Inside the domes

LizCat asked to see photos of what's inside the domes in the pieces I put up a couple of weeks ago, so here they are:

Inside Debutante's dome is a crocheted white dress, with pink & red ribbon, a pink shoe charm, a madonna charm and a glass rose charm sewn to the bottom - indicating the simultaneous innocence of the deb with her flowering as a woman. There is also at the top a silver skull charm, which indicates the dangers that lie ahead and that buying into that whole beauty image thing is to kill off the power of womanhood.

The inside of the La Selva Subterranea dome is my interpretation of the Underworld pear tree from the story in Women Who Run With the Wolves. The handless maiden is able to cross the moat surrounding the tree with the aid of a friendly spirit, and eat the pears which sustain her until she meets the Prince. In my piece, you have to bend down and peer through one of the four windows in order to see the island and tree.

Nearly finished the other piece I was talking about - hopefully some photos soon.



New York and New Work

The gallery I have been invited to exhibit at in New York is Broadway Gallery (on Broadway, funnily enough) and the exhibition will be in June. It is the same sort of thing as the one in London - a group exhibition of international emerging and established artists. And like the London one, it is not going to make me a household name (not that I really want to become one), but it is more exposure on the Web and in the States among other places.

It is all part of the long and expensive process of establishing yourself as a visual artist, apparently. Not that I am complaining. It is only March and this is the second international exhibition I have been approached to participate in. Anyway, if you are keen on a look see, you can go to the Broadway Gallery Web Site.

By the way, I have recently updated my web site, so it is now pretty current with what's happening. Anyway, time to get back to the studio.

I am still beavering away at a piece I have been working on forever and which I hope to complete fairly soon. It started fairly small but is now huge and I haven't been able to take any photos of the whole thing yet, but here are some details:

New building, new opportunities

Since starting back at school in January, I have been finding the going pretty tough, largely due to the fact that my current 'art room' is a stinking hot demountable circa 1980s with no running water, sinks, precious little storeage and nothing much at all to endear itself. It has been particularly tough during the hot weather and having to lug stuff around including jerry-cans of water.

If this situation was going to be permanent or even long term, I am sure I would have quit by now. The last couple of weeks I have been wondering how I could hang on - I've been coming home utterly exhausted which means, of course, that along with extra hours, there is little time or energy for creativity.

But on Friday, I got a look at the light at the end of my tunnel - a great new art facility which should be ready to move into in the next couple of weeks. Hallelujah, I'm saved! The photos below are not good quality, but they will give you an idea of what I am getting excited about.



Main art room looking to the back - sinks under the window.





This is a verandah/courtyard space which will house the kiln and work with ceramics and hard materials etc.

Storeage Galore: Woo Hoo!

Also, I have just been invited to exhibit in New York, New York in June. If I can make it there, I can make it anywhere, right? More news on that as it comes to hand.



 

21st Century Exhibition at GoMA

Looked in on the current exhibition the other day - Art from the first decade. A big percentage of the exhibition is from the gallery's own acquisitions, so a little disappointing in that I have seen many of the exhibits before: some as recently as at last year's APT. But there was one particular work that floated my boat - the installation by Boursier-Mougenot. This involves a room full of live finches that make music by landing on coathangers attached to 'musical' wires as per a harp or something like that.

It is easy to miss this if you don't know where to find it - right up in the SW corner of the 3rd floor and there is a limited number of people allowed in at one time, but if you have to queue, it is worth the wait. It is a delightful, peaceful, other-worldly experience - could easily have hung out there for ages.

To find out more about the exhibition, go to Queensland Art Gallery's website

Update on exhibitions

You might like to know that the Camden Gallery exhibition has been extended by a month, supposedly due to popular demand. I did get a very nice email from Alexa at the London Reviewer that seemed to back that idea up. I have put a link to the London Reviewer on this blog to the right.

Also I have been selected as a finalist in the 'She' exhibition run by Walker St Gallery in Dandendong, to celebrate international womens' day. This is the second time I have been part of this exhibition - the last time being in 2009. The piece that was selected is 'Her Ivory Tower' - it is a bit quirky, but one of my favourites.

This last week has been a bit manic as per usual. I have been away with the seniors from school for a leadership development retreat. I have been working on ideas and issues that have arisen from that, one of which is the whole issue of exclusion; leaving others out. I came across a video on youtube which is sung by a young American girl, which I plan to use in an assembly this week. I think it is pretty good. Enjoy.



Oh, yes, got rid of the pink. Hope you like the changes!

Fame!

Well, at least in my own little corner of the world. Below is a picture and article that appeared in the local paper this week regarding the Camden Exhibition. As photos of me go, it isn't too bad.

Of course I am hoping that the London exhibition is the first of many OS. At the very least it is helping me connect with other like-minded artists from all over the world.

(yes, the pinkness is starting to annoy me too. Will rectify it asap).

Wet State, Wet Mood & WetlandCare

Have to confess, I've been avoiding the blogosphere since I started back at work, mainly because I am not having a good time and any new blog is likely to turn into a whingefest (sorry). In fact, I am not sure I can keep hanging in there for much longer. The problem is not so much the kids - they're fine, great even. I just can't bear the politics, the power games and the chest-thumping that goes on. It is really playing on my nerves and is taking too much time and energy from my art. Then there is the residual sense of loss and chaos caused by a month of unprecedented natural disasters in the state of Queensland where I live. Of course, compared to the victims of same, I have nothing to whinge about, but it is still hard to keep smiling.

The one good thing this week was that I took two days of f to go to Canberra to collect my award for the National WetlandCare Art prize. It was a good night, with some great art work, but stinking hot - NSW has been having a heat wave - maximums of 38 - 39 while I was in Canberra which is normally not hot at all. And it gave me a chance to catch up with my brother who took the pictures of the event below (that's not him in the pic - that's a guy named Noel from one of the Catchment Management Authorities).