Riverfire

One of the highlights in the calendar has to be Riverfire, the annual celebration of the River City, which usually kicks off the Brisbane Festival. This year they reversed the plans and closed the three-week art spectacular with the massive firework display. This is now the third largest firework display in Australia and featured more than 100 different types of pyrotechnic effects

With a crowd of 500,000 (and more watching live on TV), 4500 fireworks weighing 11,000 kgs lit up the night sky and the bridges. 

This year, in keeping with the Riverfire theme, they even had fireworks coming out of the river! I wonder how they do that?

Twilight Zone

I think there is always something special about that time of evening when day is transforming into night and the city lights gradually take over the fading sky. Reflections over water distort and elongate, depending on the movement of the river, creating a rainbow of colours. There is a calm in the air and a feeling of expectation from the chattering people as they head along the walkways towards one of the many cafes and restaurants. Small river craft ply the water, people go about their business and all feels well in the world.

Don't Look Into The Laser!

Well, I hope it's OK to look at these lasers which were all part of the nightly laser light shows that 'performed' over the three weeks of the Brisbane Festival. The barge in the middle of the river created the massive curtains of water spray that acted as the screens for the lights, along with huge beams of light that played over the night sky from the tower blocks of the CBD. All of this with a soundtrack which at times was stirring, and other times more like a dirge...I guess you can't have everything. No matter what the music was like, the light show was spectacular.

Lanterns

The cultural forecourt on South Bank hosted a display of Chinese lanterns as part of the Brisbane Festival. I have no idea what is written on the lanterns but I can only hope it was all good! You can just make out the Wheel of Brisbane at the back.   

Night Lights

At night the sphere is illuminated by ever-changing LED lights with ethereal music emanating from somewhere within the stand. It's not hard to see why this has been such a popular art installation, albeit temporary. Personally I'd love to see it here permanently.

Mirror Ball

Not from outer-space, but a sphere covered with various sized mirrors. This is one of the most popular interactive art installations that was here for the Brisbane Festival. Sitting beside the Brisbane River and reflecting everything around it, it has been a massive draw-card. If you think it looks good now, you should see it at night!

War Of The Worlds?

"No one would have believed, in the last years of the nineteenth century, that human affairs were being watched from the timeless worlds of space. No one could have dreamed that we were being scrutinized as someone with a microscope studies creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. Few men even considered the possibility of life on other planets. And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely, they drew their plans against us."

"War of the Worlds"  ~ H.G.Wells ~

(I'll show you more over the next few days and tell you what it is).

Flying Home

Well here I am again after my week away overseas. Flying into Brisbane yesterday it was a cloudy arrival, but at least clear enough for a nice view over the city. I love the way that the Brisbane River snakes it's way right through the CBD and out into Moreton Bay. The airport is just to the upper right. I can see it, so hope the pilot can too!

Venus (2)

Slender and sleek, dressed in her mantle of silver filigree, 'Venus Rising' elegantly spirals into the early morning sky, reaching for her home in the heavens far above.

Venus (1)

This torpedo-shaped sculpture is Brisbane's newest art installation at Kangaroo Point Park. It is called 'Venus Rising: Out of the Water and into the Light' and is by British artist Wolfgang Buttress. I really love the sleek lines of this 23m stainless steel sculpture. It is made of 100's of rings and polished tubes.

Beautiful One Day...

The marketing slogan associated with Queensland is 'Beautiful One Day...Perfect The Next', and what better representation could there be than this shot yesterday morning? I was on my way to work and had to stop very briefly to snap this classic view of the city from Kangaroo Point Park. I can tell you that having to go to work after this was hard, but I did feel 'set-up' for the day ahead!

One Year On....

As we swelter through our heatwave, who would have believed that a year ago, Brisbane was under water? The devastating floods of 2011 swept through communities and cities in SE Queensland, killing people, destroying homes and businesses, altering the landscape for ever. Here you see the river still several metres higher than usual, but notice the mud halfway up the steps on the left indicating the water level. Scary or what? One year on, the city has mostly recovered. Some communities are still doing it tough but we're a resilient lot here in Queensland.

The Heat is Up

Another scorching day here as temperatures sit at a minimum 36c. Being by the Brisbane River offers some respite. This sculpture is a left-over from World Expo '88.

Keeping Cool

This young guy has the best idea as we hit another day of heat and humidity. South Bank is a popular area with the beach, several pools and play areas. Time for an ice-cream I think.

Welcome to my Warm Slice of Brisbane

Hopefully you will come with me on my meanderings around this beautiful city, it's environs and parts of Queensland.

On a day when temperatures soared to almost 35c this was the place to be. This is South Bank which was the site of World Expo '88. It is Australia's only beach in the middle of the city and sits alongside the Brisbane River.

Summer has set in with its usual severity. ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge