Peter Garrett's announcement today of the Powerhouse Museum's purchase for $81,000 of 250 fashion photographs by Bruno Benini is more than enough reason to visit. I can't remember when I last went there. It's always seemed to be an out-of-the-way kid's place stuck into a windy corner in the dusty side of Darling Harbour and surrounded by highways...

But now i'm starting to rethink. What a lovely development! I'm so jealous. Imagine having 250 photos by the same person! I'm guessing that the photographer's widow, Hazel, who appeared on the ABC's news broadcast, is the source of the photos, but I may be wrong.

It's been a while since so many Benini phtos have been shown in one place, it seems. The National Gallery of Victoria has a small collection. There was also a show staged by the RMIT in Melbourne in 1999. But there's nothing like this new development in recent memory. The purchase also includes thousands of photographic negatives.

It's not that I'm a big fan of Benini. In fact before tonight's broadcast I didn't know who he was. But I own several 1930s thru 1960s black-and-white photos inherited from relations. My appetite has been piqued by close proximity to the elegance of the period. So I will be making the trip down to the Powerhouse Museum to see the new acquisitions.