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I was first seduced by the dramatic landscapes of Western Australia (often called "the real Australia" by Aussies) as I watched Baz Lurhmanns epic 2008 Antipodean western, Australia, which was largely shot there. A tale of love, war, and the plight of Australia's Stolen Generations (Indigenous and mixed-race children who were forcibly removed from their families by the government, supposedly for their own good), it stars Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, and a mesmerizing Brandon Walters as an Aboriginal Australian child of dual provenance ("I not a black fella; I not a white fella either"), and it has just been released as an expanded six-part series on Hulu and retitled Faraway Downs. Luhrmann has recentered and recontextualized the film: It is now expressed from the perspective of the Aboriginal boy.

Coincidentally, likewise in 2008, Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd formally apologized to Aboriginal Australians (especially the Stolen Generations) for the centuries-long, near genocidal depredations they endured. It was the culmination of a national project of reconciliation, begun a decade and a half earlier, to reintegrate Indigenous Australian people and culture into the country's history and economic life.

Nowadays, as a visitor to Australia, you will come across a number of Indigenous Australian guides, indigenous place names attached to English ones (Perth is Boorloo in the Nyungar language), and "acknowledgement of country" rituals at many gatherings, including on planes before landing and at lodges before dinner service, when some version of the following is intoned: "We acknowledge the traditional owners of this land and pay our respects to elders past and present."

The Bungle Bungles, in Purnululu National Park, are one of the highlights of the Kimberley region.

In Faraway Downs, Kidman plays an aristocratic Englishwoman who arrives in the outback, as World War II is about to break out, to claim a million-acre cattle ranch (which she inherits after her husband dies) and to sell it off. Or so she thinks before she falls in love with the country, a man, and a child. "When [she] came to this land," the child, Nullah, says of the Kidman character in a pivotal early scene shot in Western Australia's Bungle Bungles, an otherworldly area of 360-million-year-old sandstone eroded into giant striped, beehive-like formations, "she look but she not see. Now she got her eyes open for the first time." He may be talking about the effect on her of this fantastical geology, but it's more than that. She is also beginning to appreciate the complexities of this ancient land and of a people struggling mightily for redemption.

I embarked on my trip to Western Australia almost on a dare. "Nobody goes there," I was told. "It's too far." Americans mostly focus on Australia's developed east and southeast: Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Queensland's so-called Gold Coast, and the Great Barrier Reef. For Australians, 80 percent of whom live along the east coast, the flight to Perth takes almost as long as one to Bali or the South Pacific.

A HeliSpirit chopper in the Kimberley, a good way to get around. They are often operated without doors "so you can see better," as a pilot told me. Wheee!

Distances between settled places in Western Australia are often so great (the state is 3.7 times the size of Texas) that unless you're prepared to spend days driving (from Perth to the Bungle Bungles, for example, takes 33 hours), exploring WA, as Aussies refer to Western Australia, requires some combination of commercial flights, small chartered planes, four-wheel-drive vehicles, and helicoptersbut it's worth the logistical effort both for the experience of WA's singular, off-the-beaten-path natural wonders and for the places you'll get to stay. Several of WA's lodges belong to an exclusive 20-member club, the

Below is the itinerary of my two-week journey of discovery last August, in map and textfrom Perth northeast to the wilds of the Kimberley region (home of the Bungle Bungles and El Questro), south to the Margaret River wine region, and then northwest to Ningaloo Reef, the west coast's answer to the Great Barrier Reef, where I hoped (major wish list item) to swim with whale sharks and perhaps humpback whales. The itinerary was developed with Sydney-based travel advisor Stuart Rigg of Southern Crossings, my go-to man for travel Down Under.

My magical mystery tour of Western Australia in a nutshell. Read on.

My trio of Perth hotels. From left: Comos the Treasury; Crown Towers Perth; and Ritz-Carlton Perth.

Perth is by far WA's largest city and the state's gateway. Your international flight will land here (I flew New YorkDohaPerth), as will most flights from Australia's east coast. It is also the departure point for destinations in WA's north and south; I would end up coming through on three separate occasions.

Como the Treasury occupies a decorative mid-19th-century colonial government building in a historic, recently revitalized part of downtown, and its serene interiors were designed (listen up, Aman junkies) by Kerry Hill, the founding architect of Aman resorts. Not much remains of old Perth, so if you like a whiff of history, this is the place. The Ritz-Carlton Perth has huge, wood-accented rooms with panoramic views of Elizabeth Quay and a buzzy restaurant, Hearth. The views from my room at the resort-like Crown Towers Perth, overlooking Swan River, made me gasp when I walked inspring for a high floor. There is a large lagoon-pool complex with private cabanas near the river, and multiple restaurants and boutiques.

Kings Park in Perth is a nice place to wander about and get acquainted with Western Australian flora.

My stops here were short but revelatory. The Aboriginal Australian guide, Justin Martin (@DjurandiDreaming), who took me on a foray into Kings Park and its botanic gardenone of the largest inner city parks in the world, harboring 3,000 species of WA's native florawas at first keen to talk plants but soon moved on to the history of his people, the Wadjuk Nyungar, whose traditional lands stretch over the Perth metropolitan area. The 200 years after colonial settlement began in Australia (in 1788 on the east coast, 1829 here) were not pretty, and he reminds me of the facts in broad strokes: the declaration by the British government of the continent being a Terra Nullis, "land belonging to no one" (i.e., uninhabited, to justify colonization); the attacks by white settlers on Indigenous Australians, from the late 18th until the early 20th centuries, with more than 400 recorded massacres; the tragedy of the Stolen Generations, which unfolded from 1905 until 1969 (and some say continued into the 1970s); and right here in Perth, the "Native Pass" system, which between 1927 and 1954 prohibited Aboriginal Australians from entering the center of the city without a permit.

At the WA Museum Boola Bardip (note the Indigenous name) I found myself contemplating, in a display of 32,000-year-old shell beads, the Aboriginal people's more distant past. Discovered in a cave near Mandu Mandu Creek, on WA's northwest Indian Ocean coast, they are among the world's oldest extant jewelry, each bead bearing a faintly visible groove on each end, probably made by a long-vanished twine on which they might once have been strung into a necklace. As remarkable as their ageand as yet further proof of the primal human desire for physical adornmentis the fact that the story of Aboriginal Australians is older still. They arrived by sea from southeast Asia in a single migration around 60,000 years ago, ultimately forming as many as 250 language-based groups, of which 123 are still in use today (they are as different from one another as French and English). The Aboriginal groups are connected to stretches of territory known as "country," which Indigenous Australians view in both physical and spiritual terms. Collectively, "country" comprises the oldest continuous culture in the world.

I had time for dinner only once in the hip greater Perth neighborhood of Fremantle (frequently abbreviated to Freo, but Walyalup in Nyungar), but I would have liked to spend a day. The original British port in Western Australia, first settled by whites in 1829, it has well-preserved examples of Victorian and Edwardian architecture, traces of Australia's past as a British penal colony, and a thriving arts and culinary scene. The many black swans in Perth were altogether a revelation: They appear not only in Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake but all along Perth's Swan River.

