New listening in Arts: Winter collection

New listening in Arts: Winter collection

July 9, 2019

classical music, Film, jazz, Music, Musicals, opera, Popular music, Rare Books & Arts:

New arrivals include this collection of popular, jazz, classical, opera, musical theatre and film music on CD, to warm up those cold winter days. All are currently showcased on our… Read More ›

The search for Victoria’s top slam poet begins

The search for Victoria’s top slam poet begins

July 3, 2019

News:

From today, poets, rappers and spoken word artists will compete in heats across Victoria as the search for the state’s poetry slam champion begins.

The chaos and order of Marion Page

The chaos and order of Marion Page

June 28, 2019

Collection Care, Our stories, People & professions, Preservation, Social life & customs:

Follow the journey of a large, multi-format Manuscript collection belonging to the late Marion Page from a South Yarra storage room to our Preservation team.

Francis Frith in exotic Middle Eastern dress

Extract from ‘True portraiture: David Roberts’ The Holy Land and Francis Frith’s Photographic prints of Egyptian antiquities’

June 27, 2019

Our stories, Painting, Photography:

Europe went crazy for all things Egyptian in the early 19th century, which helps explain why the Library’s collection includes rare works by two famous Egyptologists: painter David Roberts and photographer Francis Frith.

Bookings open for National Family History Month!

Bookings open for National Family History Month!

June 18, 2019

Family history events, Family matters, Training:

We’re participating in National Family History Month 2019! August is National Family History Month and State Library Victoria has a great program of free events both onsite and online. You… Read More ›

The Chief Librarian and the soap thieves

The Chief Librarian and the soap thieves

June 6, 2019

Our stories, People & professions:

In 1887, someone was stealing the State Library soap- or was it ‘someones’?

From celebrity to the streets, the power of photojournalism

From celebrity to the streets, the power of photojournalism

June 5, 2019

Our stories, People & professions:

Over the course of his 50-year career, news photographer Bruce Postle captured images of the rich, the famous and the powerful. But on many occasions, his work also involved the most humble and vulnerable people in the community.

‘Dear Walt’: Whitman in Victoria

‘Dear Walt’: Whitman in Victoria

May 31, 2019

Our stories:

Victorian school teacher Bernard O’Dowd entered a brief but remarkably intense and intimate correspondence with American poet and iconoclast Walt Whitman.

Library Board of Victoria welcomes four new board members

Library Board of Victoria welcomes four new board members

May 29, 2019

Announcements, News:

President of the Library Board of Victoria, John Wylie AM, today announced four new members will join the Library Board. Karen Wood, Hugh Williams, Donata Carrazza and Cheri Ong will commence their new appointments today, each for a three-year period.

Our new-look catalogue: Browse and Related items

Our new-look catalogue: Browse and Related items

May 21, 2019

Tips and tricks:

Read about the new browsing feature of our redesigned online catalogue and learn how to discover related material in the collection.

Such was life

The sky is the limit: pioneering aviator Freda Thompson

The sky is the limit: pioneering aviator Freda Thompson

April 15, 2026 0 comments

In 1934, Australian aviator, Freda Thompson, made history as the first Australian woman to fly solo from England to Australia. Thompson was a pioneer who believed the sky was the limit – she wanted to reach that limit, to feel the adrenaline, to just fly.

Arts

Photographic portrait by Richard Beck of Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980), political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher.

Ailsa O’Connor: highlights of a life of socialist activism, feminism and art

March 23, 2026 9 comments

Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980) was a political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher. Throughout her art career she was a member of the Communist Party and associated with the Socialist Realist Group.