Monthly Archive for November, 2009

Scopitone: the iPod macro

Published by Damian McDonald 0 Comments Tags: , , , .
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Collection, Powerhouse Museum.

 

Video killed the radio star. Television killed the coffee bar. Or at least fatally wounded it in the 1960s.

In post WWII Western Europe, the US and Australia, people were staying home to watch the telly; and milk bars, cafes, arcades and nigh clubs began to suffer. Juke boxes and slot machines had become old-hat by the 1960s, and something new and amazing had to be found by entertainment establishments to keep customers away from the box and in their places of businesses.

One such impressive machine was the Scopitone video juke box. This model, made in the early 1960s, was one of several that were imported to Australia from France and the US and used by Italian coffee shops in Lygon Street and the Garrison Nightclub in Elstenwick, Victoria, in Surfers Paradise at the side-show ally on the country show circuit and, in New South Wales The Newport Arms Hotel, The Macquarie Hotel (now the Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel) and in a laundromat in Oxford Street, Paddington (now Ariel Bookshop).

The Scopitone used 16mm film reels with a magnetic soundtrack. The reels each contained many clips, and each clip was accessed mechanically – literally fast-forwarding or rewinding after a selection was made by a customer. The film clips themselves were of quite rudimentary production, and largely from little known artists – mainly French and North American; but there were plenty of very scantily-clad female performers which made up for the lack of production value.

Breakdowns were common, and most of the machines imported to Australia ended up having to be cannibalised to sustain slightly better working models. For this reason, their success, and presence was quite brief.

Despite this, the Scopitone is an interesting object on many levels. It is an adaption of older technology – 16mm film and projection machinery that had been around for decades; and it is a precursor to the (solid-state electronic) video juke box, and to the music video clip itself, particularly the use of almost-naked female performers – such a major part of music industry machine these days. It is also a very cool looking piece of vintage audio-visual technology.

Does anyone remember using one?

Dior Couture Inside Out

Published by Melanie Pitkin 3 Comments Tags: , , , .
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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

To fully appreciate Haute Couture and the workmanship involved, you need to look beyond the exterior at the cut, stitching and underpinning. So, we’ve decided to turn one of our Dior garments inside out, the one we believe belonged to Mrs Elizabeth Parke Firestone (or her daughter, also called Elizabeth – thanks Bob!), which I blogged about earlier!

Bodice_Outside

Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

The first shot, above, is the outside of the bodice, but showing the extra details you can’t normally see when worn. There is a zipper which extends beyond the line of the garment to prevent bulkiness around the bottom, black elastic to attach to the stockings and buttons which fasten to the inside of the waist – all intimate details which help to keep the garment close-fitting and securely in place. From the waist down, silk has also been used instead of wool, to take away that added bulk which would be apparent from having two layers of wool.

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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Looking at the front of the bodice, inside out, there is blue padding on the breasts to create fullness.

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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

And, here you can better see the extended zipper, which has been put in by hand rather than machine sewn.

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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Inside the waist of the skirt are fasteners to which the buttons on the bodice can be attached.

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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

And, there are spare buttons sewn to the inside of the swing back jacket. As you will also notice, everything is lined to prevent the scratchy feel of the wool against the skin.

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Designed by Christian Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum

All of these underpinnings help to make the suit smooth fitting, slimline and elegant.

What other garments in the fashion collection would you like us to explore ‘inside out’?

First Powered Flight in Australia- Episode 2

Published by Ian Debenham 5 Comments Tags: , , , .

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Colin Defries and the first powered flight in Australia

Just four days after George made the first free heavier-than-air flight in the glider at Narrabeen, a young Englishman, Colin Defries left the ground in a Wright Model A, that he had named The Stella after his new wife, at Victoria Park race course south of Sydney. He flew straight and level at a height of about 20 feet (6.1 metres) for a distance of 115 yards (105.2 metres) and the watching crowd of 150, according to the reporter from The Sydney Morning Herald, was thrilled.

