Expression»
Six hours in the hidden Melbourne
DEC 21 - Unlike Sydney, a city that lives out in
the open with the wide blue expanse
of Sydney Harbor permeating every aspect of urban life, Melbourne, on the southern tip of the Australian continent, is more inward looking and cerebral. The dozens of weaving laneways - like an intricate latticework onnecting the city’s major thoroughfares - are a metaphor for Melbourne itself.
Learn your way around these pathways and you will discover some real treasures and get to know this intriguing and sophisticated city like an insider. In the process, you will discover that it is Melbourne that is the center of designer fashion and café ¬ife in Australia. If you have only a few hours to spare, you can cover it all on foot, buy some intriguing gifts, eat and drink well, and see some of the best art the city has to offer.
Each of the major downtown east-west streets has an accompanying laneway, which grew out of the boom development after the 1850’s gold rush, when property prices soared. Ornate public buildings were built on the major avenues while on the narrow streets behind, small workshops, stables and factories were set up to service the burgeoning city. Flinders Lane, for instance, became the focus of the garment industry, fueled largely by Jewish immigrants. In the past 30 years, artists have converted these warehouse spaces, transforming Flinders Lane into a vibrant gallery district. Little Bourke Street became the fulcrum of Chinatown, whose thriving culture dates from those gold rush days.
Federation Square, the new cultural center on the corner of Flinders and Swanston streets near the Yarra River, is a good place to start your explorations. While not actually in a laneway, Fed Square’s sculptural jumble of buildings around an undulating plaza of rough-cut sandstone and a soaring glass atrium offers a post-modern interpretation of the city’s traditional arcades and lanes. And besides the Visitor’s and Information Bureau, Fed Square also houses the exceptional Ian Potter Center/NGV Australia museum and the Center for the Moving Image, plus a bevy of café³ and restaurants.
Walk one block up Exhibition to the corner of Flinders Lane to start your exploration. Just a little to the right and down some stairs at number 61 is Langton’s, a brasserie with a theatrical open kitchen and adjoining wine bar with an excellent wine list. A little farther up the block, Craft Victoria, at 31 Flinders Lane, offers a distinctive array of pottery, jewelry, glassware, scarves and leather goods from local craftsmen.
On the Northwest corner of Exhibition Street and Flinders Lane, the Kimberley Art Gallery specializes in Aboriginal works from the Western Desert and Arnhem Land. George Parade, which links Flinders Lane and Collins Street has several enticing restaurants, including the exotic Moroccan-influenced Mo Mos supper club and the classy Il Solito Posto. Back on Flinders Lane, Gabrielle Pizzi’s spare gallery space showcases some of the lesser known Aboriginal artists and regions.
After crossing Exhibition Street, a small red sign, large red door and a tartan-covered staircase at 181 Flinders Lane steps down into Christine, a boudoir-like temple to accessories where Christine Barro offers a trove of intimate apparel, hats, sunglasses, scarves, jewelry and handbags. The Anna Schwartz Gallery at 185 Flinders Lane exhibits contemporary artists, Australian and international. And next door the groovy Adelphi Hotel offers minimalist designer rooms, a rooftop pool and some of the best Australian/$ Asian fusion food in the city at its basement restaurant, Ezard.
After crossing Swanston Street, you’ll come to Alice Euphemia at 241 Flinders Lane, which specializes in Australian and New Zealand clothing designers with a retro feel. Across the lane at 238, Flinders Way is more upmarket with two shops in one. The Boudoir is a skin-care shop offering artisanal brands such as Aesops and La Tisane, and Frederick Malle perfumes. The Clothier has clothes from such designers as Akira Isogawa, Jessica Ogden, Rick Owens and Antwerp 6. The silver-jewelry designer Fiorina is also featured.
While much of the laneway architecture is nondescript, the corner of Degraves Street and Center Way features the blue and gold art deco terra-cotta fa硤e of the Majorca building, and Degraves Espresso , with its bold sign, red banquettes and outdoor tables on the blue cobblestones, extends the deco street scene. Around the corner at 22 Center Way, Kinki Gerlinki is particularly popular with teenagers for its whimsical retro skirts and slinky tops, wacky shoes and bags.Posted on: 2003-12-22 05:06
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