Queen won't visit

BUCKINGHAM Palace has confirmed that the Queen will not visit Australia this year despite a face-to-face invitation to attend the 150th Melbourne Cup celebrations from Premier John Brumby at Balmoral Castle last October.

OPEN GALLERY

HARBOUR, TREES AND HILLS Jacqueline Belassa's Sydney is always sunny. She celebrates and idealises its harbours and beaches in vivid greens and blues (The Farewell €” Balmoral, pictured), smothers her boards and papers with colour and pattern and employs a style that's slightly stylised, slightly naive and easy to enjoy. Look closely €” in some paintings, small, easy-to-overlook figures are experiencing small personal dramas. Robin Gibson Gallery, 278 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, 9331 6692. Tue-Sat, 11am-6pm. Until March 3.