Roy and Matilda are two mice who love art galleries, one day they take their family to visit the Queensland Art Gallery. It was night time when they arrived and as no one would see them, they decided to look around for a while.
They found a little hole in the bottom of a wall and set about making a cosy home. One day, a man who worked in the Galley’s workshop restoring and carving frames found they were living there and decided to make them a special little front door.
During the day, the mice stayed in their new home while people came to look at the paintings and sculptures, however at night when everything was quiet again, they came out of their home for a new adventure.
Each night Roy and Matilda and their children Millicent, Algernon and Myfanwy went looking for a painting they liked so they could climb in. On one occasion Matilda heard beautiful music, Roy heard it too, so the lady in E Phillips Fox’s painting Bathing hour said she would look after the children while they searched for the mysterous music.
The lady listened. “I’m not sure,” she answered. “It may be the sound of the waves, or peoples voices… Why don’t you leave the children with me for the day,” asked the lady. “They’re playing happily. I’ll look after them for you.”
“Before we continue with our search for the music, I must get my coat cleaned,” Roy told Matilda. “Ask the ladies in Monday morning by Vida Lahey,” she suggested. ‘They’re doing their washing. I’ll wait for you.”
Next stop afternoon tea in the painting Under the jacaranda by R Godfrey Rivers. They all sat in the shade. The flowers from the tree had fallen on the ground and looked like a blue carpet.
Don’t let the story end
Visit the family’s home at the Queensland Art Gallery, just look for the letters ‘R’ and ‘M’ carved into their beautiful wooden front door in the permanent Australian Art Collection hang.
Continue reading Roy and Matilda’s The Mysterious Music to find out what happened next on their great adventure as the two mice visit works from the Gallery’s Collection, and who they found playing a piano.
Bring the family into the Gallery to create an adventure of your own, the excitement of finding Roy and Matilda’s carved door can enliven the imagination of little visitors, this is a perfect way for young children to be introduced to fine art.
#QAGOMA
