Japanese Fashion - from Kimonos to FRUiTS

An insightful talk for anyone with an interest in Japanese fashion or conservation of textiles

Explore the history of Japanese fashion with the Powerhouse Museum's conservator of Textiles and Dress, Suzanne Chee. This 40 minute talk will look at some of the influential names of Japanese fashion including Issey Miyake, Comme des Garcon, Yohji Yamamoyo and more recent designers. Suzanne will draw upon examples from recent Powerhouse Museum Japanese fashion exhibitions and the popular FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Style exhibition.

Saturday 26 March 2011

11am - 12pm

Hurstville City Museum & Gallery

14 MacMahon Street Hurstville

BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL

Please call 9330 6444

Family History Session - Seniors Week 2011

Finding Margaret: Lessions in tracing a family history

As part of the LMG's Seniors Week events Lorraine Purcell, researcher and family historian, will guide seniors through the steps involved in tracing and preserving a family history.

Friday 25 March 2011

10am - 12pm

Hurstville City Museum & Gallery

14 MacMahon Street, Hurstville

BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL

Morning tea provided

Please call 9330 6444

Seniors Week 2011 - Live Life

Each year in March the Library, Museum & Gallery along with Hurstville City Council celebrate NSW Seniors Week with a series of special events. The theme Live Life encourages Seniors to learn something new, make friends and participate in community activities. Please check the calendar for the full range of events being offered through council.

How it Feels

Brendan Cowell is a talented man. He's an actor who's appeared in Love My Way, Beneath Hill 60 and I Love You Too amongst others. He's also written for stage and screen and recently published his first novel.



How It Feels begins in 1994 on the night the HSC results are published. A group of friends start out celebrating the end of their school careers. Over the next twelve hours their lives will change forever. A decade later, one is dead, one is famous, two are getting married and the truth is about to come out.



Described as "Wildly funny, brutal, tender and true," this isn't bad, though a little confronting in parts.

Music CDs Coming Soon

The following titles have been ordered for our collection and are albums of the winners of 53rd Grammy Awards such as: "Need You Now" by Lady Antebellum; "Doo Wops & Hooligans" by Bruno Mars; "Eleanora Fagan (1915-1959): To Billi with Love from Dee Dee" by Dee Dee Bridgewater; "Living Proof" by Buddy Guy; "Social Network Soundtrack".

Check our shelves now for "Brothers" by The Black Keys; "The Resistance" by Muse; "The Fame Monster"; by Lady Gaga, which are also this year's Grammy winners.

New music CDs that will be on our CD music stand within the week are:

• He Will Have His Way: the music of Tim & Neil Finn - Various Artists
• The Great Tenor Songbook - Mark Vincent
• Michael - Michael Jackson
• Duet - Ronan Keating
• Shameless - the soundtrack
• The Beginning - The Black Eyed Peas

Do you have suggestions for DVD and/or CD titles you would like in our collection? Just post them here.

Building or Renovating?

Hurstville Library subscribes to the Building Code of Australia Online. This online resource can be accessed for free at Hurstville and Penshurst Libraries. The Building Code of Australia Online is developed, published and maintained by the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB).

What does it cover?
BCA Online contains technical provisions for the design and construction of buildings and other structures covering such matters as structure, fire resistance, access and egress, services and equipment and certain aspects of health and amenity. It includes Volumes 1 & 2 of the Code, Guide, standards referenced in the BCA, BCA versions dating back to 1988 and ABRD Newsletters. The Guide is a companion manual to the BCA and is intended for people seeking clarification, illustrations, and examples of complex BCA provisions.

How do I access this resource?
A User Id and password is required from library staff to access BCA Online in the library.

For more information please see staff at the Hurstville City Library Information Desk or phone 9330 6142.

Dear Alan Moore: You're Welcome!

Saturday 5th February marked Save Our Libraries day as over 400 libraries across the UK are under threat of closure. Among the support for libraries was thrown the hirsute weight of the comics and graphic novel luminary Alan Moore, author of critically acclaimed works Watchmen, V for Vendetta, From Hell and comic series Promethea among others.



He was clearly going to explore the unchartered areas of his medium anyway but it's fantastic to think he believes part of getting there was due to his time spent in libraries. An institution for research, a social hub and a sanctuary for genius - aahhhhh libraries, is there nothing you can't do?

To our van

From the Austv Archieves comes a 1970s advertisement we dedicate to our home library service team (and yes, we have a Toyota... but that is about all in common with us and this advert!).

Official opening of FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Style

People braved the sweltering heat on Thursday 3, February to celebrate the opening of Hurstville City Museum & Gallery's latest exhibition FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Styles, photographs by Shoichi Aoki, a travelling exhibition from the Powerhouse Museum.

We are very grateful to everyone who attended the opening. A very big thank you to everyone who wore 'FRUiTS' inspired outfits!

The exhibition was officially opened by the Mayor of Hurstville City Council, Councillor Philip Sansom. We also heard from guest speaker Glynis Jones, Curator Fashion & Design at the Powerhouse Museum. Glynis is responsible for the Powerhouse Museum's fashion and dress collection. This collection includes:

• 18th Century to present day clothing and accessories
• Fashion plates and swatch books
• Designer label and manufacturer's archives
• Performance costumes from the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras

Glynis recounted what it was like working with Shoichi Aoki when developing the exhibition while Councillor Sansom shared his experiences of visiting Japan and seeing the fashion trends firsthand.

After enjoying some sushi guests and even Museum & Gallery staff dressed up and created their own crazy 'FRUiTS' ensemble and posed infront of our Tokyo street scene!

Visit Hurstville City Museum & Gallery to see this fascinating exhibition for yourself and join in the fin of Tokyo street style.

Hurstville City Museum & Gallery
14 MacMahon Street, Hurstville NSW 2220

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon

The trailer for the third Transformers blockbuster has been released!



This is going to be suh-weet. Hopefully it will live up to it's predecessors Transformers and Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen.

Valentines Day

Alas, that time of year is approaching again! It is nearly the annual celebration of all things that are red and heart-shaped. Valentines Day sees restaurants and hotel rooms booked out and couples cuddling on every park bench in the country. It's always difficult to decide upon a present for your lover. Perhaps you should pop into the library and get some ideas for crafty gifts. Or for the slightly more cynical a good Valentines Day murder mystery might give you some nifty ideas.

Whatever you do, make sure that those you love know that you love them, for in the words of Henry Van Dyke:
"Time is too slow for those who wait,
too swift for those who fear,
too long for those who grieve,
too short for those who rejoice,
but for those who love, time is eternity."

Prize winning author Katherine Howell at Hurstville City Library

Fans of crime thrillers, detective fiction and complex characters are in for a real treat when prize-winning Australian author Katherine Howell visits Hurstville City Library to talk about her recently released fourth novel Violent Exposure featuring Detective Ella Marconi.

Katherine a former ambulance officer left behind a fifteen-year career to pursue her lifelong passion for writing with great success. Her first novel Frantic won the 2008 Davitt Award for Best Crime fiction, her second novel The Darkest Hour won the 2009 Davitt Reader's Choice Award and her third novel Cold Justice was selected as a Big Book Club book of the month. She is currently working on her fifth Ella Marconi novel.

"With each book I write, I find myself revisiting some of my best and worst times as a paramedic, and Violent Exposure is no exception," says Katherine.

'[Detective Ella Marconi] is a complex and appealing character whose passion for crime solving is both endearing and compelling and keeps the pace of the book racing.' Sunday Telegraph

Hurstville City Library

cnr Queens Rd & Dora St, Hurstville

Thursday 17th February @ 7pm

Free Event

Bookings essential: 9330 6142

Books available for sale and signing.

Installing our new exhibition FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Styles

Hurstville City Museum & Gallery staff have been as busy as bees these past few weeks as we installed our first main gallery exhibition for 2011:

FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Style photographs by Shoichi Aoki

This travelling exhibition from the Powerhouse Museum is a celebration of the fashion revolution which was instigated by the rebellious teenagers of Tokyo and their expressive and experimental wardrobes.

The exhibition consists of:

• Photographs of these unique fashion creations taken by Shoichi Aoki
• Ensembles created by local contemporary artists and fashion designers
• Dress ups - so you can create your own outfit and take your photograph in front of a Tokyo street!

Over the four days it took to install the exhibition Museum & Gallery staff and volunteers have carefully selected their favourite photographs and outfits. Visit Hurstville City Museum & Gallery to choose your favourite today!

Official opening:

Thursday 3 February, 2011

From 6.30 pm

Exhibition dates: 3 February - 14 April 2011

For more information contact:
Hurstville City Museum & Gallery
14 MacMahon Street, Hurstville NSW 2220
Phone (02) 9330 6444
Email: museumgallery@hurstville.nsw.gov.au

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

'A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier' by Ishmael Beah is a poignant tale of a child solider in Sierra Leone. At the age of twelve, Ishmael Beah lost his family and his childhood to a raging, violent civil war. Drafted into the army, Beah was fed drugs, wielded guns, and was witness to the horrific fighting that was the result of a country in turmoil. Beah would spend years in this seemingly parallel world, where boys were men, men were monsters, and life was worthless.


Luckily for Beah, he was removed from the fighting by UNICEF and sent on the long hard road to rehabilitation. Beah learned again to live, laugh and love. To return to the happy, kind-spirited boy he used to be. However, many children do not have this chance.


Ishmael Beah is now 26 years old and lives in New York City. In 2004 he graduated from Oberlin College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. He has spoken before the United Nations and many other NGO's in an attempt to bring awareness to the plight of more than 300,000 child soldiers still left fighting in more than 50 conflicts around the globe.
He is also the President and Founder of The Ishmael Beah Foundation, which aims to help the rehabilitation of former child soldiers and ease their return to normal lives.