Notes from the Fae side

The Pobble.....

2011-10-11T16:00:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I was asked to contribute a piece of work for a show at Imagine Gallery in Suffolk in the UK. The exhibition was to coincide with the release of Jackie Morris' new book "The Cat and the Fiddle" and in fact was also the book launch. As I love Imagine Gallery and the beautiful and unusual work they show there and I adore Jackie Morris' superb illustrations, I felt honoured to have been asked.

The theme of the exhibition was, of course, nursery rhymes. I have to confess that traditional nursery rhymes as such were not a huge part of my childhood. In fact, I have no memory of ever reading any or of having them read to me. For me it was always stories, some read from books, others made up on the spot by my mother or grandmother. But there were some funny and weird little things thrown in occasionally, little poems like;

"The night was dark and stormy,

the Billy goat was blind.

He ran into a barbed-wire fence

and tore his...never mind!"

"Adam and Eve and Pinch-me

went down to the river to bathe,

Adam and Eve fell in

but who do you think was saved?"

(Of course, as soon as I answered 'pinch-me' that's precisely what happened!)

or a very odd one about a bear being bulgy and the bulge being algae(!)

However, I did love the nonsense poems of Edward Lear. Most people are familiar with "The Owl and the Pussycat" but my absolute favourite was "The Pobble Who Has No Toes".

The Pobble who has no toes
Had once as many as we;
When they said "Some day you may lose them all;"
He replied "Fish, fiddle-de-dee!"
And his Aunt Jobiska made him drink
Lavender water tinged with pink,
For she said "The World in general knows
There's nothing so good for a Pobble's toes!"

The Pobble who has no toes
Swam across the Bristol Channel;
But before he set out he wrapped his nose
In a piece of scarlet flannel.
For his Aunt Jobiska said "No harm
Can come to his toes if his nose is warm;
And it's perfectly known that a Pobble's toes
Are safe, -- provided he minds his nose!"

The Pobble swam fast and well,
And when boats or ships came near him,
He tinkledy-blinkledy-winkled a bell,
So that all the world could hear him.
And all the Sailors and Admirals cried,
When they saw him nearing the further side -
"He has gone to fish for his Aunt Jobiska's
Runcible Cat with crimson whiskers!"

But before he touched the shore,
The shore of the Bristol Channel,
A sea-green porpoise carried away
His wrapper of scarlet flannel.
And when he came to observe his feet,
Formerly garnished with toes so neat,
His face at once became forlorn,
On perceiving that all his toes were gone!

And nobody ever knew,
From that dark day to the present,
Whoso had taken the Pobble's toes,
In a manner so far from pleasant.
Whether the shrimps, or crawfish grey,
Or crafty Mermaids stole them away -
Nobody knew: and nobody knows
How the Pobble was robbed of his twice five toes!

The Pobble who has no toes
Was placed in a friendly Bark,
And they rowed him back, and carried him up
To his Aunt Jobiska's Park.
And she made him a feast at his earnest wish
Of eggs and buttercups fried with fish, -
And she said "It's a fact the whole world knows,
That Pobbles are happier without their toes!"

So that is the piece that I decided to make.

I was thrilled to receive an e-mail from John Foley the day after the exhibition opening, telling me that "The Pobble" was the first piece sold. Having just returned home from a pretty exhausting weekend away in Broken Hill (next blog post) it was wonderfully welcome news.

Till next time.

A lovely clean house.....and 'beauty' alive and well!

2011-09-19T17:21:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind of work, deadlines, school camps, family mystery and drama, friend visits, birthdays, road-trip planning and my eldest daughter holidaying overseas for the first time. In the midst of this has been some beautiful spring weather which inspired, as it does every year, a major spring-clean. As a task, this does not fill me with joy but, I love the end result. I've moved my studio downstairs into the small entrance room that I was using as a gallery space. This is working out beautifully as it is much less of a thoroughfare and I can leave it at the end of the day and don't have to look at it every time I walk through the house. Even better, the space upstairs is now a 'coffee lounge' and reading room, so a really nice place to sit and catch up with my husband when he gets home from work.....while drinking excellent coffee! It has actually become one of the most popular spaces in the house, with the kids often forsaking the telly to sit and chat, play boardgames or read. Nice!

In my last post I was lamenting the lack of 'beautiful' and inspiring Art, at least in my humble opinion. Since then I have visited some wonderful exhibitions overflowing with ideas, talent and yes, beauty. First and foremost is the exhibition 'Spectacular Tree Stories' being held at Carrick Hill. The main gallery comprises photographic work which is interesting and quite lovely, but the 'spectacular' part is found just down the hall in a room filled with Linda Catchlove's extraordinary botanical watercolours. The superbly meticulous depiction of various plants, many found on the grounds at Carrick Hill, is delightfully enhanced by the inclusion of the most gorgeous 'naturalist' faeries you will ever see. This exhibition runs until the 13th of November and if you are able, I urge you to visit.

Two other exhibitions are well worth mentioning: the Doug Moran Portrait Prize (sadly now closed) was an absolute delight and also White Rabbit - Contemporary Chinese Art Collection at the Samstag Museum. I visited this exhibition twice and enjoyed it immensely. For me it encompassed everything that makes Art wonderful - skill, humour, inventiveness, and poignancy. Even though I am of a completely different culture, I found myself fully engaged with these incredible artworks. This exhibition runs until the end of September.