Defries’s flight was part of a “Flying Fortnight” organised by J&N Tait. Defries was to demonstrate the new ‘art’ of flying to audiences in Sydney before moving on to other capital cities for further demonstrations. Unfortunately, things weren’t going to plan for the Taits. The “Flying Fortnight” was supposed to begin on Saturday December 4 starting at 3pm, but adverse weather conditions prevented flight that day. Instead, Defries first had the Wright towed behind a car for the spectators and then started the engine and made several fast taxi runs around the course. A collision with a pile of timber hidden in the grass damaged The Stella and stopped any further demonstrations that day. It was not until the 9th that both weather conditions and aircraft were conducive to flight and Defries succeeded. The weather deteriorated again and Defries resorted to demonstrating the Wright by ground running. Again, fate stepped in and a rudder cable became tangled in the left propeller requiring a replacement propeller and rudder repairs. It was not until the last day of the “Flying Fortnight”, Saturday December 18th that the weather allowed another flight attempt. Unfortunately, the newspapers and the crowds had, for the most part, lost interest. Determined to fly before he and The Stella had to depart for their next engagement in Melbourne, Defries was at the race course early as were about 50 spectators and a reporter.

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Defries’s flight was successful. According to the journalist, he achieved a distance of about 300 yards (274.3 metres) before his hat blew off and his effort to retrieve it caused The Stella to land heavily and ground loop creating significant damage. Despite the problems Defries, and the Taits, had encountered, Defries had made the first powered, controlled, sustained flight in Australia. Unfortunately for Defries, history was not going to treat him kindly.

A. A. Stewart model engines

Published by Debbie Rudder 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .
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Collection, Powerhouse Museum

 

Model steam engines can be very engaging, especially those carefully engineered to run on steam or, less authentically but more conveniently, on compressed air. The hobby of making model engines has long supported clubs, magazines, suppliers and competitions, and lately it has spawned dedicated websites offering kits, tools, projects and tips.

This very nicely detailed model of a traction engine is both visually attractive and evocative of a time when this type of engine did much of the heavy work on farms and in rural industries. While we don’t know who made it, we do know it was once owned by Sydney businessman Albyn Athol Stewart. Having compiled a world-class collection of models, he offered them to the Museum, first as loans and later by purchase.

A good proportion of the Museum’s acquisition budget was spent on the A A Stewart collection between 1938 and 1962. Was it worth it?

To answer that question, just look into the faces of visitors looking intently at steam models during a visit to our collection store or enjoying our display at events such as Maitland’s annual Steamfest. This lovely traction engine model is particularly popular with both adults and children.

Debbie Rudder

Who wore this Dior?

Published by Melanie Pitkin 6 Comments Tags: , , , .
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Designed by Chrisitan Dior. Collection, Powerhouse Museum.

Haute Couture (or “High Fashion”), as the name suggests, is not for just anyone. It is the pinnacle of fashion, made specifically to the exact dimensions of the wearer, in high quality, luxurious fabrics, virtually all by hand (the seams are machine sewn), and a single garment can take up to 4 months to make. But, when it comes to Haute Couture, you’re not just buying a piece of clothing; you’re buying a piece of art!

So who wore this Dior?

It is a three piece suit of blue wool serge designed by Christian Dior for the Spring 1950 ‘Vertical Line’ collection. It features a bodice with long pencil skirt and swing back jacket. The Museum purchased the outfit from a vendor in London in 1994, who informs us that it was owned by a female member of the Firestone family (founders of the Firestone tyre company) of Detroit, USA.

Of the women in this family, Mrs Elizabeth Parke Firestone is the most thought-of for her expensive taste and fashion sense. Elizabeth (1897-1990) was married to Harvey S. Firestone Jr, son of the founder of the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company. Her daughter, Martha Firestone, married William Clay Ford Snr, grandson of Henry Ford.

elizfirestoneMrs Elizabeth Parke Firestone, Image courtesy of The Henry Ford Research Center

Between 1915 and 1975, Elizabeth acquired an impressive wardrobe of Haute Couture garments, many of which are now in the collection of the Benson Ford Research Center in Dearborn, Michigan, and gained a reputation for being one of America’s “best dressed women”. Dior and Balenciaga were her preferred designers and amongst the collection is a 1952 Christian Dior red silk faille dress with matching shoes, a sketch for a gown sent for approval in 1956 (Elizabeth often purchased garments without ever having tried them on!) and a stunning 1953 Balenciaga linen print dress.

