When the lights went out on Victoria Dock

In the 1980s (now), a photojournalist Bill Mcauley made a weekly pilgrimage to Docklands to catalog the rest of the vibrant maritime network gate. Now, these extraordinary images appeared, it says Derek Ballantine.

History stays here. Where WoundPure and bright was born Large partition rangeIt meets the salty water that carries the world to our shores.

They say this DocklandBut there is no justice in this name. It requires a larger, more bold name, because it is an industry and sweat, energy and creativity, even a place of crime and passion.

In these banks and these huts, these piers were won and won, vaccinated and seized.

The world sent its produced goods to it, in the front step of Melbourne and sent its Australian sources from the same threshold. The coal in the sacks came from Newcastle, Timber and even began his gold global journey here.

Docklands owed birth to the sail period before the colonies embrace nations, and at a time when coal smoke sticks to the air on the decks of steam ships.

Unity’s hard men, between world wars and after all of them, when millions of people died, ships and sailors and Stevedores, II. They tried to feed the poor souls caught in Maelstrom, a World War II. The woods and pilons were trembling under the rods and forklifts, while the halls echoed the curses of the men in the jumpsuit.

For decades, for decades, tramp ferries challenged the container in the form of container, and even the emergence of the air load, and there were times when muscle was preferred according to the machines. Change slowly, then came in a torrent. Suddenly, the protests of the old timers led to new sounds – then the presidency came.

And Victoria Dock was no longer.

Melbourne sat quietly and southern because she turned her back to this industrial landscape, which once enriched Victoria. It was not loved, decay started, the last looked big and ugly.

But a man didn’t forget. Photo reporter and Independent AUstrala Columnist Bill Mcauley did something remarkable when the lights went out on the dock. He took his camera and caught the magic, mystery and memories created in this Nether world in the river.

For a year and a half, he made a pilgrimage for two or three nights a week (now) until he catalogs the remains of an environment, which was uncertain and rich in nostalgia, on the one hand, on the one hand.

Fortunately, McAuley was able to capture the old world’s air before the deserted Victoria Dock before building a new and active city.

Here a sailing ship survives, where there is a steam tugboat, but the rest of the maritime scene in the Mcauley portfolio is talking about neglect and decay under the wonderful colors of the evening sky.

Victoria Dock is the segment of Docklands, one of the intersection of Melbourne CBD and Yarra and Maribyrnong, it is not far from the modern transportation terminals before congratulating Port Port Phillip of Konjoli rivers.

Initially an engineering wonder is a large dug port basin built between 1887 and 1892, the world’s largest quay. 21 There were cranes circulating along the quay, terrible club, railway rails.

The dock discussed two million tons of cargo in the 1950s and rose to 20 million tons in the 1980s, and the container transportation was paid before this industry was paid to this beehive.

Mcauley, a prize -winning photographer in newspapers and magazines, finally announced his article on former Victoria Dock.

He called the portfolio ‘Victoria Dock Last Light in 1999’.

All photographs were taken in high -resolution transparency. The shorter evening light contributes to the mystery of the collection, which has been exposed to the world for 25 years. It appeared because Dockland’s Magnet Galleries I took the wind of Mcauley’s secret collection and encouraged him to show him.

Bill Mcauley says:

“I went to things that can be called a love labor, essentially, for my own satisfaction, as a photographer, as historical documents, I know that the photographs grew in power over time.

Now, printed and framed, 50 of these images will be included in a photo exhibition at the Docklands Magnet Galleri on September 4th. ‘Victoria Dock Last Light in 1999’. (Detail HERE.)

A beautiful printed book of these historical images (available HERE) will be started in the exhibition.

Note: Bill Mcauley is the author of IA’s ‘Australian Eye’ column. ‘Portraits of the Spirit: Bill Mcauley and Lifetime’ and ‘have a few collections, including.Valley sound: Eltham’s 1978-1979 Times newspaper. Click to see more than Bill Here.

Derek Ballantine Retired journalist In a 40 -year career, working in newspapers and radio. That author Horse in Australia And the joint editor and compiler Australasia purebred race book.

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