As the school holidays are now well and truly over, I begin to wonder what you spent yours doing. Did you take your kids to the attractions at Phillip Island, where a 3 park super-pass will set you back $90 for a family (2 adults/2 children)? Or perhaps the Aquarium at $87.50 per family was on your agenda? Seeing a new release film was probably a popular choice, also around the hundred dollar mark for a family, and only lasting approximately two hours. Alternatively, maybe the kids you know spent the two weeks in front of their PC or Playstation, glued to the game while scoffing the Easter Eggs they received two weeks ago and are still working through. I doubt many non-textbook novels were read, that any educational films were watched or that any of the tourist attractions visited will provide entertainment beyond the few hours of attention they command.
It may be a good idea to start thinking about next school holidays now. Or even just next weekend. The weather is starting to turn and while beaches and parks are always a good idea, it may not feel like it when the rain is pouring down and the wind is whipping at your ears. Indoor activities that are free, educational and interesting? I’m sure you are thinking no such thing exists but on the contrary, there are several warm spots to keep you and your family entertained this winter.
One of my personal favourites is the National Gallery of Victoria. While you might have seen posters around the city, adverts in magazines or heard about the current exhibition on the radio, the only exhibition the NGV actually charges for is the one that costs them the most in advertising. This exhibition takes up perhaps 10% of the actual gallery space and the remaining 90% is free to the public. Come by in the morning and browse the day away, take a break for coffee or lunch without leaving the building and take in a lecture or spend time in the gift shop to while away the afternoon.
The International Collection is a permanent display at the NGV but one where you will always find something new, no matter how many times you visit. Other current displays include Drape: Classical Mode to Contemporary Dress, presented by Myer in the Fashion and Textiles Gallery, Love, Loss and Intimacy in the Robert Raynor Galley and Bill Viola: Ocean Without a Shore, on the ground floor. The gallery is a maze of rooms, corridors and stairwells, a vast labyrinth of learning and the perfect way to fill a lazy Sunday. Before you leave, take in the Water Trail, starting with the iconic Waterwall that marks the entrance to the NGV, and the NGV shop, a treasure trove of books and gifts for even the hardest to buy for individual.
Over at the Ian Potter Centre, part of the NGV housed at Federation Square, you will find even more free activity including permanent exhibitions, the Australian Collection, the Joseph Brown Collection and the Indigenous Collection, alongside temporary installations Rupert Bunny: An Artist in Paris, Stick it!: Collage in Australian Art, and the Top Arts: VCE 2009 student works. Australian Made: 100 years of Australian Fashion will open at the Ian Potter Centre in May.
The gallery runs many lectures and tours throughout the year related to the exhibitions and these can be found and booked online.
With all this culture in one place (well, two technically) you would think Melbourne would be all cultured out. Not so. Head over to the State Library for even more free fun and learning. The current library exhibition, Til You Drop: Shopping, A Melbourne History, is a must see and will entertain and engage with what life was like in early Melbourne. The library is somewhat of a work of art itself and you can easily be amused for quite some time taking in the architecture of the building and the unique domed roof of the La Trobe reading room. Other free exhibitions currently in residence at the library include, I Cover the Waterfront: Rick Amor 1993-2007, Burke and Wills: Terra Incognita, Mirror of the World: Books and Ideas, and The Changing Face of Victoria. In addition to learning workshops, lectures, films and story time activities for kids, the State Library is another location that should be on your list of places to visit this winter.
Finally, Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance also houses three exhibitions, currently, A History of the Shrine: 75th Anniversary, Threads of Connection, and Everyman. Again these installations are all free and the Shrine runs guided tours daily, leaving from the visitors centre, at 11am and 2pm. The Shrine was built in remembrance of those who served and those who died in the Great War of 1914-1918 and armed conflicts and peacekeeping duties since and really is something every Victorian should visit at some point and pay tribute to those who fought for our way of life.
These free activities are definitely a more worthwhile experience for your family than the latest blockbuster at your local, or an afternoon of playing on your Wii. Get out there and learn something other than the location of the x button on your controller this winter and by the time the mid-year school holidays roll around you will have saved enough pennies for a trip to another state and a visit to their free galleries.