Some research with the Benson Ford Research Center, however, was unfortunately unable to confirm if Elizabeth was, in fact, the owner of this suit. Their collection of Firestone Family Papers includes several folders of correspondence with Christian Dior, but alas, without any reference to this 1950 piece. However, not all of Elizabeth’s couture collection went to the Center. Some were also sold at auction and some were donated to colleges in Ohio.

europe54Image courtesy of The Henry Ford Research Center

In the meantime, if anyone can shed light on the Firestone family and this particular Dior suit, please let us know.

Next week, I will be taking you inside the suit – looking at the intimate details normally obscured to the eye – and the workmanship involved in making a couture suit, like this, sit absolutely perfectly on the wearer!

Old things in new ways…

Published by Rebecca Evans 7 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1). Collection, Powerhouse Museum.

Looking at old things in new ways is one of the Museum’s best talents.

Recently while Conservation Photographer, Kate Pollard and I were photographing this beautiful Doulton vase from 1882 we quickly realised that it had a fantastic painting of Farm Cove and the Garden Palace from the same period. When looking at the vase though you can only really see a section of the painting at a time.

If we could see the whole image, all at the same time, it would make so much more sense, and I was positive that you would be able to see more of the details of the painting.

So our bright photographer, Kate pulled out one of her home made contraptions that she had previously used at the State Library that would enable her to take lots of shots of the vase as it turned slowly around at exactly the same interval each time. The result was seventy odd photographs of the vase which Kate was then able to put onto Photoshop to merge and stretch the images so that they looked like one long panorama.

Impressed with Kate’s work I was able to look at the painted image in a completely new light, we realised that the turrets of a building were not in fact Government House but Fort Denison and could see that the people were walking along the Mrs Macquarie Road side of Farm Cove.

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1). Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Doulton Vase Panorama (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase Panorama (2000/138/1)

Context is everything when looking at historical objects and by digitally manipulating the painted image on this vase into a panorama we can see so much more, we see how everything fits within the surroundings.

We are hoping to do more of these manipulations in the future, so keep posted and if you have any suggestions of objects from our collection that would benefit from this type of manipulation, just let us know.

Rebecca Evans, Assistant Registrar

First Powered Flight in Australia- Episode 1

Published by Ian Debenham 0 Comments Tags: , , .

George Augustine Taylor in flight

George and Florence Taylor, the first untethered heavier-than-air flights

On December 5, 1909 George Augustine Taylor became the first man in Australia to fly an untethered heavier-than-air craft. On this day he made several flights on Narrabeen beach, north of Sydney, with the longest glide reported as 110 yards (100.6 metres). George’s wife, Florence, also had a fly in the Voisin-inspired biplane glider with its Hargrave box-kite tail, although the stout gentlemen attending the glider held on to the tethers attached to the wing tips lest she fell into the ocean. Even with this attachment, her flight was recorded as 90 yards (82.3 metres) in length and she could rightly claim to be the first woman to pilot a heavier-than-air craft in Australia.

About a hundred people came to watch the aerial antics of the small group of people, friends and associates of George and Florence Taylor, as they took their turn to fly along the beach.

GTaylorPortraitImage courtesy of ADB Online

George was born in August, 1872 at his parent’s home and fruit shop in King Street, Sydney. He was the second of nine children born to George and Annie Maria Taylor. George Augustine’s younger brother, Vincent Patrick, achieved international fame as “Captain Penfold“, a balloonist. George achieved local fame in the building trade and edited a magazine called “Building”, the journal of the Master Builders Association. Taylor was also an artist, writer, publisher and inventor.

At an early age, he developed an interest in aeronautics; flying kites in the domain and eagerly following the work of Lawrence Hargrave, the pioneer of aeronautics in Australia. At the age of 10, he wrote an essay at school titled “The future of the flying machine in Australia’s history”. Later, George progressed to flying model aeroplanes powered by rubber bands. From experiments with these models he learned the basics of aeronautics.