Also, my piece for the show in the UK in October is now finished and I'll be posting pictures and info soon.

Till next time.

Who'd have thought ugly could be so dull?

2011-08-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, here's the thing. I'm not a huge fan of ugly Art. I realise that is a very generalised, ambiguous statement and it comes from someone who intentionally creates 'ugly' little creatures often with 'ugly' little personalities to match. It's difficult to explain exactly what I mean by this. I'm certainly no Art critic and let's be very clear, I don't consider the work that I make to be 'capital A' Art. I'm not out to change the world, make political statements or comment on society. In my opinion there are more direct and effective ways to do all of those things if that's what you really care about. My 'small a' art is personal to me and my hope is that through shared human experience, it is personal to some other people....that they connect (another ambiguous word) with it on some level.

That said, the Saatchi exhibition 'British Art Now' is in Adelaide at the AGSA. I've been twice now. The first time I was very excited and filled with that delicious feeling of anticipation....this show is a big deal, a real coup for Adelaide and a chance to view cutting edge work by important contemporary artists. It's a massive exhibition taking up three quarters of the entire gallery space. The blurb on the AGSA website is as follows:

"Saatchi Gallery in Adelaide: British Art Now brings together the audacious best of contemporary art straight from London's internationally acclaimed Saatchi Gallery - arguably the biggest influence on contemporary British art over the past 25 years. It features groundbreaking works that challenge conventional artistic sensibilities, created by more than forty of the new generation of daring British contemporary artists."

It's not that I didn't know what to expect. This was not going to be like a visit to The Jam Factory Gallery....no art made for the love of the process here. What I didn't expect was that by the end of making my way through rooms filled with scrunched up plastic, white-washed cardboard, inflated garbage bags, and (deliberately, I assume) poorly constructed 'sculpture' with bits of fabric hanging off it, I was pretty much over it all and my over-whelming feeling was one of disappointment bordering on boredom. That, and the fact that I had never seen so much 'ugly' Art in one place at one time.

This isn't to suggest that there weren't points of interest along the way. I really enjoyed the room of work by Juliana Cerqueira Leite (pics above) but it was actually more the process she used to make the work rather than the finished objects that I found fascinating.

Tessa Farmer filled a large glass case with tiny (and I mean tiny) faeries made from thread-like plant matter and riding on desiccated insects.....that was right up my alley for obvious reasons, not the least of which is the almost 'OCD-like' dedication of the artist.

But it was still ugly.

So I went back a second time. I did enjoy myself more, having no expectations whatsoever but I just couldn't shake the feeling that this type of Art is a joke at everyone but the Artists' expense...'expense' being the operative word here. This is an exhibition about the business of 'capital A' Art and also the weird irony of Art that claims to be "subversive and avant-garde" while being sponsored by Saatchi. It does raise a lot of questions and it certainly makes for interesting and spirited conversation, but does the Art itself inspire me, excite me, engage me or provoke me in any way that isn't directly connected to it's financial 'worth'? The short answer is, no.

I love Art. I like to think I have an open mind and that my tastes are diverse, but I need a little more than someones unmade bed even if it is a "confessional revelation of the artists sexual exploits and self-destructive lifestyle". Yes, I found the piece disturbing but it would be just as disturbing if I saw a bedroom like this in someone's actual home....I'm not entirely sure what emotion the bed being displayed in a gallery is supposed to elicit. We all know, or know of, people who have these kinds of experiences in their lives. Does being confronted with it in a gallery make us care more? Are we even supposed to care and if not, then what's the point? Of course, there's the price ticket. Saatchi purchased the piece for 150,000 pounds.....can anyone say 'KA-CHING'!

Anyway, I could go on and on but really I don't want to. Like I said, I'm no Art critic, certainly no expert. I do like to be challenged, engaged and inspired....and I do like beauty. True, beauty is different things to different people and if bad papier mache floats your boat, then I say trot along to the Saatchi and buy a season ticket.

For me, I'd rather visit this, or look at this, or this....there are countless others.

So now I'm on a quest...a quest to see more work containing beauty, talent, insight, love and joy.

I may not know Art, but I know what I like.

Oh, and before I go, one more thing I'm liking very much...The Stuckist Manifesto. Not convinced of point #4, but I can't argue with the rest of it.

Till next time.

Burdy....

2011-08-01T17:01:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying that when I think of all the privilege and blessings that I have in my life, I actually feel pretty guilty complaining about anything.

That said, I've been feeling pretty crappy lately. I've dealt with depression in one form or another for most of my life, but it's not been an issue for me for several years now.

Back in March of this year I completed my five years taking Tamoxifen (post breast cancer medication) and since going off it have been caught in a hormonal nightmare; everything from hot flushes, racing heart beat, insomnia and "fuzzy brain" to mood swings and depression. It looks and feels like menopause, but I'm not menopausal and it's like my body is desperately trying to re-balance itself after five years of medical hormone suppression.

Of course, when I asked my surgeon (who, let's be clear, has my eternal gratitude and admiration for saving my life) about possible side effects associated with stopping Tamoxifen 'cold-turkey', he told me there would be no problems with it apart from possibly a little 'anxiety'.

It's a frustrating situation to be in. As most of the physical symptoms have now passed or are passing, I'm hopeful that this black cloud too will lift. Work is definitely helping. I've cut back all of my extraneous activities (including my beloved zoo work) to focus solely on my artwork, which was in danger of being crowded out entirely by everything else that's been going on.

