Uncurated

It all began with a letter. A colourfully illustrated poem about a Gothic house built for a couple who donated a huge museum collection to the University of Melbourne. This missive is hidden among the 700 plus items collected by Russell and Mab Grimwade. It tells a more personal story than the other objects they gathered, which construct a colonial version of Australian history. In this episode of Uncurated, Pema Monaghan, Josie Hess and Claudia Su unravel what that poem tells us about a man whose collection both defined and reflected the way Australian history has been told. 

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All sound effects and music used in this episode were sourced from Envato Elements, with applicable licences. 

1. “The Bad Guys” / https://elements.envato.com/the-bad-guys-YPS5Q8R 
2. “Lost In Space” / https://elements.envato.com/lost-in-space-AMUBTGK 
3. “You Can Not Hide” / https://elements.envato.com/you-can-not-hide-S5CK4RS 
4. “Inspiring Woodwinds” / https://elements.envato.com/inspiring-woodwinds-HLLXKZJ
5. “The Flower Waltz” / https://elements.envato.com/the-flower-waltz-XXVL2T8
6. “Spring Sadness” / https://elements.envato.com/spring-sadness-8TMAQ3K
7. “Lost In Paradise” / https://elements.envato.com/lost-in-paradise-9K3NRGP 
8. “Creepy Door Open With Happy Halloween Voice” / https://elements.envato.com/creepy-door-open-with-happy-halloween-voice-6JR49BP
9. “Crow” / https://elements.envato.com/crow-KEQ62GA
10. “Moon View” / https://elements.envato.com/moon-view-3TFWDCY 
11. “First Day of Spring” / https://elements.envato.com/first-day-of-spring-ZLPCFXT
12. “Chill Out Logo Pack” / https://elements.envato.com/chill-out-logo-pack-AAPNLRY
13. “Vintage Car Driving By” / https://elements.envato.com/vintage-car-driving-by-WSAYJFR
14. “X-Ray Machine Large” / https://elements.envato.com/x-ray-machine-large-JKT5MEY
15. “Our Last Dance Waltz” / https://elements.envato.com/our-last-waltz-dance-2X2CLZ6
16. “Big Mafia Funeral” / https://elements.envato.com/big-mafia-funeral-G3LUPBL 

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Four hundred and three specimens of a single vibrant plant are included among the flora at Melbourne University’s Herbarium. It's most commonly known today as the Emu Bush or eremophila — a native Australian medicinal plant with the ability to cure numerous diseases, but not everyone knows it by this name.   The issues raised by this single plant represent the stark cultural divide between Australia’s indigenous communities and the British settlers, illuminating patterns of marginalisation that persist to this day. In this episode of Uncurated, Mustafa Nuristani, Xinyue Huang and Xiaowei Chang examine the many names of a plant that speaks volumes about Australia’s past and present.

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Music for this episode was sourced from Epidemic Sound (https://www.epidemicsound.com/). The following tracks were purchased for use: 

1. Alexandra Woodward / Moonlight Mystery (https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/eqd9ge0xUj/) 
2. Jon Björk / Outback Hunter (https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/ALQMNIJyLj/) 
3. Piper Ezz / One Final Theft (https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/CEd9NOlMib/) 
4. Giant Ember feat. Frida Wallin / When I Am Calling Your Name (https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/1wAmKSTti8/) 
5. Jon Björk / River Serpent (https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/tzNWLBcFUF/) 

All are courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com  

Sound for this episode was sourced from YouTube and Free Sound:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BUNHd7ENZk  
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p4cnYApRu8 
3. https://www.adobe.com/products/audition/offers/AdobeAuditionDLCSFX.html? cq_ck=1407955238126&wcmmode=disabled  
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BUNHd7ENZk  

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A little book – modestly bound, fragrant and full of... cloth.   It started as an 18th century Western curio and found its way to the Rare Books Collection at the University of Melbourne. Collected on Captain Cook's journey to the South Pacific, it's become an object of obsession among Western collectors and museum curators alike. The swatches of cloth tell their own tales, of the first trades - sometimes coerced - between cultures, of an ancient Pacific artform practised only by women, and of so much more.   In this episode of Uncurated, Clancy Balen and Qiushi Wang explore a side of Captain Cook's story that we weren't taught in primary school.

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Music on this episode was found on Freesound (https://freesound.org/), Looperman (https://www.looperman.com/) and toSound (https://www.tosound.com/). 

The outro music is based off 'The Only Instrument of It's Kind In The World' by Ben Salter (https://soundcloud.com/user-839269279/ben-salter-the-only-instrument).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hair from a corpse, killer antidotes and photos of the dead; these are some of the objects held in the University of Melbourne’s twelve museums.  Join students from the Centre for Advancing Journalism on a revelatory journey of colonisation, fame, fortune, sex and death, as they break down the sandstone to unpack Australia’s hidden histories.  A museum is a place to tell stories.  But who gets to decide what stories are told?   Uncurated is a new seven-part series coming very soon from the Centre for Advancing Journalism.    Episode 1 will be released on October 14. 

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