The Bogong Centre for Sound Culture is a remote-regional cultural initiative situated in the foothills of Victoria’s Alpine National Park. Established by Philip Samartzis and Madelynne Cornish the Centre supports projects focusing on the processes and impacts of sustainable energy production; effects of climate change in wilderness areas; ethnographic studies of remote communities; the chronicling of vanishing industrial procedures; and systems of representation used to render natural and built environments.
Additionally, the BCSC facilitates a broad cultural program comprising, festivals, exhibitions, publications, master classes and artists’ talks focusing on site-specific art practices. These programs establish a connection with place, its inhabitants, geographic space and memory. They engage a wide range of audiences, bringing together local, interstate and international artists across multiple disciplines and fields to realise ambitious works.
The BCSC is situated at the newly restored old school at Bogong Alpine Village located 350 kilometres from Melbourne in North East Victoria.
About Bogong Village
Bogong Alpine Village is 325 kilometres North-East of Melbourne situated at an altitude of 800 meters in the Alpine National Park between Mount Beauty and Falls Creek. The village was established in the late 1930s to service the first hydroelectric scheme in mainland Australia. More recently it has become a popular site for alpine sports, recreation and ecotourism. Click here for directions.
A Short History
Work on the Kiewa Scheme commenced in 1938 with the construction of a road from Tawonga to the High Plains. Previously the only access was by foot or horseback along tracks that had been forged by cattlemen of a bygone era. Bogong Village was established once the road from Junction Camp was trafficable (March 1939); this paved the way for the construction of permanent buildings. Prior to that life was tough; large canvas tents and flies were used for sleeping quarters and smaller tents were set up to house the kitchens. By 1940 Bogong Township had grown considerably with a general store, staff offices, recreational mess, police station, and a variety of accommodation such as single men’s quarters and residences for married staff and families.
Bogong State School
In 1941 the Primary School at Bogong Village enrolled its first intake of students comprising nine pupils. Initially the school consisted of a large classroom, storeroom and boys and girls toilets. Extensions were carried out in 1944, which expanded the capabilities of the school. A library, storeroom, pupil’s lunchroom and shelter shed were added and rock gardens were established. By 1947 the number of students had grown to 46 all of whom were children of local SEC workers. Over the years class sizes fluctuated and the building remained unchanged. In 1980 it ceased to operate as a school and sat idle, eventually falling into disrepair. In 2004 it was sold along with many other buildings in the village.
Madelynne Cornish and Philip Samartzis bought the Old School and set about restoring it to its former glory. The rotting weatherboards and floorboards, smashed windows and flaking paint are now a distant memory. The newly refurbished building occupies it’s original footprint and bares a strong resemblance to it’s former self. Although the internals have been modernized remnants of it’s past history remain. The Old School once played a significant role in the fabric of village life. It inspired the community and helped shape the minds of those who studied there. It is our intention as custodians that the School once again functions as a place of inspiration.
Reference: Kiewa Kids School Days at Bogong & Mount Beauty by Graham Gardner
Cool and overcast but warming to humid in the afternoon. Blowy in the evening. Ugg boots on.
Sounds:
Blowflies, currawongs, crickets, grasshoppers. Bats at night. Kookaburras. Water. Wind.
Time:
Shiraz o’clock (6.17pm)
Artist’s age:
48. Years old. Nearly 49. And I’m fine with that.
Mood:
Generally buoyant throughout the day; a couple of brief pensive moments at lunchtime.
Books:
Homer’s ‘Iliad’
Lloyd A. Brown ‘The Story of Maps’
Roland Barthes ‘Camera Lucida’
Frank Gibson’s 1944 diary of his cross country walk from the Howqua River at Merrijig through the Crosscut Saw, Mt Speculation, Mt Cobbler, Mt Despair, Mt Selwyn, The Twins, Mt Hotham, Mt Loch, Mt Bogong, and ending in Tawonga.
Tools:
Zoom H4n digital recorder;
Canon Legria tiny video camera that fits into my pocket and still works after all these years;
Equally tiny Nikon ‘Coolpix’ camera with micro lens which can do quite fancy things but I never use the fancy settings; I just have it on auto but I quite like the micro/close up function which photographs things like the empty carapaces of insects or very small flowers.
Props:
Dad’s old pack
Dad’s spanners
Our childhood recipe book
Tripod
Gaffer tape
Me
Activities:
Spent significant time poring over topographical and mountain hut maps to try and make sense of the route that my Dad took through this region in 1944, but it’s difficult as some of the huts he stopped at no longer exist. Walked the Skopje fire track. Made recordings of small creeks and some walking sounds. Stopped at the river by the water which was too cold to wade through. Contemplating my work in the context of this residency: I’m not a sound artist in the conventional sense, so my experience of and interactions with the environment and this place are unique. The personal, subjective feelings that are associated with this location are loaded with personal memory, childhood experiences and snippets of family lore. As I scan maps and books about the region, place names zing with recognition: Buckety, Dibbins Hut, Razorback, Swindlers Creek, Mt Skopje. What do I want to take away from this experience? How will it frame my work in the future?
