spanx are underway and hopefully, she'll be better than new again. And how's this for fun: the clocktower is based on St Mark's Campanile in Venice, and the beautiful auditorium is based on Rome's Pantheon. It seems that six degrees of separation doesn't just apply to people...
PS: My fund raising drive to help animals in RSPCA Victoria's shelters ends THIS SATURDAY. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to those who've already dug deep and helped out ~ your donations are tremendously valued. Ready to join us? Just click the ChipIn button on the top right to provide some comfort to all creatures great and small who desperately need it. Here's the background info... and Thank You!
ohh..beautiful as usual..i love the details of the painting, sherree...
ReplyDeleteThis reminds of the old, And All The Dog's cats! Thank You, ShSh.
ReplyDeleteIn that case, I suppose your painting wood have me walking my cat on a leash.
Wow, Shell, this place is obviously special to you—and should be! No wonder you've done it such justice here. We Yanks had a bit of a problem with George III, but I'm sure #5 was a wonderful chap (and he certainly sat a horse quite well!). Seriously, any building based on those two would have to be handsome indeed.
ReplyDeleteArchitectural Spanx! LOOOOOOL!
ReplyDeleteIt is so nice to see palm trees in front of that majestic building and rider.
I love playing the six degrees of separation game. Didn't think it was true, but by George (hee hee) it is!
wv: inglo!
Thanks, Finie ~ I'm glad you like it!
ReplyDeleteCafe ~ your cats would also be walking on eggshells?
Alexa ~ it's a beautiful place. I have a photo of my grand-dad standing on its front steps, smoking his pipe.
Cali ~ they've just completed a facelift to King George Square, out the front of City Hall. I haven't seen it yet, but I hope they kept those palm trees!
I read it a bit too fast and thought you wrote the Sphinx will be sitting atop City Hall. I thought, "That's cool, but what does the Sphinx have to do with Brisbane?"
ReplyDeleteI'm glad City Hall is getting a makeover. All of a sudden, I feel the need to suck in my tummy.
It reminds me of when a doubledecker bus suddenly fell through a giant hole in the road on the swampy street I was then lived on. The situation lacked dignity due to the lack of a King George.
ReplyDeleteSorry about your city hall, but this was awfully funny.
ReplyDeleteoh my goodness! my parents have the same problem at their house--the basement wall is caving in and leaking! of course they don't have the glorious statue to make it worth the trouble :)
ReplyDeletethanks as always for your kind words and encouragement Shell!
PCN ~ hee hee! And you can also admit that you thought I'd done the worst drawing of the Sphinx you'd ever seen but you'd have been too polite to say so. :)
ReplyDeleteMise ~ oh dear, it sounds very unceremonious indeed.
Hiker ~ I'll send City Hall a sympathy card from you to make up for laughing at it. ;)
Anne ~ eek!! I don't envy them that problem. Another good reason to live in a house on stumps. PS: More kitty-hugging time equals more lemonade!
Delightful drawing! The old-style building and statue make me think I'm in Europe, but the palm tree makes me think, um maybe not. Like Cali, I guffawed out loud when I read your Spanx comment. Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteKatie ~ always glad to make you and Cali laugh! And that's one of the really charming things about Brisbane city ~ the European heritage in the old buildings {old for us, at least!} mixed with sub-tropical vegetation.
ReplyDeleteThat is a bit of an oopsy! Thank goodness for architectural plastic surgery.
ReplyDeleteI like your watercolor version of palm trees much better than the real thing.
I love the drawing Shell :-) I kept saying to myself "I was there, I was THERE" Thanks for the lovely reminder of a beautiful holiday in Brisbane! It was such a treat to meet you at the Rue de Paris!!! I already hung my magnet on the fridge :-)
ReplyDeleteAmy ~ it has to be right up there near the top of the All-Time Oopsy List.
ReplyDeleteKelle ~ I hope it was still open when you visited ~ if not, YAY! Another excuse to come back in a few years. :) I'm so glad we met 'for real' when you were here ~ such a fun afternoon. Thank you!
I do love that beautiful building ... and I need a bit of spanx and nip and tuck myself :)
ReplyDeleteIt's lovely. I still haven't quite gotten past the "architectural spanx" though.
ReplyDeleteMmeB ~ surely you jest, dear lady. ;)
ReplyDeletePetrea ~ buildings that structurally misbehave can now be spanxed.
Ha!
ReplyDeleteOr bodies. ;-)
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Oh wait ~ dang, wish I'd thought of this before. Buildings that get out of line should be spanxed.
ReplyDeleteI like them both.
ReplyDelete