Text by CHT & Photography by Jason Yeap

With more than 300 mammal species in Africa, the spotted big and small cats are among the popular ones for tourists to catch a glimpse of. Unlike the lions, the leopards, jaguars, panthers and servals live in very small groups or alone most of the time. This makes them harder to locate. 

Today, very few leopards still roam freely in the wild as they are mainly found in national parks or game reserves. One of the best places to find this big cat is in Botswana. However, one must remember that these animals are nocturnal and live in solitary making them the most elusive of Africa’s big cats. On the other hand, cheetahs may be the fastest animal on earth but these sleek, majestic animals are now designated as Vulnerable to Extinction due to habitat loss and human conflict even though Serengeti is famous for a high cheetah population. 

Jaguars may be the third largest cats in the world after the lions and tigers, yet they are not easily spotted, especially in the Pantanal, Brazil, the biggest tropical wetland on earth bigger than England. Unlike its big sized cousins, the small inquisitive servals are very territorial with a range of 12 to 20 square kilometres. Often Safari guides in Tanzania are of the opinion that it is all about luck to come face to face with this glamorous and exotic species. 

非洲有300多种哺乳动物，斑点的大小型猫科是最受游客喜爱的动物之一。与狮子不同的是，花豹，美洲虎和美洲豹大部分时间都生活在小范围群体里，这使得它们更难定位。

如今，野生的美洲豹已经很少了，主要生活在国家公园或野生动物保护区。非洲博茨瓦纳是发现这种大型猫科动物的最佳地点之一。然而，大家要记住，由于是夜行性动物，独居使它们成为非洲大型猫科动物中行踪最难以捉摸的。

另一方面，猎豹可能是地球上跑得最快的动物，但由于栖息地的毁灭和人类的冲突，这些光滑、雄伟的动物现在被认定为容易灭绝的动物，尽管塞伦盖蒂以猎豹数量众多而闻名。

至于美洲虎可能是世界上仅次于狮子和老虎的第三大猫科动物，但在巴西潘塔纳尔这个地球上最大的热带湿地却很难被发现。而与体型庞大的“表亲”不同，小型好奇的薮猫有着12到20平方公里的领地。坦桑尼亚的游猎导游通常认为，能与这种迷人的外来物种面对面，全凭运气。

Andy Dinan

Founder of Melbourne Art Rooms (MARS) & Andy Dinan Art Consulting (ADA)

Melbourne Art Rooms (MARS) & Andy Dinan Art Consulting (ADA) 创始人

After forging her prestigious reputation as one of Australia’s most dynamic PR consultants in the 1990s,  respected art entrepreneur turned culture consultant Andy Dinan seized an opportunity to integrate art into property developments by establishing Andy Dinan Art Consulting (ADA) in 2010 which operates under Melbourne Art Rooms (MARS) – established in 2004. MAR’s 15 years of involvement in the art community allows ADA to conduct quality art projects across all artistic disciplines through its kaleidoscope of local and international artists.

Andy’s passion for helping others allows her to use MARS to help artists commercialise their work to the public domain. On top of being chosen as one of 100 Women of Influence in the Australian Financial Review and Westpac 100 Women of Influence Awards, Andy has been a foundation board member of the Victorian Arts Centre in Melbourne since 2017 and Chairs the annual Ovation fundraising dinner to be held on stage at Sydney Myer Music Bowl .

Located in their purpose-built, state-of-the-art gallery in Windsor, Melbourne; ADA is dedicated to delivering strategies to incorporate public art into residential, commercial and retail developments whilst also creating a sense of “home” for the community. 

Since its inception,  ADA has successfully implemented an extensive number of public art commissions, art projects and pop up events worth over a million dollars across Melbourne for renowned property developer clients including Gamuda Land, Golden Age & the Deague Group, Michael Yates & Co and Piccolo Developments etc. 

Recently, ADA was engaged by the Banco Group and commissioned artist Al Stark to paint a mural on the hoarding which would be erected around the construction site of East Brunswick Village (EBV).

When asked about what inspired his mural, Stark wanted to evoke contemporary cave painting that is alluring to people regardless of its form , colour and rhythm. 

“The mural has landmarked the site and put it in people’s consciousness; eventually, it’s going to be a permanent part of the public art collection at EBV,” said Stark.

The EBV Hoarding mural represents Stage 1 of a 6 stage Public Art Strategy for East Brunswick Village, to be implemented by ADA Consulting over the next two years. 