You can go alone into the gorges and chasms of the Bungle Bungles, but I strongly recommend a guide. As the child in Faraway Downs says, "There are spirits here."

It's home of the aforementioned Bungle Bungles, the extraordinary, UNESCO World Heritagelisted sandstone massif carved over million of years into weird domes, pinnacles, and wavy walls, riven by gorges and chasms and striped orange and dark gray (layers of sediment rich in iron are orange, those rich in clay, home to cyanobacteria, are dark gray or green). It was "unknown" until 1983 (except, of course, to the indigenous Gija people, who have inhabited the area, and walked through here, for at least 20,000 years). But that's the Kimberley for youWestern Australia's northernmost region and also its wildest, most remote, and least traversable. And coincidentally, or perhaps not, where Aboriginal Australians are believed to have first come ashore. Slightly smaller than the entire state of California, it consists of steep-sided mountain ranges and plateaux from which extreme monsoon rains (November to April) and harsh winds have removed much of the fertile soil. Rivers flood regularly; roads, many of them corrugated, wash away; and nature rules. Which is also the source of its attraction.

Via a three-hour commercial flight from Perth to the town of Kununurra, gateway to the eastern Kimberley, followed by a six-seater Airvan (there's an 8 kg luggage limit) to Purnululu Park's tiny Bellburn airstrip. The pilot shouted over the roar of the engine as we flew over Lake Argyle, the largest man-made lake in the world; the recently shuttered Argyle diamond mine, which until 2020 produced 90 percent of the world's pink diamonds; and cattle stations (Lissadell, Texas Downs), their homesteads just tiny specks in the vast, hilly, ochre-colored emptiness.

The platform tents of the APT Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge may look modest, but its sheer luxury just to be here.

The solar-powered APT Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge is not luxe in a traditional way, but its 29 tents are well spaced for privacy, with their own decks, comfortable beds, and strong, hot showers, and there's an inviting central communal space where meals and drinks are served. The meals are long-table affairs, and on my first night the open kitchen produced, in this middle of proverbial nowhere, pumpkin soup, charred prawns with salsa fresca, and a dark chocolate mousse. I walked back to my tent in environmentally correct low-voltage-lit darkness, amid a cacophony of cicadas, looking up at the Milky Way and stomping as hard as I could on the sandy path. Why? Because, as one of my Australian dinner companions noted nonchalantly, "snakes in Australia are poisonous. But they will try to keep awaythey can pick up our vibrations on the ground."

Bec Sampi, my guide in the Bungle Bungles. "I dont guide here at night, but i do come out with the grandchildren. its magic."

What one does in the Bungle Bungles is hike: out of the baking daytime sun into cool, shady, often palm-fringed gorges hidden among the strange domes. My guide from Kingfisher Tours, Bec Sampi, is a speaker of the local Gija and Jaru languages and is a Gija "custodian of country," a traditional honorific bestowed on those who have long lived on a piece of land and walked through it, appreciate it, take care of it.

Cathedral Gorge in the Bungle Bungles. Matters sacred to Indigenous culture take place here when no one else is about.

In the aptly named Cathedral Gorge, an immense circular cavern about two kilometers roundtrip from the southern edge of the Bungles, Bec breaks into a Gija "Welcome to Country" song: an Indigenous ceremony in which local elders have for millennia welcomed people from other areas to their territory. Her words, unintelligible to me, echo hauntingly in the vast space, which vibrates with the sound. There are a few white Australians in the Cathedral, and they come up to thank her; one woman is crying. It does feel like a giftand a form of time travel, something incomprehensibly ancient brought to new life.

I'd read before my trip that Australian Indigenous culture is famously impenetrable to outsiders. The majority of sacred sites and rock artworks are off-limits to visitors; myths and stories, considered powerful and private, cannot be shared. Bec tells me that "men's celebrations" take place in the Cathedral in December, but when I ask her for details she recoils. "That's taboo. I can't speak about that." Yet on our way out she leads me under a rocky overhang and points to two small, faint paintings of boomerangs. "They are thousands of years old. They mean 'no trespassing.' If you saw this, you'd have to declare who you are and what you want here."

Who I am and what am I doing here is a powerfully existential question I feel even less able to answer at our next stop, Echidna Chasm, on the north side of the park. In contrast to the Cathedral, it is dramatically narrow and high-walled, the sky a shard of blue far, far above our heads. The path in and out is a mess of loose stones and boulders, each step a balancing act. I feel as small as an ant, and as squishable. A tad unnerved (a touch of claustrophobia plus an incipient worry about snakes), I'm chatting (a bit manically, I'm sure) as we make our way out. "Non-Indigenous people are loud," Bec observes, kindly but pointedly. "They find it very hard to be quiet. It takes them a long time to just sit and listen." Indeed.

An hour before sunset she takes us to what she calls her favorite sundowner spot and sets up folding chairs and snacks. And we sit. The park feels ours. Not a single vehicle passes on the corrugated road; the only sound is birdsong. Our attention is drawn to the bands of color on the Bungles, which grow ever more surreally orange. "This place," Bec finally says, "has a special feel to it." All I can do is nod. The child Nullah in Faraway Downs said as much of the Bungles: "There are spirits here." I'm starting to understand the reverence Australians of all stripes feel for this burned, austere, ancient land, which is still inhabited by direct descendants of the first humans who arrived here tens of thousands of years ago and who are still, generation after generation, guarding its mysteries. "The elders," Bec says, "have to tell us what stories we can tell, and how to tell them. They are in discussions now. Also, some of our words have no counterparts in English."

El Questro Homestead lodge, just 10 suites on the Chamberlain River in the immensity of the Kimberley outback.

In equal measure for the beauties of this rugged, 700,000-acre cattle station in the wilderness of the East Kimberley (they still run 3,500 head of cattle here, 2,000 of them wild) and for its El Questro Homestead, a 10-suite oasis of privacy and all-inclusive good living originally built in 1991 as a private home and guesthouse by Will Burrell, scion of the British Penguin Books fortune. It is one of the Luxury Lodges of Australia and the outback's crme de la crme, a marriage of harsh frontier landscapes and the finer things in life.

It is also, significantly, the first tourism property in all of Australia to have signed, in November 2022, an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) with the Ngarinyin people, traditional owners of this land (who call it Malabu). Not only has a vast expanse of El Questro407,000 acresbeen given to them as a "freehold" to manage as a reserve, but, as general manager Geoff Trewin tells me, "we have leased the land we are on from them for 99 years, which secures their financial future. It is a very detailed agreement, signed off on by the government, wherein we also help them develop touring and other employment, and it's being used as a benchmark for agreements with other Indigenous groups across the country. But it's early days."

Part of the pleasure of El Questro is the sheer achievement of arriving. "For many of our guests," Trewin says, "that alone is the goal. Two or three flights, a long drive, two river crossings with the water past the chassis" I did it differently. The Airvan pilot who brought me to the Bungle Bungles two days ago picked me up again at its Bellburn airstrip and, after a last farewell flyover, deposited me 30 minutes later at El Questro's private airstrip.

A Cliffside Villa at El Questro Homestead. A deep outdoor bathtub is just out of shot to the right, and the drop is 200 feet straight down to the river. There are crocs in there.