And so to Burdy.....my melancholy blackbird of sorts. I was especially pleased with the shadows in these photos...I like the way they loom....it's very much how I've been feeling, trying to 'take off' with a black shadow hanging over my head. He's been constructed in my usual manner and his costume is black felt with pearl beads and silk thread. His wings are individually hand cut and wired 'feathers' made from stiffened and painted cotton. His stand is also hand-painted.

At the moment I'm working on a new piece to be sent over to the UK for an exhibition in October. The exhibition has a Nursery Rhyme theme, so I'm pretty excited....but more of that later.

I want to thank all of my friends who read this (far too infrequent, despite my best efforts) blog and who keep in touch via Facebook and e-mail, for your concern and support over the past few months.....I really do appreciate it so much, it's always amazing to me how many of us share similar experiences under different circumstances. Much love to all of you.

Till next time.

Mama JuJu

2011-07-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

How strange these past couple of months have been.

For one (thankfully brief) moment, I thought perhaps I'd had enough of "art" and slumped into an unmotivated, non-creative phase that was filled up with some personal and health related issues and (even more distractingly) enormous volumes of information about animals and volunteering at Adelaide Zoo. Although I consider myself an accomplished multi-tasker (this is not bragging...it is actually quite often a curse), I was finding it almost impossible to diss-asociate myself from a new and deeper understanding of the plight of the earths wildlife, enough to even concentrate on, let alone produce, any new artwork. I have to tell you, this stuff is consuming.

So, a couple of weeks ago I made a decision to take a conscious, forced break from animal related matters so that I could (hopefully) gain a little perspective. So that is what I've done.....and it seems to be working. The funny thing is, now that I've (temporarily) cut off the supply of wildlife information (books, documentaries, internet etc.) the mountain of facts that have been jumbled and crammed into my brain are sorting themselves out very nicely in a calm, non-invasive way. I'm still passionate about animals (probably even more so), but things are starting to balance themselves now.

So, to Mama JuJu.

This is a piece that I started sculpting two years ago, but abandoned at an early stage in favour of other more pressing pieces. I still wasn't sure what she was going to be, even after painting her but, my kids were re-watching "The Office" episodes and in one of them Michael gives Angela the character of "Mama JuJu" during a How to Host a Murder game (brilliant episode, by the way).

I loved that name, so decided to make her into a kind of voodoo witch-doctor complete with all the stereotypical paraphernalia. She is holding a little doll that I sewed up by hand and has pouches and shrunken heads (which were huge fun to sculpt!) hanging off her costume. All of the fabrics used are hand-dyed and she has human hair adorned with feathers and combed out hessian. Her necklace incorporates real bird bones which I've meticulously bleached and cleaned.

I'm happy with how she's turned out and it's very satisfying to finally complete a character that has been sitting around staring at me accusingly every time I walk past her. She kind of reminds me of those wonderfully overblown Disney villain(esses) like Ursula from 'The Little Mermaid'.....all smiles and enticement one minute and sticking a pin in your eye the next. Lovely!

Till next time.

Exhibition in Burra

2011-05-23T15:13:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from holidaying along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria. Guy has had a month of very well-deserved holidays after a stressful and exhausting job that had pretty much governed his life for the past year. It is wonderful to see him happy and relaxed and I think the break has done us both a world of good.

So now it's back to business. I'm heading off to Burra this week to deliver three pieces for their "Real/Unreal" exhibition. I'm excited and nervous because they have asked me to open the exhibition as well.....something I've not done before. I'm also looking forward to the trip (about three hours from home) as I've never been to the town and I'm told it's an area rich in dinosaur fossils etc. Should be interesting.

Till next time.

My other life....

2011-04-18T04:18:00.000-07:00

I have just started another blog devoted to my animal photography and my experiences as a zoo volunteer.

I'd love to see you all there at "My other life".

Thanks so much for reading :)

Grandmother Bone.....

2011-03-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

I started sculpting this piece early last year, but stopped before the head was completed....can't remember exactly why, must have been distracted by other projects. I went back to it in January after watching 'Young Frankenstein' (a favourite!) and being inspired by Marty Feldman's 'Igor' ("it's pronounced eye-gor") and his wonderful hump and popping eyes. After I had re-worked her left eye, the rest of the piece just fell into place. I also had in my mind the old junk-yard woman from 'Labyrinth'.....I wanted Grandmother Bone to be a collector as well and to have her clothes made up of bits and pieces.

The fabric part of her costume is linen, which I have distressed and 'rusted'.....the rest of it is made up of silk cocoons, mulberry bark, feathers, beads and dozens of individually sculpted little bones which are tied all through her costume. There is a real part of a bird skull on the top of her staff. I'm pleased with how her clothes look 'nest-like' and the fact that she reminded a dear friend of mine of a vulture sits really well with me. She actually makes me think of a bantam chook that's been in one too many scuffles.

The wip photos at the bottom show the head as it was before I 'popped' the left eye.

That sounded really gross.....sorry.

Here's the little poem I wrote for her:

"Grandmother Bone,

face like a crone.

fearsome to all

as she wanders alone.

Indeed she's a sight

with her hair all a-fright

but, she's lost all her teeth

so she really can't bite!"

Till next time.

"Wilbur"...

