The Magic Pudding

L-R: Bunyip Bluegum, Barnacle Bill, Albert and Sam Sawnoff

(Sculpture by Louis Laumen in the Childrens Garden, Royal Melbourne Botanic Garden)

Norman Lindsay, a noted Australian painter, scandalised pre-war Australian society with his uninhibited lifestyle and his erotic paintings. He specialised in scenes depicting orgies of satyrs and nude women, but he also wrote and illustrated "The Magic Pudding", a very popular children's book.

It featured a group of adventurers led by Bunyip Bluegum, a koala, who were saved from having to work when they managed to acquire Albert, the Puddin'. Albert was a "'cut and come again' puddin" that never ran out, and assumed any desired flavour, but behaved rather like a spoilt child, and had an unfortunate tendency to try to run away.

The book describes their adventures as Albert tries to escape and/or a succession of villains try to steal him.

Bunyip is drawn as a slightly pompous Edwardian gentleman, and I chose his name as I suspected that this is how most of you would see me.

Blue Tinsel Lily Calectasia cyanea

(Hand painted engraving: William Curtis 1840)

Notes:

  1. The bunyip was a monster in Australian aboriginal mythology, said to dwell in waterholes, and sieze people who wandered into its territory at night. Aboriginal mothers used the story to discourage their children from wandering off at night.

  2. Some of you may be familiar with the bluegums (a species of eucalyptus tree) which form the magnificent eucalyptus grove at UC Berkeley.

  3. Apparently Lindsay wrote the book to prove his contention that children's books did not have to be about fairytales.

  4. The film Sirens purported to depict the goings-on at Lindsay's home in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.

And why Calectasia.com?

When I decided to set up a new website, and was looking for a name, I wanted one which had some connection to corsetry, but most of the names I thought of were either already taken, or were very similar to some dubious site. I consulted a botany textbook, and eventually found Calectasia, which is derived from the Greek words Calos, (beautiful), and ectasia (stretched out), suggesting slender beauty. Calectasia is an endemic Australian genus of lilylike plants, with rather attractive metallic blue flowers, with the common name of Tinsel Lilies.


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