In one of El Questro Homestead's three Cliffside "villas," dramatically perched on a rocky escarpment high above the Chamberlain River gorge, with distant views, a large deck, and indoor/outdoor bathing. Note: The El Questro property has two other places to stay: the bustling hub called El Questro Station, eight miles away, which has bungalows, safari tents, and coach parks; and Emma Gorge camp, a 30-minute drive away, which has 60 tented suites. All are under the same management, but the Homestead is hands down the most high-end option. Its opening, back in the day, was covered, judging by the bound tomes of press clippings in the library, by every lifestyle publication on earth.

The boab trees (the Australian abbreviation of "baobab") at El Questro are beautifulbut best not be out and about on foot. The micky bulls (slang for wild ones) are very naughty.

Meals at the Homestead, including five-course degustation dinners, are an event, with some serious magic produced in the outback kitchen at breakfast, lunch, and dinner by New Zealand chef Gareth Newburn. (I kept some menus. Here's one dinner: kingfish ceviche with citrus, shallot, chili, and herbs; green asparagus with edamame, finger lime, truffle, and bunya nut; scallops with corn, pickled mushrooms, and chicken skin; lamb rack with carrot, pommes Anna, and salsa verde; chocolate delice with salted hazelnut ice cream, berries, and nuts.)

Feasts like this can be eaten either communally at a long table on the veranda (convivial fun) or privately, in three cliffside nooks at the edge of the Chamberlain Gorge (very romantic).

You and a fancy picnic basket are choppered to El Questros Miri Miri Falls, and a short technical hike later you arrive at the cool, deep, palm-shaded, utterly translucent pool at the foot of the falls. As Australians say, "Pretty speccy."

"It's an excellent place to do nothing at all," a surgeon from Sydney tells me during my first Homestead predinner cocktail hour. "And we've been extremely successful at it." That's one option: lounging around the pool overlooking the Chamberlain Gorge, swanning up the green lawn to the open bar, eating, repeating. But I'm with the majority (mostly well-heeled Australians who have finally made the journey to WA, with a smattering of international guests) and taking full advantage, during my three days here, of the included activities: expeditions to hot springs, gorges, waterfalls, lookouts.

For our Chamberlain River cruise, we were on a much smaller boat (five of us) and saw not another soul for the entire two hours.

No hiking boots are required for the Chamberlain Gorge boat outing. Nibbling on treats and quaffing Roederer champagne, I'm counting the adorable kangaroo-like wallabies perched like figurines in a giant cabinet-of-curiosities on the gorge's shelf-like outcroppings. And I scan the water: Lurking in there, I know, and at the opposite end of the cuteness spectrum, are the so-called salties, Australia's deadly estuary crocodiles. "They're the apex predator here," says our guide and boatman, Pete. "Been around for 240 million years, unchanged for the last 200 millionunimprovable killing machines."

But what I'm really hoping for is even a fleeting glimpse of indigenous rock art. A drone is flying along the gorge walls some distance aheadpart of El Questro's post-ILUA work with traditional owners, tribal leaders, and archaeologists to conduct a "heritage survey" of the entire property and figure out what needs to be protected and what can eventually be shown to visitors, by whom, and how. I've been told there are significant sites here, possibly including 4,000-year-old figures of Wandjina, the cloud and rain spirits from Aboriginal mythology important to communities in the Kimberley and depicted, uncannily, like helmeted characters from outer space. At one pointbut it could be an illusionI think I notice something, but Pete, admirably, neither confirms nor denies: "It's not our story to tell. At least not yet."

On my last afternoon, maybe six of us are driven to the top of an escarpment called Buddy's Point Lookout for sundowners with 360-degree views of utter, ridge-encircled emptiness. "Bloody tourists!" someone suddenly exclaims. And then we see it: tiny on a distant ridge, a single vehicle. That's how spoiled we've become. Driving back, our safari-style vehicle is enveloped in a sandstorm of red dust kicked up by the tires. It's in our eyes and noses, between our teeth. The outback is suddenly extreme and uncompromising, even in this small way. But all is well. A charming Homestead staffer is there as we pull into the driveway, with a pile of cold, wet towels on a tray.

Vineyards of the Leeuwin Estate in Margaret River.

First, because it's one of Australia's and the world's premier wine regions, yet so Western Australia: It is the world's most isolated (Africa is 5,000 miles to the west, Antarctica 2,200 miles to the south). Its ancient soils predate those of any viticultural area in Europe. And it's had the longest continuous human occupation, going back 50,000 yearsthe Wadandi people have been caretakers of this land for millennia (Margaret River's Indigenous name is Wooditup). And because it's Bordeaux with a difference: It has tasting rooms and top-notch restaurants, of coursebut also migrating whales, mobs of kangaroos, and the monstrous Indian Ocean swells of Surfers Point.

Via a reverse relay: From El Questro Homestead by four-wheel-drive back to Kununurra (90 minutes), then a commercial flight from Kununurra to Perth, where I overnighted. In the morning, a car and driver sped me over excellent roads, in three hours, to the wine country. (There is also a helicopter option often exercised, I'm told, by Perth residents with weekend homes in the wine region30 minutes.)

One of the Indian Oceanfacing villas at Margaret Rivers Injidup Spa Retreat. Time it right and you can be sipping your wine in the plunge pool while watching humpbacks breach.

Because Margaret River's venerable Cape Lodge was about to undergo a major renovation, I opted for Injidup Spa Retreat. "It's another of WA's secrets," I was told. And it felt like one: Ten serene adults-only villas hidden from view along a ridge over the Indian Ocean with private decks and plunge pools, an excellent spa, a white sand beach accessible via a narrow path upon which I never encountered a soul, and no restaurant. Who needs the hubbub? And anyway, in Margaret River, which produces more than 20 percent of Australia's premium wines, tastings and eating out are really the point.

The restaurant at Leeuwin Estates winery. settle in: lunch with pairings might take three hours and is time well spent.

Basically, a grande bouffe. With 220 wineries, 100 cellar doors (Australian for tasting rooms), and dozens of restaurants within easy driving distance (on average, 30 minutes), I had to narrow it down. Dinners were at the Cape Lodge restaurant and the informal, bustling Yarri, whose ever-changing menus are attuned to the six seasons of the Aboriginal calendar (sit up at the open kitchen and the chefs will talk you through it); they also serve some mean craft cocktails. Strong recommendation: Book a car and driver for the evenings here. Ubers are not ubiquitous, and you need to be careful about the kangaroos, which can emerge quite suddenly from among the roadside bushes.

Lunches (lovely-to-sink-into, afternoon-long affairs, with prelunch tastings, of course) were at two of the region's five founding wine estates: Vasse Felix, Margaret River's first, and Leeuwin (named for the warm ocean current that flows southward near Australia's western coast and helps create Margaret River's winegrowing climate). I kept the menu from Leeuwinprobably the best meal of this entire tripto remember the dishes and wine pairings, which I'm shopping now.

The gallery of contemporary Australian Aboriginal art at Leeuwin. If you dont have the time for gallery-hopping in perth, this is your chance.