2011-03-07T15:51:00.000-08:00

Last week I completed one of the individual projects I have going at the same time as working on the "deadly sins" project. It was a lovely feeling to finally complete a piece after so much preliminary work on a range of other things. This little guy is Wilbur, and I like to think of him as a gentle soul, contemplating one of the tiniest miracles of life.

He has been sculpted in polymer clay on a wire armature and painted in my usual way with acrylic paints. The photo at the bottom with magenta skin is the undercoat color I use for almost all of my skin tones.

The tree-trunk base that he is sitting on is also sculpted from polymer clay, as are the 'fly agaric' toadstools. The dried fungus and snail shells are real. All of the fabrics and fibers used for Wilbur's costume have been hand-dyed and are completely hand-sewn. His shoes and his back-pack are sculpted and painted by hand.

So, now it's on to the next one....quite different in theme, but should also be challenging and fun. WIP pictures as soon as I can.

Till next time.

Head designs for the last three 'sins' complete.

2011-02-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

Over the past two days I've managed to complete the head studies for all seven 'sins'. Now that I have an idea of how I want them to look, I can work on body construction, pose and costuming and also decide on a size for each piece. While the temptation to make them big and imposing is very strong, I don't think it will be practical given that I need to complete them all before August. Still, it's early days and I'm sure it will all work out as I go along.

Till next time.

Too much going on?

2011-02-20T16:49:00.000-08:00

Some days I really feel like I've taken on too much. This isn't really a complaint as such, more a musing on why I continue to do this. Why do I try to squeeze three major projects into one short year? Probably for the same reason that I read at least three books at once and take on volunteer work at the Zoo when my time is stretched as it is.....I feel like there will never be enough time to do all that I want to do.

Most days I'm at peace with this and can keep it sufficiently in check so as not to drive my family bonkers, but there are times when it overwhelms me. The one thing that can stop my racing brain however is a time-table. I invariably put off drawing one up until the very last second, but the effect when I do is instant. Instant calm. Of course, I do wonder about the intelligence of someone who continues to put herself through grief because she hates 'planning', even when she knows that the planning is inevitable and so much better for her mental health, but there you have it. Humans are weird and contradictory creatures.

I've posted some pics of my new little dude, built and ready for painting. The strange magenta color you can see in the top photo is the underpainting for the skin....this is how I start painting all my pieces.

I've also finished drawing up "Greed".....only two to go now and then it's on to body design and costuming.....then I can start sculpting them.

In the midst of the mayhem our new puppy continues to be an angel even though our Siamese cat continually tries to lead him astray.

Hope everyone has a terrific week.

Till next time.

Individual side-projects.

2011-02-16T00:04:00.000-08:00

In addition to the larger projects I'm undertaking this year, there are a few unfinished individual pieces that I hope to complete.

This rather pensive (and regrettably warty) little dude is starting to take shape and should make a nice piece when I've finished sculpting his seat and figured out his costume.

Over the next few months I will also be updating my website, so please forgive any glitches in the meantime, although I sincerely hope that I can keep them to a minimum.

Meanwhile, our new puppy, Milligan is settling in beautifully and is proving to be a very intelligent cookie indeed.....I can only hope that he'll use his powers for good and not evil.

Till next time.

Old project, new vision.....

2011-02-13T19:04:00.000-08:00

Well the New Year has come and gone and with it went the promise I made to myself to blog at least once a week. What happened? Well, too much actually, most of it far too dull to relate but aggravatingly time consuming nonetheless. So I'm going to pretend that January didn't happen and in that case I'm right on track.

Last year I decided that I wanted to create a "fae" version of the Seven Deadly Sins. I got as far as sculpting two of them (gluttony and vanity) before realising that I wasn't thrilled with what I had created and so I put the project on the back burner and moved on to other things. During the month that never was, I found myself returning to the idea with renewed interest and after making a few drawings am excited about the project all over again.

I still have to finalise the designs for the last three sins, but already this feels much more cohesive to me. I'm really trying to move away from 'human' looking faeries to concentrate more on creatures and making all of the sins Goblin-like seems somehow appropriate.

The seven resulting sculptures and their accompanying drawings will form my SALA exhibition later in the year. I'm still planning to produce a small book for the exhibition and also a new line of cards and bookmarks.

I will be creating other unrelated pieces during this time as well as updating my website and re-starting work on another project that I'll spill the beans on at a later date.

A busy and exciting year!

Till next time.

Completed piece.....

2010-11-29T13:29:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is almost December already and my favourite holiday fast approaching. This is the worst time of year for me as far as my concentration level is concerned.....there is so much going on with winding up the end of the year and there never seems to be enough time to do everything. I'm not complaining though....unfortunately I'm one of those annoyingly cheerful people who love the hustle and bustle, the copious amounts of fairy lights, the cheesy movies and everything else that goes along with the season....well, almost everything. Stress and drama I can do without and honestly, if you can't make an effort to be pleasant at this time of year, what hope is there?

All that aside, I managed to complete this piece yesterday and while they are still not named, I do know that they are two old friends who have shared much in their lives and are completely comfortable and at ease with each others company.

I'm hoping to create one more piece before I take a break over Christmas and replace the clay with gingerbread and fruitcake.

Till next time.

New piece in progress....

