Beyond the chaos of the scary rides, screaming kids and lolly-filled showbags, the Royal Melbourne Show remains a mecca for serious competition in a vast range of categories. Eugene Benson speaks to some of the exhibitors, young and old, preparing for this year’s show
MELBOURNE in spring is a busy place. Our sports-mad city goes into raptures for the footy finals, and the Spring Racing Carnival keeps us buzzing for a month until the Melbourne Cup stops the nation for a day. Another event synonymous with Melbourne at this time is, of course, the Royal Melbourne Show.
Since 1848, the show has attracted droves from across the state, traditionally to display the best of the agriculture industry. Whether represented by prize bulls and rams or enormous woodchoppers, it was the city meeting the country.
This year, while we can be thankful the country still plays a dominant role, plenty more categories exist for ordinary suburban folk wanting to join their country cousins in the show arena.
Keilor Park’s Marie Masterson never thought she’d be showing off her rare Norwegian Forest cats at any competition, let alone the Royal Melbourne Show.
Three years ago, she decided she wanted a pet cat, but not just any old cat. She wanted a big one. On learning about the monstrous Norwegian Forest cat she was satisfied they were the breed for her. She soon found a local breeder and two kittens she adored, Isadora and Erik.
‘‘I had no intention of showing them, but a friend of the breeder, who’s also a judge, said she thought ‘red boy’ [Erik] would do well in a show.
‘‘I thought, all right just for fun I’ll take him, and we’ve been to every [Melbourne] show since.’’
Erik and Isadora soon grew tired of the showing experience so Masterson has taken on a new contender, which, due to the show’s strict rules, cannot be named or photographed prior to its competition day.
Needless to say, though, big things are expected.
‘‘He belonged to the breeder as well and she actually asked if I’d take him to see how he went.
‘‘He just wants everyone to notice him.’’
Having competed with her cats for the past three years, Masterson couldn’t imagine not taking part.
‘‘I went to the show every year as a child because my father was a farmer,” she says. “I liked it because there were people from all over Victoria displaying something they loved — I’m now part of that.
‘‘It’s an interesting atmosphere at the show; it’s like Victoria is on display.’’
Jenny Lay has only recently discovered a passion and skill for painting, but with it has come the opportunity to show her work at the Royal Melbourne Show.
Lay, 56, will be a first-time exhibitor this year. Her pastel powder depiction is of a kelpie, best known as Red Dog from the recent Australian film of the same name.
Her painting will be entered in the show’s art competition.
‘‘I decided to enter my paintings to see them displayed and even though they’re not for sale, it’s a nice feeling to be expressing my art to the general public,’’ says Lay.
‘‘My main inspiration is animals — I collate pictures of them from the media and use them to create my own drawings.
‘‘The warmth of their facial expressions inspires me to draw what I see in. Displaying my artwork makes me feel excited; the paintings are a part of me.’’
Lay says that at first she wasn’t confident, but pushed ahead with the encouragement of friends and family.
Even that didn’t quite stop a mental block kicking in about half-way through the painting earmarked for her first Melbourne show.
‘‘I got halfway and couldn’t go on,’’ she recalls. ‘‘So I went down to the banks of the Maribyrnong and started up again — and I think it turned out beautifully.
‘‘The peacefulness coming from the river put me in the right state of mind to complete my most enjoyed picture of this beautiful dog.’’
Exhibiting in the show will also be a first for Point Cook milliner Brooke Simon, who’s following in the footsteps of her highly creative uncle.
‘‘He used to exhibit in cake decorating and take out the prize every year,” recalls Simon.
‘‘He also did floristry and dress design. I didn’t pick up the cake-making skills though.’’
Simon will enter a Melbourne Cup hat in the millinery section of this year’s show.
The rules dictate the creation be fully hand-made, from shaping the hat base to handcrafting intricate rosettes.
A self-taught milliner, she reckons most of the work has been ‘trial and error’.
‘‘This is the first time I put an idea down on paper and it hasn’t turned out anything like I meant.
‘‘First, I set up my supplies. I have a colour in mind and then it grows from there.’’
Simon has crafted a cobalt-blue hat with peacock feathers and hand-made gold rosettes. From start to finish, it has taken her about five hours to complete.
‘‘They are very fiddly,” she explains. “After you’re finished you need to figure out how to attach it to someone’s head.’’
At, 11, Katherine Schnitzer is already a veteran of Melbourne show exhibiting.
She got the bug three years ago, submitting a floral painting to the junior arts and craft category.
The seed for that entry was planted the year before when she attended the show with her mother Luba and looked at entries in all the different art and craft categories.
‘‘She decided that she would enter something the next year,’’ Luba Schnitzer recalls. ‘‘I encourage her with everything artistic — she loves doing all kinds of creative things.’’
In 2011, Katherine also entered the junior photography section with a picture she took of a butterfly at the Melbourne Zoo. This year, the Essendon Primary School pupil will enter another photo, this time from a recent holiday — a painting of Japanese blossoms and a floral felt creation.
It’s quite a workload.
‘‘If I get a prize, that’s great; if not, that’s OK — it’s still fun,’’ says Katherine.
‘‘The felting started because I was at a friend’s place and her mum showed me a book about it.
‘‘It was really fun and I thought I could do it.
‘‘With the photography, I really like all the effects you can get from a camera. If any of my friends are going to the show I tell them to look at the photography section.’’
• Whether it is craft, equestrian, dairy cattle or wood chop competitions, the Royal Melbourne Show sees hundreds of people preparing for many hours to bring out their best. The show starts this Saturday, September 22, and runs until October 2 at the Melbourne Showgrounds. For more information, visit royalshow.com.au