As much as the wines themselvesLeeuwin's 2020 chardonnay is apparently the most collected white wine in AustraliaI appreciated the packaging of the "Art Series" wines. Their labels feature works by leading contemporary Australian artists, many of them Aboriginal, the originals of which, either collected or commissioned by Leeuwin owners Denis and Tricia Horgan (who, at the urging of Robert Mondavi, converted their cattle ranch into a vineyard in 1972), are on view in the estate's sprawling art gallery. On the bottle of the 2019 cabernet sauvignon is a paintingbe still, my heartof the Bungle Bungles.

Hikers along a section of the Cape to Cape track. Bring a "bather"there are protected natural pools where you can swim.

By the time my scheduled 3.5-hour hike along a section of the Cape to Cape track rolled around (its full length stretches 76 miles from the lighthouse at Cape Leeuwin in the south of Margaret River to the one at Cape Naturaliste in the north), I had to refuse all food, even the breakfast pastries proffered by my Walk Into Luxury guide, Matt Fuller, who picked me up at Injidup on my last morning (the trail runs right past it). Setting aside for the moment Bec's admonition about silence in nature, I peppered him with questions as we walked, the swells of the Indian Ocean pounding magnificently on the rocks below.

What whales can you see in these waters? "Humpbacks, blue whales, pygmies, pilots." Sharks? "The area is notorious for them, especially February to April, when the salmon arrive to spawn." How do surfers deal with it? "You think about sharks before you surf, you think about them after, but when you're surfing, you're in the moment." Snakes? "Just look at me. When I stop, you stop." Why is there almost no one here? "Because the western coast is the best-kept secret in Australia. Just lookthere is no development here. And we don't want it. What you see when you stand with your back to the ocean today is exactly what the Aborigines saw 60,000 years ago. When word gets out how good all this is, we're going to be inundated."

The Ningaloo Reef coastline is another of Western Australias UNESCO World Heritage sites.

The geography: a 160-mile fringe reefmeaning it's so close to shore you can swim or snorkel out to it (unlike the Great Barrier Reef, all of which is at least 10 miles from land). Right beyond the crashing waves, the continental shelf drops off and it's all deep watera speedway for the ocean's megafauna. Called Humpback Highway (although there's a plethora of other marine life here as well, including 300 to 500 whale sharks, the biggest fish in the world, which annually congregate here), it runs from Broome, further north, where the whales calve, down to Antarctica, where they spend the Antipodean summer. And Ningaloo, with its unparalleled proximity to the deep, is the world's best place to see themwhether from the shore as they breach (quite a sight at breakfast) or, the be all and end all, by getting into that deep water with them.

Because this natural wonder is in northwest Western Australia, it was generally unknown (again, like the Bungles, despite its UNESCO World Heritage status) except to a small circle of diving and snorkeling aficionadosand, of course, to the Indigenous Baiyungu and Thalanjyi people, traditional owners of the area, who call it Nyinggulu and who have lived in this area for 40,000 years. (The 32,000-year-old necklace in Perth's WA Museum Boola Bardip was discovered here.) But word is getting out, at least in Australia. The best-selling Australian author and conservationist, Tim Winton, released last summer a three-part documentary, Ningaloo Nyinggulu, available on the Australian Broadcasting Company.

From Perth, via a two-hour commercial flight to the small resort town of Exmouth, the northern gateway to Ningaloo. (Interestingly, Exmouth began life as a support community for a U.S. Navy base, which operated here from World War II until the 1990s and is now a joint U.S.-Australian operation.) Then it's another hour by rental car along an empty coastal road from the Learmonth airport to the lodge, inside Ningaloo Marine Park. (Look out for dingos, who like to sun themselves on the tarmac.)

There are few things as soothing as the end of the day at Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef. Bring your lantern to dinner for the walk back to your tent.

Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef is a little compound of 16 cream-colored tents (including a larger honeymoon one) that seem lost amid the dunes and grasses, steps from a white beach. As at the APT Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge, the tents are comfortable but simple, and shower water, if not exactly rationed, is carefully monitored (you're in a protected conservation area in an arid environment). But the overwhelming emotion you feel is, what a privilege it is to be herea feeling augmented, I must mention, by the open bar in the communal dining area and the long, convivial dinners, which feature such delicacies as duck with pumpkin puree accompanied, of course, by excellent wine pairings.

The smaller attractions on Ningaloo Reef. The camp has wet suits.

As elsewhere in Western Australia, activities abound here despite the remoteness. A frequently updated blackboard in Sal Salis's communal space lists (in addition to that day's menus) the departure times for: snorkeling (schools of tropical fish, manta rays, enormous brain corals), kayaking, and various guided gorge hikes and nature talks in the surrounding Cape Range National Park. I did all of it.

When done through an expert and sensitive small-group tour operator, the experience of swimming with a whale shark is unforgettable.

But I was here for the whales and the big fish, having booked with Exmouth's premier small group tour operator, LiveNingaloo: morning pickup, maximum of seven swimmers (with three non-swimmers allowed on the small boat that will take us over the reef into the open Indian Ocean), back at Sal Salis by 3 p.m., lunch and libations and wet suits provided.

A spotter plane flew ahead of us, communicating constantly with our captain, Murray Pattison, searching for sea animals and the right conditions. The water needs to be clear, for visibility. If he spots a female humpback with a calf, the calf must be no smaller than half the size of the mother. (If it's very young, there's a risk of her engaging in defensive behavior.) If he spots a pod, is it calm or boisterous? We wouldn't go in if they were aggressively breaching or playing, or if there were a female surrounded by males. With humpbacks, the staff explained, we wouldn't actually swim with themthey're too fast. We'd get in the water ("bunched up, in a group, no squealing, masks on"), and if we were in the right position the whales would swim right past us, 15 to 30 meters away. "They know exactly where we are in the water. They're very intelligent. There are times when the mother will lift her pectoral fin and show her calf to usor us to her calf. You see her eyes focus, taking you in."

My heart was in my throat the entire time on the boat. The open ocean was choppy, and I just felt how deep it was. It was the wildest, or most unfamiliar, environment I've ever been in. We had some near misses with the humpbackswe would slide into the water off the back of the boat, thumbs up, then something would change and we'd heave ourselves back onboard. Then a whale shark appearedseven meters long, a juvenile, and we went for it. The instructions were simpler because whale sharks swim slowly (they eat only plankton, unlike their smaller but more fearsome relatives) and, being fish, are not interactive. A few things to keep in mind when swimming alongside them: no touching, stay behind the pectoral fin, and don't get closer than four meters from the tail and three meters from its sides. And stay on the surface (i.e., no duck diving).

Our captain said, "Whale sharks are mysterious. We know they live 100-plus years in the wild, but much less in captivity. They are not migratory, but no one has successfully tracked their movements, partly because they go really deep." On my third and final swim, I was suddenly not alongside the whale shark anymore but above it. It was beneath me and growing fainter by the second, dropping into the abyss. The staff had warned us that might happen. I had just been ghosted by a giant fish. I could no longer make out the markings on its back, then not even its outline. It was just me bobbing out there, and the navy blue depths of the Indian Ocean. I have never felt so breathtakingly far away.

