Nov '25 • Visual Arts
The Ozzy Osbourne mural near my home
I was born at 6:44am on the 4th of March 1979 at the Western General Hospital in Footscray. My father told me how the first time he held me he took me to the window to show me the view of the Westgate Bridge. My parents both arrived in Australia in 1964. My mum came from Preston Lancashire in England, and my father came from a town In Germany called Schwerte which is located in the land known as North Rhine-Westphalia. Their parents brought them out here for a better life. They were part of a wave of economic refugees that came to Australia in the years that followed the end of the Second World War, many of whom were settled in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne. I remember once how my father remarked that he'd been shown pictures of Bondi Beach and Uluru back in Germany and then had been disappointed when his family was "dumped in an industrial slum".
When I was growing up my parents often spoke about the difficulties they faced adapting to Australian Culture. My Mum, a "Ten Pound Pom" told me how the "Australians" would taunt her, telling her to "go home Pommie" and that she would proudly retort in a thick Lanky accent "Well you're not Black!"
My father didn't speak English when he arrived, and the Kids he went to school with would teach him swear words which he would naively repeat to his teachers who would then discipline him. Keep in mind this was before strapping was banned.
I've lived in a lot of places, yet somehow, I seem to keep finding my way back to Footscray. I came back to go to Film School and now I have an apartment here. If you believe everything you see on the news Melbourne seems like a scary place. Machete attacks, car chases and youth crime attract a lot of media attention, and Footscray is one of the suburbs which have a poor reputation. What I rarely see in the media is the way members of the community here really make an effort to help each other out. It requires some "street smarts" to be aware of who you need to stay away from, but most people here are genuinely kind because they know what it's like to struggle. I never had the pleasure of meeting the late Franco Cozzo, but people who have told me that he would often say "Footscray is better than f*ckin' Toorak mate!"
The Western Suburbs have seen many waves of migration, and is now home to a thriving African community. Some of them can seem a bit frightening at first and that comes as a result of the situations they've had to flee, but most are very kind and friendly. I particularly remember talking to a young lady with a small son. She had scars on her face, and was obviously under a lot of pressure, but she became very warm and relaxed when I just engaged in a friendly conversation about the weather.
A few weeks ago, I took this photo of a mural on the side of a shop up near Tottenham Station. Graffiti is common in Footscray, but not every Graffiti artist is like the violent criminal known as "Pam the Bird Guy" There are many talented Graffiti artists generating income through businesses who hire them to brighten up their dull buildings. There was something profound awakened in me when I saw this particular mural. I was and still am a huge fan of Ozzy Osbourne. In his greatest hit "Crazy Train" he sang "maybe it's not too late, to learn how to love and forget how to hate". I know the Footscray community gets this.
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The Ozzy Osbourne mural near my home
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