2010-11-10T21:05:00.000-08:00

So, a number of things have kept me from blogging, facebooking, twittering etc. of late. Not that I'm exactly what you'd call 'prolific' regarding any of these....I just find it very difficult to spend that much time on my computer....but this has definitely been a 'less productive than usual' couple of months for me.

Aside from a general feeling of melancholy (a common occurrence but no less irritating for that), I've been having some major dental work which has involved extraction of wisdom teeth among other delights. I have a classic textbook fear of going to the dentist (heart racing, sweats, sleep disturbance and on and on) and although I have found a wonderful, gentle and sympathetic dental surgeon, the whole process is stressful and exhausting. Unfortunately, my dental health suffered very badly during chemotherapy several years ago and now I'm facing a considerable amount of repair work (partly my own fault of course for letting things go too long.....see *dental fear*). Anyway, the worst of it will soon be over and I've decided to have a break after my next appointment until the New Year. A Christmas season without anxiety is what I'm aiming for.

I've been working on the above piece for a couple of weeks and just finished painting them today. The first two shots were taken after firing and before painting and the next two are after the painting has been sealed. The next step is choosing fabrics and fibers for these two little friends and designing their costumes.

The drawing at the bottom is an idea for another 'Tree Faerie', this one not so frightening as the last. It's colored pencil and ink on cardboard, which is a new surface for me and one that I'm enjoying very much....although it does tend to lift if you muck about with it too much.

Before I go, my awesomely talented friend Linda Catchlove has just released a beautiful range of greeting cards featuring her incredible work. They are superb quality cards by a truly gifted artist and you can see and buy them here.

Till next time.

Tim Burton exhibition....

2010-10-11T14:56:00.000-07:00

It's just over a week since we returned home from our holiday in Melbourne and the Grampians. Guy and I planned this trip way back last year when we found out that the Tim Burton exhibition was coming to ACMI. Being a borderline obsessive when it comes to his films, I have to say that this was THE most greatly anticipated exhibition I've ever attended.

It did not disappoint.

On the contrary, there was so much to see in this enormous collection of artwork, film, costume, models, notebooks, props etc, etc, it was often overwhelming....but in a very good way.

I was a little put off initially by the huge crowds of people but in actuality the slow-moving snake of visitors lining the gallery walls kept my excitement level in check and prevented me from running around like a maniac from one object to another. As it was, I was trying very hard not to look ahead to see what was coming up and so was surprised and delighted every few minutes! There was ample time to examine each piece in glorious detail.

While the big, drawcard pieces (costumes from "Alice", Batman, Edward Scissorhands etc.) were wonderful (Alice's shoes and the Mad Hatter's hat were particular favourites of mine), it was the smaller individual pieces, in particular the drawings and personal notebooks and letters, which gave me the most joy and the most insight. To see Tim's progression through his early years with the influences of Dr Suess, MAD Magazine and illustrators such as Gerald Scarfe and Ralph Steadman (other favorites of mine) was fascinating and certainly something I could relate to personally, having grown up on these same influences myself.

There were also a large number of models built by Rick Heinrichs which were beautiful even in their decay (I thought my heart was going to beat right out of my chest when I saw the puppets of 'Vincent' and the long-suffering Abercrombie wearing the experimental headgear!) and the puppets for 'Corpse Bride', built by Mackinnon & Saunders were, without a doubt, some of the most exquisite objects I have ever seen.

Overall, it was the sheer volume of work by this man who is only a couple of years older than me, that was most inspiring. People like to imagine that to be an artist means that you must exist in a continual state of inspiration and creativity. That may be true for some (lucky them!),

but for most of us inspiration is minor compared to the amount of actual work that needs to be done to realise those precious ideas. Tim Burton has done the hard yards. He's weathered rejection, criticism and the worst kind of 'art snobbery' to bring to fruition his unique vision of an imperfect and totally fascinating world. It's plain, if the huge attendance numbers for this exhibition are anything to go by, that this is an artist who connects with people on a very human level. He certainly does with me.

(Sadly, cameras weren't allowed inside the exhibition, so the photos above are all I have to show.)

Till next time.

Distractions, distractions......

2010-09-20T17:22:00.000-07:00

Once again I find myself distracted from the task at hand.....I've completed sculpting two of my "Seven Deadly Fae", but the last few weeks have been taken up with a bit of a mish-mash of small projects, some long-overdue, that have needed my attention. As a result, I have strayed from the path.

I found the little sketchy drawing at the top last week while sorting through some paper and immediately wanted to make a sculpt.....I don't remember when I made the drawing and it doesn't have any notes on it, but the friendly little face is very appealing so should make a nice piece.

Unfortunately, on completing this head I made the error of doodling around with the lovely , soft, leftover clay and another wrinkled little face began to emerge....I made a few modifications and transferred it to some armature wire and spent the rest of the day lovingly adding and smoothing lines and crevices. With Halloween fast approaching, I'm thinking she will be a witch, but maybe one of the 'hag' variety, with shawl and hood instead of the traditional pointy hat. However, with my attention span being somewhat less than optimal at present, anything could happen.

The ink drawing at the bottom was made yesterday after going through my pen collection to weed out the ones whose ink had dried up. Every time I start drawing like this, unplanned and with no pre-conceived ideas, I wonder why I don't make a greater effort to do it more often. I love graphite, but drawing directly with ink (no pencil outlines first) is wonderful because while it is unforgiving it also inspires you to have confidence when putting the marks down. There is no middle ground....the drawing will either work....or not. This is a particularly valuable lesson for someone like me, who likes to have total control over every little thing. Sometimes it's nice to just go with the flow. So I will.....for a little while.