Executive Travel Editor

Klara Glowczewska is the Executive Travel Editor of Town & Country, covering topics related to travel specifically (places, itineraries, hotels, trends) and broadly (conservation, culture, adventure), and was previously the Editor in Chief of Conde Nast Traveler magazine.

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Development plans have been lodged with the department of planning for a new build-to-rent project in Sydneys North Shore.

Designed by leading Australian architectural practice COX for Twynam Group, the proposed build-to-rent (BTR) development, Nicholson Place is located in suburban St Leonards. Once a bustling commercial hub recognised for its excellent transport links and modern amenities near the city, St Leonards has evolved into a mixed-use precinct featuring a diverse mix of residential, retail, commercial, and community spaces.

High quality communal amenity for future residents lies at the core of COXs design for Nicholson Place. The development will provide 271 build-to-rent residences in a mix of studio, 1, 2 and 3-bedroom apartmentsover 30 storeys, with the residential section sitting above 6,000sqm of mixed-use commercial spaces in the podium.

COX worked closely with their interiors team to craft health and wellbeing spaces, co-working and studying spaces, social and gathering spaces, and operational spaces, all spread out vertically. These curated amenity and communal spaces accessible to all residents help create a sense of belonging and enhance wellness within a connected vertical village.

A public plaza on the ground floor to the corner of Nicholson Street and Christie Street has been proposed as a benefit to local residents, in addition to a multipurpose room accessible from Christie Street, which will be used by the local community to cater for a variety of events.

Key design highlights:

What makes this building unique is how it has allowed people to meaningfully connect with each other. Whether its the building residents in the communal kitchen, the local community in the purpose-built community space or the public in the corner plaza, says COX director, Felipe Miranda.

Socially sustainable living

To ensure social inclusivity within the building design, the amenity provision promotes healthy habitats and lifestyles, creating a comfortable, vibrant and adaptable environment that fosters recreation, social interaction and intergenerational connections contributing to broader social sustainability. Communal spaces are designed with biophilic design principles, with green planting connecting people to nature.

Designing with Country

Paying tribute to the Gai-maragal People, who have been the traditional custodians of these lands since time immemorial, COXs design is informed by Indigenous design strategies throughout the development and built form including the orientation and positioning of the living, working and playing spaces.

Vision for Nicholson Place

As St Leonards evolves into a more diverse and mixed-use precinct, the development surrounding the site has embraced ground floor activation guidelines from St Leonards and Crows Nest 2036 Plan to create nodes of activity and enhance permeability through the area. These developments have fostered a sense of community and connectivity by linking spaces between St Leonards Station and Crows Nest Metro Station. The Nicholson Place site has the potential to contribute to this growing community by responding to the changing context of St Leonards and providing a development that reflects the new residential and mixed-use nature of the area.

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COX-designed build-to-rent project in Sydneys North Shore ... - Architecture and Design

If its beginning to look a lot like Christmas, you have John Stanewich to thank.

The 73-year-old Somis muralist has spent the last couple of weeks painting snowdrifts, lights, wreaths and his beloved birch trees on business windows across the region, evoking the spirit of a winter place that coastal dwellers can only dream of.

I do this out of a love for artwork. Im an entertainer, so if I can make you forget something for just a short period of time, Ive done my job, Stanewich said between brush strokes on a mural at Santas workshop in Las Posas Plaza, Camarillo.

His is not the stuff of caricature, like the outsize Santas, Rudolphs and Frostys of the late, great Ventura County muralist Chris Martinez.

I do landscapes, Stanewich said. God bless Bob Ross.

Indeed, in spring, theres no giant Stanewich Easter Rabbit. Most of his windows that time of year feature paintings of flowerpots. For Fourth of July, he doesnt paint Uncle Sam. Stanewich still evokes patriotism, but with American flags, banners, white picket fences and lots of red, white and blue.

I dont do Halloween, he said. For fall, just the basic pumpkins and cornstalks.

Which brings us to winter.

At the plaza off Las Posas Road, the artist and his helpers have been working on windows for 44 businesses, along with an empty space where kids will get to have their picture taken with the jolly elf on select days starting Dec. 2.

Stanewich has an almost pastoral interpretation of the season.

Nobodys doing that anymore, he said. Theyre doing the big Santa Claus or Rudolph with the big nose. Here were just opening peoples eyes with the snow and the ribbons. Were putting Christmas lights in the wreaths and in the garland.

In addition to the shopping center, Stanewichs winter work can be found at Cafe Fucille locations in Camarillo and Ventura, and at Country Harvest restaurant in Camarillo, where he paints the other seasons as well.

His tools include bristle brushes and sponge brushes, and paints of various colors, all of which he packs around on a cart that looks like its seen many seasons.

As Stanewich worked, Camarillo resident Desha Duncan, who was enjoying a beverage from the adjacent Starbucks, approached the painter and complimented him on his work.

I love the fact its so Christmasy, so beautiful, she said. I love the way he does the trees. Theyre a little different than what you sometimes see that are so cartoonish. His are very realistic, and they make you feel like youre in nature.

What caught her eye initially was Stanewichs white birch trees, so evocative of a place where fallen leaves on the ground are eclipsed by pristine fallen snow.

They look very natural and real, Duncan said.

In Stanewichs hands, the birch is hardy, tall and bare, its bark peeling away.

Theyre white, which is cool for Christmas or for winter, he said. The black lines make them really stand out as a birch versus aspen. Aspen are on the golden side.

Duncan said window-dressing such as Stanewichs says a lot about the people who ask that it be put up.

It makes me feel like that store values Christmas and the holidays, and so it makes me feel like I want to go inside, she said.

That is precisely what business owner and plaza promotional director Michelle Sanchez was going for when she contracted with Stanewich.

It brings them in, Sanchez said of the imagery. It just brings the holiday spirit back, because we lost that a long time ago with the COVID.

Someone else had been painting the plaza, and then a merchant saw Stanewichs work at Country Harvest.

They got his phone number and come to find out hes a local, Sanchez said. And our thing is about keeping it local.

As for the art: It looks beautiful. Ive gotten so many calls. Its amazing, Sanchez said.

Such comments put a spring in Stanewichs step.

It warms your heart, and it makes you want to do it more, he said.

Stanewich is a Camarillo High alumnus who lives on a ranch with his wife, Sandra Scholle Stanewich. He retired from the Auto Club, where he handed out countless TripTik travel planners, processed many DMV transactions and notarized a document or two. Hes a musician, and these days spends his time with the local gem and mineral society, a gourd society and even prospecting.

Like painting, he calls all these endeavors his hobbies.

He also likes to mentor young people and is always ready to share a brush.

This excites me. If I can get kids interested in art, Ive done my job.

When the seasons over, does the artist have to take it all down?

No. Its like having a baby. I couldnt do that, Stanewich said. We have people come in and clean.

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Painting the town Christmas - Moorpark Acorn

Welcome to One Fine Show, where Observer highlights a recently opened exhibition at a museum outside New York Citya place we know and love that already receives plenty of attention.

