Macquarie's Vision All Lit Up

Macquaries Vision is one of several events this year celebrating the legacy of Lachlan and Elizabeth Macquarie. Of course the greatest thing they did for Sydney, and Australia, was to establish the Botanic Gardens in 1816.

A light show along Macquarie Street has been created to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Macquaries arriving at Port Jackson, and the contributions of what the official website describes as 'the ultimate Sydney power couple'.

I took these pictures last night, the second day of 'Visions. The lights stay on (in the evenings ) until 20 June 2010 and you can find the map at the end of this blog, with more information, on the website.

The Conservatorium had the pick of the show, particularly with the following image about Charles Fraser, first Director of the Botanic Gardens.



Number 6 on the walk is the Palace Garden Gate. Although the Macquarie Visions publicity says that Elizabeth Macquarie 'designed and developed' the Royal Botanic Gardens, it was Lachlan Macquarie that circumscribed and legislated to establish the Gardens on 13 June 2016.

Elizabeth had a strong interest in gardens and would certainly have supported and contributed to this planning, although I don't know that she did any designing. The first garden beds, for fruit and vegetables, date back to 1788 and have been culivated continuously since the First Fleet.

The light installation at the Palace Garden Gate is meant to represent a 'growing garden' and to reflect 'the role of Farm Cove in providing a kitchen garden for the Governor's residence' as well as 'Elizabeth Macquarie's passion for all things botanical'. I'm afraid I have to say that it is, how do you say, dull... This is about the best picture I could take of it...

It's all part of Vivid, and you might remember my pictures of the Opera House and other bits and pieces from last year. The famous sails are coloured up again this year, as a kind of bookend to the Macquarie Vision walk and I can't resist just one picture of them, then the map...