Till next time.

The end of SALA and an exciting new project.....

2010-08-25T16:26:00.000-07:00

After a very slow start, the SALA Festival has ended on a high note for me with an extraordinarily busy final week and a number of last minute sales. The beautiful, sunny weather we had last Sunday certainly encouraged people to get out and about and my tiny gallery space was full to bursting several times during the day.

It was one of the most enjoyable weekends I've had as it was also my husband's birthday and our family celebrations extended from Friday to Sunday with wonderful food, music and company each day. I've never known a person who enjoys their birthday as much as my husband does (the night before is referred to as 'Birthday Eve' and the day after is 'Birthday Boxing Day'!) and I derive enormous pleasure from making his day (or in this case, his weekend) as special as possible. As a consequence, our house upstairs was filled with the delicious smells of baking, which wafted enticingly downstairs to the gallery visitors.....pity we weren't selling morning and afternoon tea, we would have made a fortune!

So, on to the next project. A couple of months ago the TV show 'Masterchef' ran a challenge where the contestants had to create dishes based on the 'Seven Deadly Sins'. I immediately began thinking of faerie creatures based on this same theme and have been planning and researching for my own version of the sins called "The Seven Deadly Fae". I just recently completed sculpting 'Gluttony' and have started work on the head of 'Pride'. They will all be sitting or standing on their own small, decorative pedestal and will each have a found object (made of silver or pewter) which is relevant to them. So far I've found a fork and spoon for 'Gluttony' (the spoon even has a 'G' on it!) a mirror for 'Pride', a knife for 'Wrath' and a pot for 'Greed'. At this stage I'm leaning towards the sins all being very pale and neutral with perhaps one introduced color.....but that could change as I move past the sculpting stage. Early on I was toying with the idea of also making the "Seven Heavenly Virtues", but truthfully they're not nearly as interesting (or as much fun) as the sins and the last thing I want to do is come off as 'preachy'......or worse, boring.

I'm very excited about this project and am planning to publish a small format book when they are all completed. I hope you enjoy the pics of the project so far.....will most more wip shots as I progress.

Till next time.

Cold and wet start to SALA.....

2010-08-03T16:45:00.000-07:00

The SALA festival kicked off with a bang last Friday, with one of my pieces selling on the first day. Since then, it's been cold, wet and miserable and consequently, VERY quiet. Not to worry....the visitors I've had have been delightful and the response so far has been very positive. With any luck, the wintry weather will let up long enough to encourage people to get out and about.....*fingers crossed* I've taken a few gallery shots and you can see how overcast and bleak it is at the moment, as there is hardly any natural light coming in.....I dislike using the camera flash, so let's just call these 'atmospheric'.

In all other respects, it's been a very busy week. I'm in the planning stages of a new project that I'm very excited about. I don't want to say too much until I have something to show for it, but I will say that it is a multiple piece project and although the theme is one that has been explored often, I hope that I can create a 'different' vision on a familiar subject. I will also be creating a limited edition book in conjunction with this work, but more on that later.....

I'm also planning pieces for next Octobers exhibition at Imagine Gallery in the UK. There are several ideas for themes running around in my head, but I'm having difficulty making the commitment to just one. Perhaps I'm in need of a 'close your eyes and point' type of approach.

Before I go, this Friday is the opening of the 'Schaffas' exhibition. The pieces are being auctioned for charity so I hope that those of you who can will come along and bid (on my piece, of course!) and feel good knowing that the money is going to support improvements in indigenous health.....a very worthwhile and much needed cause. The auction starts at around 7.00pm and as there are over 100 participating artists and designers, it should be a fun night.

Till next time.

Beginning to see the light.....

2010-07-21T18:43:00.000-07:00

Just a brief post as I'm about to rush off to tackle one or two items on a lengthy 'to-do' list. This is the third 'white' piece and the second to last piece that I hope to complete before SALA opens next Friday.

I don't often make sleeping figures....for me the eyes are too integral to the life of the piece to have them closed, but when I tried to 'wake' this little faery up she was quite adamant that she did not want to be disturbed....so after three failed attempts, I gave in. As it turns out, she is the family favourite at the moment and the reaction to her doesn't appear to be lessened by her closed eyes.....actually, there is a vulnerability about this faery that makes me feel very protective of her, a more child-like quality than I usually portray. She is still waiting for her wings, which I'm currently working on, then hopefully I can get some nice shots of her....perhaps some by candlelight would look effective? Hmmmm.

So, now I'm on to the last task, which is to complete the life-sized 'goblinish' fellow that I started some months ago and then became side-tracked from. I think he would be an eye-catching addition to my new little gallery downstairs. I've set myself a very strict time-table to work to and, if no major disasters arise, he should be finished by Tuesday next week.

Before I go, I'd just like to mention that my dear friend Koldo Barroso has completed his "Kooky Pets" book and it is now available to pre-order here. I can't say enough good things about this amazingly talented artist and writer. Besides his gift for making beautiful, imaginative and very often humorous art, he is a truly kind and generous person. This is evidenced not only in the incredibly reasonable price of his gorgeous book, but also by the fact that he is including an original (!!) drawing with each of the limited edition copies! Far too good to miss out on .........!

Till next time.