Artists usually outgrow the movements that are associated with them. The term impressionism grew out of a derogatory description, and Donald Judd shunned the term minimalist. Moreover, youll find no Mark Rothko in the new show Glory of the World: Color Field Painting (1950s to 1983) at the NSU Art Museum in Fort Lauderdale, because though he pioneered the painting of fields of color, he didnt consider himself to be a part of that discipline. That term better described those whose work followed the atomic bomb that was Abstract Expressionism.

The exhibition really is about the generation that comes after because they faced a dilemma, the museums director and curator and former Rothko Foundation head, Bonnie Clearwater, recently told the Miami New Times. They were all committed to abstract painting, and unlike the abstract expressionists who came before them and went through this whole process going from representational and expressionist art to surrealism and biomorphism, and ultimately to their resolved full-blown abstractionthis generation starts where that ends.

SEE ALSO: The Best Holiday Gifts for the Art Lovers and Artists On Your List

What emerged from Abstract Expressionism was Pop Art, Minimalism, Op Art, Photorealism, the Black Art Movement, hard-edge abstraction and Color Field painting, of which this show offers almost fifty stellar examples by artists like Frank Stella, Lawrence Poons, Jules Olitski, Kenneth Noland, Morris Lewis, Helen Frankenthaler and Sam Gilliam, its title taken from a quote by Stella writing on Hans Hofmanns Gloriamundi (1963).

The show would seem to argue that Abstract Expressionism had all those other movements wrapped up into it and that once its Pandoras Box was opened, the Color Field discipline was free to luxuriate in palette experiments without all the emotional complexity or politics. The Gilliam paintings are wonderful examples from the 1970stie-dyes that intermingle to the point that they redefine groovy.

But the Nolands steal the show, namely THIS (1958-1959) and THAT (1958-1959), seven-foot squares with abstracted bullseyes that differ only in the vibrant color selection of their rings but still manage to tell completely different stories. And why do you always assume that everything is a target, man? If youre ever feeling the vibes too hard, you can usually count on Princetons own Frank Stella to knock some sense into you, but even hes getting into the hippie act for this show. Like Noland, his offerings are larger in scale. Theres Waskwaiu II [Variations on a Circle] (1968) and theres Sacramento No. 6 (1978), both of which show meticulous planning in their design and then outr choices for their colors. Stellas palette would become his own to the point you could remove it from the designs and still know whose it was.

Louis acrylic resins on canvas are also big and probably among the more intense works in the show. They appear to be giant curtains, behind which very different plays are about to be staged. Shout out to the Poonses, which build on the work of Jackson Pollock, free from the troubles and hypnotizing effect of the latter.

Fort Lauderdale isnt too far from Miami. If youre going down to Art Basel you should consider swinging through.

Glory of the World: Color Field Painting (1950s to 1983) is on view at the NSU Art Museum through June 30, 2024.

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Review: Glory of the World: Color Field Painting (1950s to 1983) - Observer

MARGATE The city is getting in on the Philadelphia Eagles'kelly green craze.

The city is in the process of painting all of its bike lanes a similar color to the Eagles' throwback jerseys, to distinguish the difference between lanes.

City engineer Ed Dennis gave a status report at the Nov. 16 City Commission meeting, where he said the bike lane painting would be completed in the next couple of weeks.

The striping started at Fredericksburg and Atlantic avenues and will continue to Huntington Avenue.

"It's ready to go, so shouldn't take too long to complete," Dennis said.

The city is paying Farmingdale, Monmouth County-based Traffic Lines Inc. $266,652 for work on the project.

City officials said they were happy with the traffic improvements the road diet had brought over the past few years. The project turned Atlantic Avenue into a one-lane road in each direction, lowered the speed limit to 25 and widened the bike lane path from five feet to 10.

The city decided to paint the entire bike lane green because that is the designated legal color that goes with the state Department of Transportation's standards. Painting the entire lane green,instead of just parts of it, would cause less confusion for motorists, officials said, and keep them from using it as a driving lane or for turns.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, the Feriozzi family from Margate, Andrew, Ginna, 3, Isabella, 5, and Liz, watch as the dancers from Leslie's Dance Studio pass by on Ventnor Avenue.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, Marius, 11, and Chris Barranco, Margate residents, waiting for Santa to arrive at the end point.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, Kristy and Taylro Rishell, 2, both from Ventnor, wait patiently for Santa to arrive at the end point in front of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, Chair of Sustainable Margate Steve Josiecki gives some aquatic facts about whales to Reed Fiedler, 10, visiting from Massachusetts.

Kai Hoops, 5, of Ventnor, waves at the passing parade on Ventnor Avenue.

Firefighter Danyl Loyle, a part-time elf, and Santa Claus, both trained in American Sign Language, arrive at their end point in front of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro during the Shop Small Extravaganza on Saturday in Margate.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, Silas Gerber, 5, from Margate, poses for a picture with Santa as he arrives at his end point in front of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday event, Miss New Jersey Victoria Mozitis says hello to Addison Papada, 6, a seasonal resident of Margate , after having just met Santa at the Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate at the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade, Marius, 11, and Chris Barranco, Margate residents, take photos of the passing parade, including someone dressed as Lucy the Elephant.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

On November 25, 2023, in Margate, the annual Shop Small Extravaganza holiday parade was held with emergency vehicles, Miss New Jersey, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Atlantic City Division, and Santa making their way down Ventnor avenue, stopping at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro.

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Margate painting bike lanes green to prevent drivers from using them - Press of Atlantic City

The painting before (left) and after (right) the removal of the Victorian overpainting and careful restoration of the original. (Photo: screenshot of video from Carnegie Museum of Art)

Years ago, a painting of a young woman ended up at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum was not very impressed by the benign, uninspired face of the sitter, leading to the painting's eventual deaccession from the collection. Instead, it found its way into the collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It then sat in the basement, unseen, until it caught the eye of Louise Lippincott, a former museum curator. She showed the work to chief conservator Ellen Baxter, who worked her magic to transform a mediocre work into its original, elegant form. The shocking before and after, documented in 2014, demonstrated the many transformations a work can go through over the centuries.

Originally, the painting was thought to depict Eleanor of Toledo, wife of Cosimo I de Medici, who ruled Florence. A sticker on the back frame alleges the painter was court artist Bronzino. However, Baxter suspected the truth was hidden within, under the pretty yet unremarkable features of the young woman. An x-ray scan confirmed that beneath the face was another one, with larger features and much more character. Beneath the petite hand was a larger one, and it held a vase which had later been painted over. The 16th-century painting had clearly undergone a transformation in the 19th century. The wood panel on which it was painted was shaved down to a very thin strip which was then affixed to canvas. Meanwhile, the face and hand of the woman were overpainted with a more Victorian, delicate image that lacked the vibrance of the original.

Baxter removed the old varnish covering the painting and slowly removed the 19th-century paint as well. Beneath it is the remarkable face of Isabella de Medici, daughter of Cosimo I and Eleanor of Toledo. While not certain, the work was likely done by Alessandro Allori, who trained under Bronzino. The work was then fully conserved to restore its original glory, with careful varnish and delicate inpainting to fix flaking. Baxter notes in a video of the process that she is careful to match color and texture while resisting the urge to put [herself] in the painting. Her work is engaging, and she talks to the painting pleasantly as she restores its glory. These restorations follow certain ethical rules of transparency.

