Sarah Johnson at Newcastle Art Gallery with the latest edition of Artemis

Sarah Johnson, The Newcastle Art Gallery’s new Curator, is enjoying the February-June 2012 edition of Artemis magazine.

Born and raised in the Hunter, Sarah has returned back to Newcastle following lengthy stints at the Powerhouse Museum and the Manly Art Gallery.

Sarah’s photograph coincided with the opening of ‘Desert Country’ a travelling exhibition from the Art Gallery of South Australia which is on display at Newcastle Art Gallery – March 16 to June 17, 2012.

Advertisements and Recruitment Banner

Gloucester Coal’s Recruitment Team required a large pull-up banner to enhance their display for a national tour of university employment expos.

After considering a number of concepts, FordComm produced a banner that was visually engaging and communicated Gloucester Coal’s key message to University graduates.

FordComm produces a variety of printed artwork for Gloucester Coal including recruitment ads, banners, community support program adverts and sponsorship artwork.

Organisers from the Hunter Central Coast Innovation Festival wanted an improved website and a more ‘corporate’ styled logo ahead of this year’s Festival in May 2011.  FordComm created the new logo and built the new site in under six weeks.  The Festival’s website hosts around 40 events and has received substantial traffic in the first two weeks of the Festival.  FordComm also developed press ads and other supporting marketing collateral. www.hccinnovationfestival.com.au

The conditions on Sunday were ideal for ocean swimming. Air temp was mild and water temp was perfect at 19°.

“The weather was good, last year the water was like a washing machine, but this year it was perfect. We had more entrants this year and more community support,” said Cooks Hill Surf Club President, Andrew Howard.

The annual 1.5 km swim from Merewether Baths to Bar Beach was won by a female for the first time. Erin Killey took out first place and female Eliza Smith closely followed in second place. The first male across the line was Heath Winning, followed by Josh Hollard.

Overall the day was a great success, with close to 400 entrants and a large spectator turnout. Organisers have reported they received overwhelming positive feedback on the management of the event.

The Marketown Dash4Cash was won by swim champions Eliza Smith and Heath Winning in their respective races. And the Cetnaj Bolt for Bucks 2 km run was won by Josh Hollard (who was also the male runner up in the swim).

FordComm provided publicity assistance and graphic design services. This year the event received some excellent media coverage on NBN and in The Herald.

Photography by Red Monkey

We were welcomed by a small entourage of blue-T-shirt-wearing Nippers, who were grateful for and enthusiastic about our support.

Other sponsors who attended included the Newcastle Permanent Building Society, ESP Promotions, the Newcastle Herald, Cetnaj, and The Jewellery Affair.

Our support was rewarded with a personalised glass vase complete with a goldfish with a mighty stroke!

The appreciation of our sponsorship resonated with a captivating speech superbly delivered by 14 year old rising Nipper, Tamara Hall, which took us through the trials and tribulations of being a Nipper.

The Newcastle Permanent Baths2Bar Community Ocean Swim will take place this Sunday, 19 December 2010. To register for the event, visit www.cookshillsurfclub.com.au.

Photography by Red Monkey

The Hon Tony Burke, Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, officially opened the Spent Potliner (SPL) Reprocessing Facility on-site at Hydro Aluminium Kurri Kurri on Wednesday 1 December 2010. Other guests included Cessnock City Council Mayor, Councillor Alison Davey, and Federal Member for the Hunter, the Hon Joel Fitzgibbon.

The facility is a joint initiative between mineral processing company Regain Services Pty Ltd and Hydro Aluminium Kurri Kurri.

Regain Director, Bernie Cooper, says the initiative represents a new era in environmental sustainability with gains for the environment, for end-users of products and for the aluminium industry.

“The approach is a major win for the environment, with 100% beneficial use of smelter by-products,” he said.

The management of Spent Potliner (SPL) waste is an important issue for the aluminium industry worldwide.

“Regain has developed world-leading technology to make SPL safe and recover minerals from it, which can then be used to make valuable products used in other industries such as brick, cement and steel making,” Mr Cooper said.

SPL Reprocessing is part of Hydro’s program to further improve environmental performance.

“The commitment to SPL Reprocessing is part of Hydro’s commitment to further improve environmental performance and achieve a zero waste smelter, at a time of significant financial challenges,” Hydro Technical Manager, Hubert Lehman, said.

In addition, the products made by Regain offer many environmental benefits for the cement and brick making industries, as they include properties that reduce emissions and save energy in the manufacturing process.

Following 10 years success within the Australian market strong demand for the product is now coming from Asia, with Regain recently obtaining approval to export to China.

“By expanding our customer base to Asia, Regain can continue to grow its operations in Australia, providing many environmental and economic benefits,” Mr Cooper said.

Swimmers will swim along the iconic 1.5 km stretch from Merewether Baths to Bar Beach, “Baths to Bar”, in a range of different categories for ages and abilities.

Organised by Cooks Hill Surf Club, all money raised will assist Cooks Hill, Merewether and Dixon Park Surf Clubs purchase vital equipment required for surf lifesaving operations.

President of Cooks Hill Surf Club, Andrew Howard said the swim provides a safe and rewarding open water challenge for all members of the community with a range of age categories plus an elite division for serious swimmers.

“This year’s event will also include a 2 kilometre sand run and a 250 metre children’s swim to allow more members of the community to join in the fun on the day,” Mr Howard said.

Newcastle Permanent CEO, Terry Millett said after being involved with the event last year for the first time, Newcastle Permanent was quick to come on board as the major sponsor this year.

“Newcastle Permanent has a long and proud association with surf life saving in the Hunter over the last 28 years and we are proud to extend our support to the Baths 2 Bar Community Ocean Swim. We encourage people of all ages to get involved in the event and support three very worthy surf life saving clubs in Newcastle.”

Event registrations are being taken from today and entry forms can be collected from any Newcastle Permanent branch and at www.newcastlepermanent.com.au or www.cookshillsurfclub.com.au.

Our design team has recently completed “Curious Colony” – a book produced to showcase the gallery’s exhibition of the same name.  The “Curious Colony” exhibition is a celebration of Governor Lachlan Macquarie’s passion for art in the early colony of New South Wales and the book brings to life both art works from the Macquarie era as well as contemporary pieces.

“The FordComm team are enthusiastic specialists whose expertise has enhanced the Gallery’s profile in the community. The quality of their services has also enabled the Gallery to re-position itself within the competitive arts industry – both within the state of NSW and nationally.

FordComm is a leader in corporate support of not-for-profit institutions in Newcastle and this reflects the solid belief of their senior management that investment in the local community enriches lives and our quality of life and experiences.”  Ron Ramsay, Director Newcastle Region Art Gallery.

Representatives of partners in the project, Yancoal Australia, Sojitz from Japan and a Korean consortium, uncovered a plaque to mark the opening of the $450-million project.

Brian Flannery of Yancoal paid tribute to all who had brought the mine into production less than 18 months after commencement.

“To have the first train of coal head to the Port of Newcastle from Moolarben in May of this year is a remarkable achievement, considering work didn’t start on site until March last year” he said.

The mine will have a life of more than 20 years, with both open cut and underground extraction of thermal coal from the Moolarben seam, most destined for shipment by rail to the Port of Newcastle for export.

Please see below a selection of images from the Moolarben Coal Opening Event.