A nanny-goat and a red wall....

2010-07-13T17:33:00.000-07:00

I completed the 'goat-woman' piece yesterday after working obsessively on her for the past week....the paint job was more difficult on this piece because she has mostly smooth surfaces on her skin....it's not as interesting as lots of wrinkles but there still needs to be some subtle variations or it comes out looking too flat. I think what finally brought it to life was painting in the blue veins just visible on her breasts and the backs of her hands....her skin is almost white so this added some believability, I think.

I still can't believe my luck in finding the perfect hair for her. Initially, I had planned to give her some beautiful, long, white Tibetan lambs wool locks, but on trying them out they almost cancelled out the horns and really were too white for the piece. Rummaging through my collection of hair (only a doll artist could write that sentence!) I found a small piece of fleece that was exactly the right size and color.....it is a near perfect match for the linen fabric of her dress. The 'crook' was an afterthought....she needed to be holding something and I have no doubt that she would not hesitate to use it as a weapon, if provoked!

I've also included a photo of her 'unclothed'.....the lower part of her body is lamp base, one of several that I picked up on sale at a craft supply place. I'm really enjoying these 'pedestal pieces' and have found the absence of color to be oddly liberating. I find that I'm thinking about things in a way that I haven't before. I've always thought of my sculpting as drawing with clay, but this feels even more so.....although there is less to convey the mood of the piece, there is somehow more.

The last few photos are of the downstairs gallery space and my delicious red wall. It still needs its final coat, as do the now cream plinths, but already the room is lifted. There is so much dark timber down there, it really needed some lightening up.....the black plinths were just too heavy and the beige walls too bland. The carpet cleaner comes on Friday, so hopefully will be able to start setting up on the weekend. Will post more pics then.

Now, it's back to the sculpting table.

Till next time.

So much to do, so little time....

2010-07-10T05:25:00.000-07:00

It's just under three weeks until the SALA Festival and things are finally starting to come together. This will be the first time that my new "gallery space" will be open to the public and so I am anxious to not only have some completed work for people to look at, but also to have the (very small) space looking its best. To that end, we (my husband & myself) have been re-painting walls, re-painting plinths, cleaning and polishing timber work, having carpets steam cleaned, framing prints and drawings and generally running ourselves ragged on the weekends and evenings, which is the only time we have to do this stuff. I was starting to think it was all a bit much until about an hour ago when Guy completed painting the main feature wall.....it is now the most delicious, opulent red I've ever seen and I am totally in love with it....I keep going downstairs just to stare at it and picture how wonderful my new cream plinths and 'white themed' pieces are going to look in front of it. As far as interior decorating goes, to me there is nothing more exciting than putting 'big color' on a wall. It has completely transformed the room and given me a space in which I'm proud and excited to display my work.

The top three photos are my newest completed piece and the horned woman underneath is further along now and will be completed early next week.....another 'white' piece. The little goblin at the bottom was a diversion and will most likely be a full sculpt, although I probably won't get back to it for a few weeks.

So, the plan is to complete the horned woman, create one more white piece and finish the lifesize goblin I built a couple of months ago, in that order, before July 30th. Oh, and then there's the designing and printing of new cards, brochures, bookmarks etc, updating the website, re-painting the porch with non-slip paint so I don't get sued if someone takes a tumble in the wet weather and at least a dozen other things that aren't even remotely interesting but still need to be done.

I figure if I reduce my sleeping to a few hours a night and forgo any semblance of a social life, I might just about make it.

Till next time.

Eight years gone in the blink of an eye!

2010-06-07T01:42:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I embarked on the daunting and long overdue task of sorting through and reorganising my 42 GB i-photo library. While the task itself is tedious and time-consuming, I am now seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and as a result, my photographic documentation will be much easier to manage in the future.

As I can't share my newest creation at the moment (it's the secret Schaffas!), I thought I'd post a few pictures of some of my work from 2002. How the time has flown! I remember this period as a turning point in my sculpting.....while still heavily influenced by Froud (and let's face it, I still am) I felt that as my sculpting improved, I was better equipped to depict 'personality' in a strong way.....something that continues to be of paramount importance to me.

I'm thinking of re-visiting some of these pieces, to see how I'd interpret them now......there's a freshness and exuberance here that I remember feeling at the time. Might be fun to try and re-capture that.

Till next time.

Some news!.....(and monkeys).

2010-05-18T23:26:00.000-07:00

Once again, despite my best efforts I have failed in my goal of blogging at least once a week. As a result, this post is going to be a bit all over the place as it's been a busy couple of weeks with several pieces of news I'd like to share.

The first is that I will be exhibiting at Imagine Gallery in the UK in October 2011. This is incredibly exciting for me and even though it seems like a very long time away, I have already begun making plans for pieces and will be working exclusively on these by the end of August this year. This is a beautiful and highly regarded gallery and I am honoured to have been invited to show my work there. You can visit John Foley's blog about gallery life by clicking here. I am hoping to travel over for the exhibition, so I hope that those of you who can will come along and make yourselves known. Final dates etc. are still to be determined, but I will keep you updated here and on the website.

I am also very happy to have been asked to customize a "Schaffa" for this years fundraising exhibition. The photo at the top of the page is the template that each artist receives, to do with what he will. No prizes for guessing the theme I'll be going with.......but we have been asked not to reveal the final design in its entirety until opening night (again, date not yet finalised), so all I'm giving away are these two early stage close-ups. The pieces will be auctioned for charity and exhibited here during the SALA Festival and then travelling around Australia. Very exciting!