Baxter's efforts are in service of presenting the princess in her glory, as the Paris Hilton of the day. Rich and wild, she took lovers and spent, spent, spent. She was well-educated and witty, but her intrigues may have contributed to her untimely death. Officially it was attributed to dropping dead while washing her hair, but historians believe her husband murdered her in revenge and anger for her affairs. As baxter describes her life, a bad end, but a good story. Painted in this newly uncovered work with a small vase typical of Mary Magdalene depictions, Lippincott explained to Carnegie Museums, This [portrait] is literally the bad girl seeing the light.

h/t: [Open Culture]

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Conservator Restore This Renaissance Painting of a Medici - My Modern Met

Paul Gauguin once brazenly claimed that he inspired Van Gogh to create the Sunflowers. This is patently untrue, since the still lifes were painted two months before Gauguins arrival at the Yellow House in Arles. The self-serving Gauguin wanted to claim credit for his colleagues signature works.

Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) Credit: National Gallery, London

Gauguins boast comes in a letter to his Paris-based friend Andr Fontainas, to whom he sent his 1902 manuscript Racontars de Rapin (Tales). This 28-page unpublished article was written in the Marquesan islands in French Polynesia. Yesterday (30 November) The Art Newspaper reported that the manuscript has just been acquired by Londons Courtauld Gallery.

Paul Gauguins Self-portrait (1901) (detail) Credit: Kunstmuseum Basel

In Tales, Gauguin lists 40 artists he admires. Van Gogh is included at the very end of the list, although nothing more is said about him, despite the fact that Gauguin lived and worked with him for nine weeks in the autumn of 1888. Their collaboration came to an abrupt end when Van Gogh mutilated his ear.

The last page of Gauguins Racontars de Rapin (Tales), which includes Van Goghs name at the end of a list of artists he admired Credit: Christies

In his letter to Fontainas, dated September 1902, Gauguin wrote that on his arrival in Arles, following my advice and my instructions, he [Van Gogh] worked quite differentlypainting yellow sunflowers on a yellow background. This was a complete distortion of the truth: Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) was actually hanging in Gauguins bedroom when he arrived.

Gauguin also claimed that it was he who encouraged Van Gogh to experiment, utilising the Dutchmans intelligence and fiery temperament. In conclusion, Gauguin wrote that when discussing Van Goghs noble nature I am forced to praise myself.

Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg

The year before writing Tales, Gauguin painted a series of four still lifes with sunflowers. On three of these, the flowers are placed on chairs, which represent a nod to the Dutchmans painting Van Goghs Chair (December 1888), now at Londons National Gallery.

When Gauguin painted his 1901 still lifes with sunflowers, they might be seen as representing a homage to Van Gogh. But bearing in mind his claims to Fontainas, it seems equally likely that he was appropriating his colleagues famed motif. Gauguin may have wanted to add visual credence to his claim that he had provided Van Goghs inspiration.

Gauguins attempt was doomed to failure. Van Goghs series of Sunflowers is now universally recognised as his most popular paintingsand as all his very own work.

Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: Emil Bhrle Collection, long-term loan to the Kunsthaus Zrich

Other Van Gogh news:

Three prints of Van Goghs Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882), with the promised donation on the right Credit: Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation) and (right) Monique Hageman, on long-term loan to the Van Gogh Museum

Monique Hageman, a research assistant at the Van Gogh Museum since 1986, has given a rare lithograph of the artists Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882) to her institution. This represents an act of huge generosity. Hageman bought the print on 10 May at the Leiden-based Burgersdijk & Niermans auction house, paying 275,000. It will eventually be bequeathed to the museum.

The museum already owns the two other extant examples of Old Man drinking Coffee (each was finished by the artists hand and is slightly different). All three lithographs went on display yesterday at the Amsterdam museum, until early in the new year.

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REYNOLDSVILLE Over the course of four days, Jeff Tech (Jefferson County Vocational Technical School) Art Club students have continued their tradition of painting cheerful and creative holiday designs on the windows of Reynoldsville businesses.

Jeff Techs Art Club was established in 2017, which is when they started painting windows, said art instructor Angela Dragich. Working with the Reynoldsville Community Association, students have painted windows every year since, except for 2020, along Main Street in Reynoldsville and at the Reynoldsville American Legion. Typically, Dragich says they cover about 18-19 businesses.

Some participate each year, like Reynoldsville Hardware, the Food Pantry, One Stop, The Sub Hub, S&T Bank, the Laundry Mat, District Magistrate office and others.

In January, students return to clean off the windows that still have designs on them, Dragich noted. For the most part, students decide what theyd like to paint, but there are businesses that prefer non-secular, non-religious or no Christian-themed designs.

Jeff Tech Art Club students created their own version of "the leg lamp" from "A Christmas Story." In this photo, Maria Hoch is shown painting a window.

The students sometimes get a chance to go in the business and take requests, she said.

This year, for example, the Grinch has been a popular request from both Glass Erectors and The Sub Hub, and was also painted on one of the laundry mat windows. By request, students also recreated the leg lamp from A Christmas Story on the windows next to The Sub Hub shop on Main Street.

Other designs this year include a reindeer, Snoopy, Jack Skeleton as Santa, winter houses and trees, Christmas lights, Santa with a bag of money, a gingerbread man, a farmer elf with animals and others.

A total of 12 students participated in the window painting this year, Dragich said. She noted that an Art Club alumni surprised them on Nov. 20 when they were out painting and stayed to help paint.

The students hear a lot of positive feedback from the community about the designs, she said, from both business owners and people passing by.

Jeff Tech Art Club students are shown in front of Glass Erectors in Reynoldsville, where they painted a Grinch design.

The business owners and volunteers are happy to see the students return each year to paint their windows, she said.

Dragich noted that Glass Erectors even took a photo of its windows, and made an appreciation post on Facebook.

Some students sign up to window paint every year they are in Art Club, and/or every day, she said.

Dragich asked her art students why they choose to paint windows in the cold, rainy, and sometimes snowy weather conditions.

Jeff Tech student Trinity Britton is shown painting a Grinch hand.

Junior cosmetology student Aubrey Dinger said, Window painting is an opportunity to make friends with people. I love to paint, and its awesome to see each others artistic abilities.

Brooke Farmery, senior student in health assisting, said, It gives us a way to spread kindness and holiday cheer throughout the community.

Its a great way to practice and share your art and holiday cheer, added senior engineering student Trinity Britton. Its (also) a great way to meet new people, and make their holidays full of cheer.

Noah Webster, a junior in digital media arts, said he enjoys when he is able to be creative, and doesnt let the weather stop him. This is his second year window painting.

Gabby Phillips, a junior in welding shop, said that she enjoys missing class, but also just very much enjoys painting windows. This is her third year painting with Art Club.

Jeff Tech student Sara White is shown painting houses on the windows of a beauty shop in Reynoldsville.

The RCA provides the paint for these projects, said Dragich, and replenishes it when needed. The RCA also kindly provided lunch for the students on one of their painting days at Main Street Pizza.

