Tuesday, June 19, 2012

A few from Ascot Vale

From this morning, en route to work business:



These next two aren't ghost signs (businesses are still running) but they're good all the same

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Some more photos

A few ghost signs from Lygon Street, North Carlton, one from Ascot Vale, and a couple from Lang Lang and Waga Wagga:


Lang Lang - brilliant 'waterfall' deco ex-butcher building

Lang Lang - not strictly a ghost sign (business is still operational) but the pastoral painting rocks

Just off Lygon St, Brunswick

Lygon St - former overalls factory

Lygon St -former tailor

Lygon St - and right next to the ex-tailor...a brilliant find, hidden away

Union St , Ascot Vale - snapped from the car

Victoria Uni archives - 1930s-1940s contact book from the former Footscray Technical School, listing enquiries by local industries about 'lads wanted' (apprentices). Looked here for any info about Lewis &Skinner, but nothing forthcoming (a few by Vacuum Oil though...)

Wagga Wagga - window of cafe

Wagga Wagga - superb 'waterfall' style service station. Similar in style to some in the Lewis & Skinner records, which have since been replaced

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Milk Bar article and project progress

Today's Melbourne Age has an article on milk bars and their demise, and the survival of a few that have expanded into other businesses such as cafe food. Included is a photo gallery of some of the same milk bar ghost signs that I've snapped and put on this site: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbournes-milk-bars-defying-their-useby-date-20120616-20h26.html.

This harkens back to the excellent online documentary and thesis produced by Dr Craig Bellamy in 2003, on the subject of milk bars in Fitzroy and the changes in society and community their stories embody: http://www.craigbellamy.net/2010/10/01/milkbar/

The original site (milk bar.com.au) no longer exists unfortunately but the link above to Craig's site has a summary.

On related matters, a test web site for the Lewis and Skinner signwriting material is now up and being played with and improved. All the job sheets are currently being scanned by a young man who contacted us about doing work experience at our Aspergers tech club (www.the lab.org.au) and who we're now employing on this and other projects. So full steam ahead. The web system we're using is Omeka, an open source system for archivists, galleries and museums. A big thanks to Kirsten from the Victoria University archives (which I visited the other day and has some fascinating stuff) for putting us onto Omeka.

Saturday, June 9, 2012

The aural equivalent of ghost sign blogs

http://repressedmemories.com.au/endangeredsounds/ Aural history of the Melbourne manufacturing suburb of Brunswick, once a poor textile manufacturing suburb with lots of immigrants, now an epicenter of gentrification. Has sounds from machines in factories etc as well as oral histories...

Friday, June 1, 2012

News and a few more

I'm probably only telling myself here, but am pleased to say that I've got some funding to look more closely into the Lewis & Skinner signwriting records: a fellowship with a public body (it's not official yet so can't say who yet) to research some of the background stuff, and a Telematics Trust grant to create an online system so others can upload pics and stories about particular locations. Should be fun.

Anyway, here are a few more low-key local ghost sign pix:

Reservoir, near my old place
Travancore
Guilford Lane, city
Wagga Wagga
Also Wagga Wagga