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Hello everyone and welcome back.

Some interest in the sheep with the gold-encrusted teeth remains.

At this stage, I have no further information but I’m still trying.

‘Under the clock’ is absent today but will return next week.

Everyday Australian design – a part of who we are

I’m sure you know a lot about the Great Southern Land — and about the country we have become.

However, you may never know just how clever Australians are, until you visit SAM and take a good look at Ian Wong’s exhibition.

I was surprised, informed and, quite frankly, delighted.

Whenever a prime minister talks about the ‘clever country’, I am inclined to think about IT.

However, this exhibition will truly open your eyes. Every product on display was designed in Australia.

Some of these items are world-first inventions and many others have won design awards — the Prince Philip Designers Prize, for example.

And you will notice so many well-known brands, most of which we use every day; names like Kambrook, Décor, Willow, Black and Decker and Caroma (for the first dual-flush).

Furphys is also represented with a camp oven, designed in 1893 (water carts from 1893, camp ovens were made from the 1930s).

You’ll find so much here, from salt and pepper shakers to a Maton guitar of 1946.

Who knew we designed a touch phone in 1985? Or invented the power board?

Ian told me about visiting London in the 1980s and asking for a power board. They said ‘what’s that?’

And who knew we also invented the hula hoop and sold it to America?

And then, of course, there’s our money; the polymer notes have been adopted by 20 others — Canada and the United Kingdom being the most recent.

Ian has exhibited in Milan (at World Expo 2015 at the request of the City of Melbourne), in Beijing, Hong Kong and in Suzhou.

He has selected 800 Australian-designed items from his collection of over 2500 — and now, his exhibition is here, in his hometown (actually, it didn’t have to travel far, as it ‘lives’ here — is stored locally).

Ian graduated from RMIT University with a Bachelor of Arts, in industrial design.

He is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia and this year won a Gold Award — Good Design Australia for research.

Ian is a senior lecturer at Monash University and spends half his year in China at Monash’s School of Industrial Design where he is program director (I believe he also has connections with Swinburne. Actually his curriculum vitae is something like eight pages long).

SAM is open every day, including public holidays, from 10am to 4pm.

You’ll find Ian’s exhibition just next to the cafe. It is free to visit, so please do so.

By the way, the cafe is suffering from staff shortages, just right now. So, if you are planning a visit, it might not be a bad idea to call 0481 063 736 — just to check on times.

If you would like a sneak peek at just a few of the items in the exhibition visit http://everydayaustraliandesign.com

About Ian and his family

Many of you will remember Wong’s World and the Canvas Shop.

I think there was also a wrecking yard — if my memory is holding up.

Jim and Sylvia Wong had seven children.

Ian attended St Andrew’s Kindergarten and St George’s Road Primary School before North Tech where, he says, he enjoyed the perfect education for his life’s passion — design.

He remembers picnics at the Raymond West pool (when there was a beach) with an original Esky and Speedo goggles; and swimming in a Driclad above-ground swimming pool with my boys (which was an Australian design).

He also mentioned making Vegemite toast, at his home, and, over the years, watching the technology of the toaster — as it evolved.

And, because there is music in his genes, he mentioned the Maton guitar; how popular it was with Aussie musos and the great Australian music that was played on it; eg. Eagle Rock and How to Make Gravy.

Our eldest son also attended St Andrew’s and St George’s Road, and he and Ian became friends.

So, I first met him when he was four. He was a quiet, well-mannered boy, a thinker, an observer of the world (he talks more these days, especially about design).

His favourite hobbies were drawing and constructing things. There were many, many play dates, although they weren’t called that in those days.

Then, in later years, there was a band — or three — with Ian or his brothers — and our boy.

Ian’s mum, Sylvia, frequently thought she had an extra son, because there was good rehearsal space on their property.

And, there was STAG. Ian and all of his siblings were involved from time to time — and three of my sons.

They were followed by the next generation — Jim and Sylvia’s grandchildren and ours — in Notre Dame and STAG productions.

At some point (I’m not even sure of the decade) one of my dearest friends married Ian’s older brother, Gary.

The Wong family is a close one — and so is ours — and somehow, the threads of our lives kept crossing.

And, sometime, during those many years, lifelong friendships formed — and remain today.

We have always considered them a special part of our own family and always will.

Recently, Ian talked about his pride in Shepparton, especially with the publicity our community received last year.

He thinks things are looking good for our city. ‘‘If you ask me if people would drive from Melbourne to see SAM and MOVE, my answer would be ‘definitely’.’’

And, he says, the view from SAM’s terrace, of the river and the trees, is absolutely beautiful.

He also talked about curating the items for the exhibition. ‘‘It was,’’ he said, ‘‘a family affair’’.

The items were selected and his mum washed everything — all 800 items (except, perhaps, the guitar — happy with a dust cloth?).

Brother Ken was also a valued part of the installation team.

Ian designed the exhibition with his wife, Jo Pritchard, who is a design manager at Melbourne Museum. The couple has two adult daughters.

The installation is one of hundreds of examples of the Wong family working successfully together.

But I’ll conclude this chat with a direct quote from Ian: ‘‘Award-winning products, we use everyday, are part of our lifestyle, part of our culture, part of our identity. I want people to know that they are designed in Australia. This is my research focus; this is what I teach and what I collect. I’m passionate about that.’’

On Saturday, February 12, at 2pm, Ian will be at SAM, with exhibitions curator Jessica O’Farrell — to tell some of his many stories about Australian design — and answer any questions you may have. Love to see you there.

Ian’s Instagram is @ispyid and @monashada #monashada #ianwongcollection

Celebrate our country tomorrow, we have much to be grateful for.

And may it be easy, my friends.

Email: towntalk@sheppnews.com.au

Letter: Town Talk. Shepparton News. P.O. Box 204. Shepparton 3631.

Phone: Send a text on 0418 962 507 (note: text only; I will call you back, if you wish).

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