The Reynoldsville American Legion also provided a donation to the art department for its appreciation of the window painting, and the Food Pantry provided snacks for students.

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Jeff Tech Art Club students continue window painting tradition in ... - The Courier-Express

The advent of anamorphic advertising hails exciting prospects for brands. But where does it leave age-old crafts like hand-painting murals?

Hand-painted advertising has experienced a global resurgence, and its momentum, further buoyed by social media, shows no signs of waning. These murals are a testament to human artistry, offering a tangible, authentic touch that resonates deeply with audiences, Eric Sas, co-founder and CEO of anamorphic 3D technology company BCN Visuals, tells Jing Daily.

Handcrafted murals, for example, have recently experienced virality. Their popularity shows that theres still an appetite for the human touch, even among the younger generations.

Last year, a clip documenting artists hand-painting a mural in New Yorks Soho from TikTok account Soho Suiting circulated in November. Featuring a lifelike image of Bella Hadid for Swarovski, the video racked up over 20 million views.

The account has since continued to follow the ever-changing canvases dotted around the city after recognizing there was demand for such content, from Gucci trunk murals to Longchamp campaigns.

[Mural art] is doing well because its so human, Lee Bofkin, CEO and co-founder of Global Street Art tells Jing Daily. The London-based advertising agency specializes in hand-painted advertising and public murals, and has created works for the likes of sneaker label On and Wedgwood.

Bofkin outlines how the craft can act as an antidote to todays digital overload.

Human-powered skills are still as relevant as ever, if not more relevant in a time when digital creativity is so increasingly disposable, he says. Its incredibly impactful; its the easiest type of outdoor advertising to share online. People stop and take photos all the time when were painting, and long after.

Global Street Art are the brains behind some of the UKs biggest handprinted murals, including Wedgwoods street art. Photo: Sam Berry/LinkedIn

Where old meets new

With both traditional craft and emerging innovation at the forefront of advertising, brands are opting to harness both.

In essence, both mediums cater to different aspects of marketing and, rather than compete, can coexist harmoniously and offer diverse brand expression, Sas says.

Loewe is exploring both ends of the spectrum. The Spanish fashion house employed both mediums for its widely popular Howls Moving Castle campaign earlier this year. In Chengdu, the brand captivated passersby with a 3D billboard inspired by the anime classics distinct visual cues. Meanwhile, it went back to basics with hand-painted advertisements for the streets of London.

Bofkin argues that deploying a mix of modes may help a brand avoid getting lost in the noise, but this approach doesnt guarantee staying power.

Brands need to be more relevant in culture and isolated messaging only goes so far. The things that work best are integrating outdoor (like mural painting) within wider parts of the campaign, he says.

Loewe painted the city of London and beyond with its Howls Moving Castle handprinted murals earlier this year. Photo: Marketing Interactive

Combating fatigue

Today, brands are looking for ways to combat waning interest, especially as they strive to capture the vacillating attention of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. But with consumer advertising burnout rife, can novel advancements like 3D billboards offer a solution?

Yes and no, marketing and brand strategist Leland Grossman says. In some regards the gimmicky nature only reinforces the fatigue. On the flip side, the technology has the potential to truly wow folks, as I believe the MSG Sphere has done.

Sas believes that theres a place for newness and old-school craft in todays marketing playbook, but harnessing new technologies is what will keep brands ahead of the curve and the competition.

Ultimately, as the marketing landscape shifts towards more interactive and immersive experiences, pivoting to 3D digital displays is not just a progressive step; its imperative for brands aiming to maintain a competitive edge and offer an unparalleled brand experience in a Web3 and AI-centric world, he says.

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From Loewe to Swarovski, hand-painted murals get a luxury upgrade - Jing Daily

DIYers looking for faster results with less mess can benefit from using an electric paint sprayer, such as the ones offered by SPRAYIT, as these devices offer quick results with little learning curve.

They are affordable, efficient, and simple t operate, making them perfect for DIY enthusiasts!

When using an electric paint sprayer, hold your gun approximately 12 inches away and spray n long consistent movements while always moving perpendicular t the surface being painted; this will help minimize overspray and ensure a smooth, even finish.

Metal surface finishing aims t produce products with special properties, such as protection from corrosion, enhanced texture, r improved aesthetics.

Surface spray finishing machines for metal utilize a controlled stream f paint r other coating materials t achieve the desired finish.

An effective surface spray finishing machine for metal should provide uniform coverage, consistent color, and minimal overspray.

HOMAG offers several models f surface spray finishing machines for metal designed specifically t handle heavy production environments, providing deburring, dross removal, calibration/dimensioning, edge radiusing, painting/surface preparation r finishing/polishing services.

Furthermore, our machines incorporate powerful industrial dust collection systems for added safety; this ensures that abrasions wont release dangerous particulates into the air that could spark fires thus helping prevent workplace accidents.

Abrasive blasting involves firing an abrasive media stream against surfaces under pressure to clean, roughen, or alter their shape.

First patented over 150 years ago, this surface preparation technique can be used to prepare steel and aluminum components for painting, strengthen metal surfaces and adhesion as well as remove contaminants such as rust or grease that have built up on them just to name a few benefits of this surface treatment method.

Abrasive blasting is an efficient and economical method of eliminating paint, oil, organics, oxidation and salt buildup that interferes with coating adhesion and helps the finishing process proceed more successfully.

Dry ice and soda blasting offer an alternative approach, reducing dust emissions while requiring less containment; however, these techniques tend to be slower.

A retrofit device known as a water curtain may be fitted over the blasting nozzle in order to minimize premixing of water with the abrasive.

This has been found to cut airborne dust emissions by 50-75% while simultaneously shortening cleaning times without diminishing effectiveness of blasts.

Powder coating is a dry finishing process applied electrostatically and baked in an oven to form an extremely durable finish. Applied to any surface, powder coating resists corrosion, scratching, chipping, fading and wear with ease perfect for exterior use!

Powder coating is also environmentally-friendly. Liquid paints contain solvents which emit hazardous emissions when dry; in comparison, powder coating releases minimal or no Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere; this helps improve air quality and minimize environmental contamination at work sites.

Powder coating application processes are efficient and create minimal waste, as powder can be recycled for reuse in future applications and overspray is typically collected and recycled as well.

All this adds up to savings on materials as well as equipment maintenance fees and electricity usage costs for running them.

Metal products can be found everywhere from homes and businesses alike, yet their raw state can be hard, unattractive, and hard on the wallet.

To make them more functional and visually appealing, various finishing techniques have been implemented that also protect them against corrosion, abrasion, and other physical damages.

Powder coating, silk screening and painting are among the most widely utilized finishing methods, used to improve metal products while simultaneously decreasing weight, cost and time spent production.

Furthermore, these methods may even increase corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity.

Machinists utilize other processes to prepare the surface of metal components besides traditional finishing processes. Pickling removes dirt and rust while electropolishing smooths it; both procedures ensure high-quality and long-term use for finished products.

Furthermore, depending on the hardness of metal chosen for finishing processes differ; some processes work better with hard metals while others might better suit soft ones.

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