Sustainability, comfort, creativity and most importantly, community, are the central values in Banco Group’s vision for EBV. The completed village will feature a curated retail hub, restaurant alley, wellness hub and much more, that will be available for both EBV’s residents and the community.

For further information please visit:

andydinanartconsulting.com.au / marsgallery.com.au or contact us at  andy@marsgallery.com.au 

作为1990年代澳大利亚著名且最有活力的公关顾问之一，同时也是备受尊敬的艺术企业家转型为文化顾问，Andy Dinan通过其设立的艺术咨询机构-Andy Dinan Art Consulting (ADA)抓住了艺术融入房产开发的契机。这也是她在2004年所创立的墨尔本艺术空间-Melbourne Art Rooms (MARS)属下运营机构。透过MARS在艺术领域长达15年的参与度，ADA将以本地和国际艺术家组成强力的艺术万花筒，在相关领域开展高质量的艺术项目计划。

而Andy的艺术热情使她足以透过MARS的平台影响力协助艺术家们将作品以商业化形式推广到公共领域。除了被澳大利亚金融评论和西太平洋银行遴选为100名具有影响力女性之一，Andy自2017年起受委任为墨尔本维多利亚艺术中心的基金会成员，还担任了一年一度在悉尼迈尔户外音乐场举行的Ovation筹款晚会主席。

至于在墨尔本温莎专门量身打造了最先进的画廊，ADA将致力于把公共艺术融入住宅、商业和零售发展项目，同时为社区创造一种“家”的感觉。

自成立以来，ADA已陆续为Gamuda Land、Golden Age & the Deague Group、Michael Yates & Co和Piccolo Developments等知名房产开发商客户在墨尔本各角落成功实施了大量的公共艺术策划委托、艺术项目和快闪活动，价值超过百万澳元。

最近，ADA受到Banco Group委托，并邀请了艺术家Al Stark在围绕East Brunswick Village (EBV)建筑工地的围板上绘制一幅壁画。

而关于这幅壁画的创作灵感，Al Stark表示想要唤起人们对当代洞穴绘画的兴趣，无论它的形式、颜色和节奏，都能吸引人们。“这幅壁画标志着这个地方，也会深植在人们的意识中；最终将成为EBV公共艺术收藏品永久的一部分。 ” Al Stark认为。

EBV围板壁画只是象征了East Brunswick Village公共艺术6大战略的第一阶段，而接下来的内容将由ADA Consulting在未来两年内实践完成。

强调可持续性、舒适、创新，还有中心社区是 Banco Group 对 EBV 愿景的核心价值观。建成后的住宅商业社区以一个精心策划的零售中心、餐馆街、健身中心等特色，将为EBV的居民和社区提供服务。如需更详尽资讯，请浏览 andydinanartconsulting.com.au / marsgallery.com.au 或通过 andy@marsgallery.com.au 与我们联系。

Text & image(s) courtesy of NGV

In an unprecedented, world premiere exhibition, the National Gallery of Victoria presents the work of two of the most significant and influential artists of the late twentieth century in Keith Haring | Jean-Michel Basquiat: Crossing Lines. Exclusive to Melbourne, the exhibition offers new and fascinating insights into their unique visual languages and reveals, for the first time, the many intersections between their lives, practices and ideas.

Keith Haring (American 1958–90) and Jean-Michel Basquiat (American 1960–88) changed the art world of the 1980s through their idiosyncratic imagery, radical ideas and complex socio-political commentary, creating an indelible legacy that continues to influence contemporary visual and popular culture today. Each artist is acclaimed for his distinctive visual language, employing signs, symbols and words to convey strong social and political messages in unconventional ways.

The exhibition surveys each artist’s tragically short, yet prolific career through more than 300 artworks, including works created in public spaces, painting, sculpture, objects, works on paper, photographs and more. Crossing Lines provides local and international audiences with a comprehensive insight into each of these influential artists, as well as an understanding of their broader impact, both in the 80s and 90s and continuing today.

Beginning with examples of both artist’s work from the streets and subway stations of New York City, the exhibition presents works from each artist’s first exhibitions, their collaborations with each other, as well as with the likes of Andy Warhol, Grace Jones and Madonna. It continues by presenting some of their most acclaimed artworks, including pieces featuring Basquiat’s crown and head motifs and Haring’s iconic ‘radiant baby’ and dancing figures.

Curated for the NGV by Dr Dieter Buchhart, art historian and curator of recent monographic exhibitions on both Jean-Michel Basquiat (Fondation Louis Vuitton, Barbican art Gallery) and Keith Haring (Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris).

For more information, visit http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/exhibition/keith-haring-jean-michel-basquiat/