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Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Model of Voisin type glider flown at Narrabeen by George Augustine Taylor, December 5, 1909

In April 1909, George formed The Aerial League of Australia and later that year opened the first aeroplane factory in Australia at Surry Hills in Sydney. As well as construction of Hargrave box-kites, Cody war kites and the Voisin-type glider that was used for the first untethered flights, Taylor was also having his powered aeroplane constructed there.

Stay tuned for the next episode on Colin Defries and the first powered flight in Australia!

First Powered Flight in Australia- Intro

Published by Ian Debenham 0 Comments Tags: , , , .
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Colin Defries with his Wright Model A 'The Stella' at Victoria Park Racecourse, Image courtesy of John Scott

On December 9th this year the Museum will celebrate the centenary of the first powered flight in Australia through a joint meeting with the Royal Aeronautical Society and Aviation Historical Society of NSW and a small foyer showcase display. I understand that, in Victoria, plans are already underway to celebrate the same centenary on March 18th next year. Maybe the South Australians have plans for a similar celebration, the day before, on March 17th? But how can three States claim a national first? It’s a long story but nevertheless an interesting one which includes, of all people, the renowned escapologist and showman, Harry Houdini. If I’ve whetted your interest then this story of claim and counter claim will be unravelled for you over the next few weeks. I did mention that it is a long story!

Happy Friday the 13th!

Published by Erika Taylor 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

jbo c1 013

Collection; Powerhouse Museum.

Unlucky Friday the 13th is apparently the most popular superstition in the world. I, for one, do not have supersititious beliefs, I open umbrellas inside, I like black cats, and I confidently walk under ladders. If you do fear Friday the 13th you have a paraskevidekatriaphobia, and I suggest you cease reading this post immediately.I dedicate this post to all our readers, may you have an unremarkable Friday the 13th! Here are some superstitious things from our collection:

Collection; Powerhouse Museum

Toy cat from the Jandaschewsky collection

Superstition: If a black cat walks towards you it brings good luck, if it walks away from you it takes your luck away.

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Collection, Powerhouse Museum

NSW ambulance service ambulance.

Superstition: Seeing an ambulance is bad luck unless you pinch your nose or hold your breathe until you see a black or brown dog.

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Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Anatomical model of the human ear.

Superstition: If your right ear itches someone is speaking well of you, if your left ear itches someone is speaking ill of you.

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Collection, Powerhouse Museum.

Tailor’s scissors

Superstition: If you drop a pair of scissors it means your lover is being unfaithful to you.

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Collard and Collard Collection, Powerhouse Museum

Pencil from the Collard and Collard Collection

(This one is dedicated to all those students sitting their HSC exams at the moment)
Superstition: Use the same pencil to take a test that you used for studying as the pencil remembers the answers!

Do you have any little quirks when Friday the 13th comes around? Avoid cracks in the pavement? Throw salt over your shoulder? I want to hear some whacky ones!

On loan from the Smithsonian

Published by Kerrie Dougherty 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , , , .
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Photography by Marinco Kojdanovski, © Powerhouse Museum, all rights reserved.

Curators at the Powerhouse not only research information about the artefacts in our own collection, from time to time we assist external colleagues with their object research as well. Satellite propulsion engineer Alan Lawrie, author of histories of the Saturn V and Saturn I rockets, contacted the museum seeking information about the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition. Together with former employees of the Rocketdyne company, which manufactured the F-1, Alan has been researching the location and identification of all the surviving F-1 rocket engines.

The most powerful single chamber liquid fuel rocket engine so far put into service, five F-1 motors were used in the first stage of the Saturn V rocket that launched the Apollo missions to the Moon. The only example on public display outside the United States, the museum’s F-1 is on long term loan from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

Unfortunately, the Smithsonian’s records had very little information about the history of this rocket motor and had incorrectly recorded its serial number, making it difficult for Alan to trace the story of this particular engine. Despite the difficulty of accessing the suspended engine, we were able to arrange for photos of the motor’s makers plate, which allowed for the correct identification of its serial number. This enabled a search of the surviving Rocketdyne records to establish the engine’s history.

We now know that the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition was the 25th of 114 research and development F-1 engines produced by Rocketdyne and that it was probably manufactured in 1961. It was test fired 35 times.