Principality of Wy

 

The Principality of Wy – An Australian Micronation

The Principality of Wy is an Australian micronation located in the Sydney suburb of Mosman and was established in 2004 due to an extended dispute which occurred with the local council, Prince Paul Ashton Delprat and has been described as `the Artist’s Principality. Since then, the Artist’s Principality is featured in media all across the globe and has been promoting art and artists.

Created by Paul, in protest to construct a driveway for access to his private residence with a plan to build a driveway over his frontage, a road un-built near Wyargine Reserve which was initially approved in principle though formal approval was delayed resulting in bureaucratic mistakes.

Eleven years after its submission, his development application got rejected due to further bureaucratic errors wherein, at the ceremony at Mosman Town Hall, Delprat announced his secession from Mosman Municipality and presented his Declaration of Independence on November 15 2004, to the Mayor of Mosman, dressed in full regalia as `Prince Paul of Wy’. Delprat is known in Sydney’s arts community as the principal since 1988 of Julian Ashton Art School which is one of Australia’s most famous cultural educational institutions.

Patron of Portrait Artists Australia

Before joining Julian Ashton Art School as a Principal in 1988, he was privately teaching in Sydney and N.S.W. Universities, Newington College and the Australian Independent International School. At the Julian Ashton Art School, in 1990, he inaugurated the school’s Scholarship program, beginning with the Sir William Dobell Scholarship which was sponsored by The Sir William Dobell Foundation.

As an art student, Delprat won the Prize of The Henry Gibbons Drawing, The Phillip Muskett Landscape and The Le Gay Brereton Drawing at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and The Waratah Festival Sculpture and the Drawing Prizes were awarded by Mr Rupert Murdoch. He continued with his studies in the galleries of Paris and London.

He is the Patron of Portrait Artists Australia as well as The Mosman Art society together with an Associate of the Royal Art society of New South Wales and went on to serve as a judge of fine art for several competitions which were held all over Australia. The principality is also an active patron of art and sponsors several art prizes.

Covered by Local & International News

Since the formation of the principality of Wy, it has been covered by local as well as international news which included Sky News, The Daily Telegraph – UK, The Sydney Morning Herald, The National (Abu Dhabi), The Daily Telegraph (Australia) and The Kuwait Times. The outcome of the media interest resulted in the invitation issued to Prince Paul in 2010 by Dr Judy Lattas of the Sociology Department of Macquarie University, to address and give a paper at a seminar which was held on Dangar Island as a part of a study on micronations.

The paper was presented by the principality outlining the value of micronations while thanking the wider Australian community for being tolerant of independent perspectives. The local studies department of Mosman council, in May 2011, released an interview with Prince Paul as part of the `Mosman Faces’ project.