澳洲人还是很顽强的,他们对劳伦斯的记念比英国人要真诚执著地多。3月2日是劳伦斯的忌辰，澳洲劳伦斯研究会就提前策划好了从那天起举办劳伦斯月，当天推出“劳伦斯在澳洲”绘画展，所展出绘画出自澳洲历史悠久的绘画学校的校长Paul Delprat之手，是他访问劳伦斯在澳洲的故居后获得灵感绘出的。劳伦斯1922年在悉尼郊外的海边小镇Thirroul小住，并写出了迄今为止澳洲人认为是最要的关于澳洲的小说《袋鼠》。为此澳洲有些人狂热地记念他。一位著名的音乐家Peter Sculthorpe也据此创作了著名的音乐曲《小城》（Small Town）。这次劳伦斯月就是Thirroul背景的绘画与音乐月。

   我为澳洲朋友的热忱感到骄傲并深受感动，劳伦斯的一月逗留为澳洲文化史留下了难忘的篇章，其《袋鼠》中对澳洲海岸风光的浓墨重彩描绘至今无本土作家超越，是澳洲文学的最大意外收获。

   黑马有幸以翻译《袋鼠》为重要依据之一，申请过两月的研究薪金在西澳Edith Cowan大学逗留研究，回国后翻译出版了《袋鼠》（译林版）。身临其境感受劳伦斯眼中的澳洲风物和土语，很有收获。澳洲人的慷慨大度与认真也给我留下了难忘的印象。此次不能亲临劳伦斯月展览，但收到一份通知，能在3月2日那一天与澳洲朋友一起产生心灵的遥感，为此祝福。

   下面是劳伦斯月启动仪式之鸡尾酒会邀请的原文：

COCKTAIL PARTY

OPENING OF EXHIBITION OF “ LAWRENCE IN AUSTRALIA” PICTURES

Members’ Bar, Tuesday, March 2, 6pm-8pm ($30)

    YOU ARE invited to attend the opening of this exhibition, which will also launch a series of regular monthly exhibitions in the Members’ Bar, as a new feature in the club’s events calendar.

This show, which will be opened by Robert Darroch, vice-president of the DH Lawrence Society of Australia (and author of DH Lawrence in Australia), will include oils, water-colours and etchings by Paul Delprat, Garry Shead and Frank Nowlan (a local Thirroul artist).

   The main feature of the show will be a series of 12 works by Paul Delprat – never shown before – and painted after a visit to Thirroul in December 1975.  (Paul is a member of the club, and Principal of the Julian Ashton Art School – Australia’s oldest art school, founded by his great-grandfather in 1890.)

   Lawrence visited Australia in 1922, and stayed in a cottage in Thirroul – “Wyewurk” – for 10 weeks, where he wrote his eighth major (and second-last) novel, Kangaroo.  John Douglas Pringle, former editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, in his book Australian Accent described Kangaroo as one of the two most important books ever written about Australia.

    However, a profound mystery hangs over the novel, and indeed about Lawrence’s time in Australia.  (He later co-authored a second novel about Australia, The Boy in the Bush, with West Australian writer Mollie Skinner.) 

    The plot of Kangaroo tells of an English author arriving in Australia and stumbling on a secret army of Diggers that is planning to establish a semi-fascist regime across the country.  Robert Darroch argues in his account that Lawrence’s plot was not pure fiction, and that he did indeed come across a secret army in Sydney in 1922, and that Kangaroo is the product of that encounter.

    The UUSC has links with that “real” secret army – a former President of the club was one of its leaders - so it is appropriate that this exhibition of Lawrence works is to be held at the club.  (It will remain on show for the month of March – “Lawrence Month” at the club – and will conclude with a talk on March 30 by a visiting Lawrence expert, to which you will also receive an invitation closer to the date.)

    Our chef, Vanessa, has prepared a repast fit for the Cocktail Party.  It will include:

“LAUNCH OF DH LAWRENCE EXHIBITION” MENU

Salmon tataki served with flying fish roe

Fresh figs wrapped in Prosciutto

Parmesan crusted white asparagus served with a hollandaise dipping sauce

Duck liver pate topped with blood orange marmalade

Rock oysters served with Australian sparkling wine

    Another feature of the exhibition will be a showing of a video production of a Peter Sculthorpe piece, Small Town, set in Thirroul to the words of Lawrence (spoken by Sculthorpe himself), and illustrated by some of Garry Shead’s series of Kangaroo paintings.