Just Puddin’ This Out There

On 29 September the iconic Norman Lindsay Gallery in Faulconbridge, located in the Blue Mountains just west of Sydney, will treat families to a fictional time warp in celebration of the children’s classic The Magic Pudding.

‘Puddin’ Day’ will bring the mischief of The Magic Pudding to life with activities for readers young and old(er) – as well as introducing visitors to contemporary author Frances Watts and illustrator, Georgia Norton Lodge and author Zoë Norton Lodge.

The National Trust (NSW) CEO Debbie Mills said that “‘Puddin’ Day’ is the perfect way to kick-start the school holidays and immerse your family in a day of fun”. “We’re very excited to celebrate how this children’s classic continues to bring joy and inspires the imagination of young people many generations after the book’s first edition.

“All families are welcome to the place in which The Magic Pudding was first written and illustrated and to celebrate that Norman Lindsay’s story has never been out of print and has delighted readers in various languages all over the world since 1918,” Ms Mills said.

The Norman Lindsay Gallery is one of 30 National Trust properties across New South Wales. ‘Puddin’ Day’ is a must-do for lovers of literature and heritage.

 

Puddin’ Day Event Details:

Opening times: 10am to 3pm.

Location: Norman Lindsay Gallery
14 Norman Lindsay Crescent Faulconbridge NSW

Tickets:

National Trust Members ($15)

General admission ($20)

Families – group of four ($50)

Includes: Admission to the Norman Lindsay Gallery. Parking is available and parking onsite.

 

Meet the storytellers – Frances Watts and Georgia Norton Lodge, Zoë Norton Lodge:

Visitors to Puddin’ Day for 2019 will have the chance to meet three special guest speakers between 11am and 2:30pm. Author Frances Watts is the winner of the Children’s Book Council’s Eve Pownall Award, the KOALA Children’s Choice Award Honour Book and the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Children’s Fiction. She has penned Captain Crabclaw’s CrewGoodnight, Mice!; and It’s a Story, Rory!  Frances Watts’ two new books this year are Leonard Doesn’t Dance and My Friend Fred.

Illustrator Georgia Norton Lodge, together with her sister Zoë created the Elizabella series. The talented duo are currently working on the third book in the series. Elizabella – 10-and-a-quarter – is a poet, Fixer of Fairytales and the biggest prankster in the history of Bilby Creek Primary. Book titles include: Elizabella Meets Her Match and Elizabella and the Great Tuckshop Takeover. Both Zoë and Georgia will do a presentation during the day.

About the Norman Lindsay Gallery

Norman Lindsay (1879-1969), artist, cartoonist, and writer, came from a family that produced five artists. Lindsay left home when he was sixteen to live with his brother in Melbourne. In 1901 he moved north to Sydney, later making his permanent home in the Blue Mountains, working for the Bulletin in an association that lasted almost to his death.

His first novel was published in 1913, and by the 1920s he was both proficient and prolific in pen and ink drawing, etching, woodcuts, watercolours and sculpture. Lindsay rejected Christianity, and his art depicts Bohemianism and Arcadian pantheism madly admixed in a fantasy world.

There were many critics of Lindsay’s work but he remained popular with collectors, and Albert, the loyal but cranky character The Magic Pudding from his classic children’s book (1918) is still just as popular with today’s younger generation.

The Norman Lindsay Gallery is open 7 days a week and has changing exhibitions. Wonderful photo opportunities and landscaped grounds provide a unique venue for a visit or function booking.