Speaking of SALA, I will be having an open studio during the Festival, mainly to make people aware of my new location, but also to show some new pieces and of course some works in progress. I always enjoy chatting to visitors during this time, so I hope to see some of you here!

Over the past month I've also had a 'work experience' student from the local high school spending each Tuesday with me in the studio. Shannon is a very talented 15 year old who is interested in sculpture and digital art and she has been learning some skills here with me while working on her own projects. This has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience all round and the fact that Shannon has Asperger's syndrome has made it all the more rewarding to watch her achieve her goals and take pride in her work. I'm continually amazed at what a hard worker she is, ploughing on even when the work becomes repetitive and (dare I say) boring. I've taught many adults in the past who could learn a thing or two from this young girl's perseverance and commitment.

So all in all a busy few weeks! I'll be adding a 'news' page to my website soon, which will have all of the details of upcoming events as they are finalised.

The bottom two pictures were taken last week at Adelaide Zoo, a short but fun day with my friend Linda that was filled with mad scrambles for photographs, unwanted reflections, potato wedges, lizard vomit and beautiful animals who smugly turned their backs or disappeared entirely whenever we approached their enclosures. Out of the hundred or so shots I took, I was most pleased with these two.

Till next time.

Warning! Long-winded post with too many pictures.

2010-05-01T16:30:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I've been in a bit of a funk after our return from Melbourne two weeks ago. Each time I visit my home state of Victoria, and in particular it's bustling, vibrant and fascinating capital city, I find it harder and harder to leave it behind. I was born in Ballarat, a beautiful, historical town only an hour or so from Melbourne, but my family moved to South Australia when I was very young, so my earliest memories of Victoria were formed some years later when we went on holiday to Melbourne.....I was twelve and I fell in love with the city instantly. I've visited Melbourne many times, but over the past few years we've been exploring more of Victoria and it seems that each region we visit is more beautiful than the last.

This most recent visit started out as a birthday gift from my husband, to take me to see the Ron Mueck exhibition at the NVG. We soon decided that we would take our two youngest, Grace and Noah, with us as they were only babies last time they visited Melbourne.

So, we started out in the city with the incredible Ron Mueck exhibition. I took far too many photos to post (more of them are on my facebook page) and we were also unexpectedly fortunate that the "Mary and Max" exhibition was on at ACMI as well. Adam Elliot is an extremely talented Australian film-maker and the exhibition was a showcase of puppets, props and drawings from his stop-motion masterpiece "Mary and Max". We were all so excited by this exhibition that we went back twice and now Grace has decided that she wants to be an animator! Since we arrived home she has been busy working on the characters and sets for her first animation experiment. We also visited the Melbourne Aquarium, Museum, Luna Park, Lygon Street and Southbank. We took a day to explore the Mornington Peninsula with it's gorgeous coastline and beachside towns and on the drive home went through Daylesford and the Macedon Ranges and stayed (unexpectedly, because Noah became extremely car-sick on the winding roads) overnight in Halls Gap in the Grampians which is the most spectacularly beautiful place I have ever seen.

While it is always nice to come home to your own bed and of course to friends and family who are close by, I would be lying if I said that I wouldn't prefer to live in Victoria....especially if I could bundle up everyone I'm close to here and take them with me! However, we will be back there later this year for the Tim Burton exhibition......!

And so I've been working my way out of my post-holiday 'funk' and have built a new little guy who has just caught a faerie (of the tiny, winged variety) and isn't quite sure what he's going to do with it. I've also posted a drawing of a very 'Froud inspired' goblin which may or may not make it into three dimensional form. I'm trying very hard to incorporate more drawing into my work days and am particularly enjoying charcoal, which is odd because it's a medium that I truly hated in my younger years....the grubbiness used to really bug me, now I love it....strange.

Till next time.

New goblin & new website up and running!

2010-04-05T01:31:00.000-07:00

I am officially exhausted....I completely forgot how much work it is to get a website to a reasonably workable state....even with the joy of the iWeb templates. The most frustrating part of the whole thing is that while I can get the site looking lovely on my Mac, not everything translates as well on a PC.....which means I can't have reflections, some fonts or other twiddly bits (I believe that is the technical term) that I really like. Despite this, I'm pleased with how it looks. I've retained the easy navigation of the old site, but added in some nice options like slideshow on the gallery pages.

I've decided to open a shop page on Big Cartel for small items like cards and bookmarks and I hope to have this up within a few weeks (there will be a link on the website 'shop' page). To me, the site looks cleaner, brighter and less cluttered. I'm sure there will be adjustments along the way and of course the site will grow as more new work is added, but for now it's another task struck off my list.

The little creature pictured above is called "Bristlecone" and he's a Common Pine Goblin. You can check out his page here.

Hope you enjoy the new-look site. Please let me know if you experience any problems with it and I'll do my best to rectify them.

Till next time.

"Stacks on".....goblins!

2010-03-29T00:12:00.000-07:00

This past week has been a strange one. There were some definite high points (the completion of the "Dragon-snail" piece and its almost immediate sale being one and a thoroughly enjoyable visit and picnic with a treasured friend being another), but it was also a week of emotional lows which have left me feeling flat and mentally exhausted. In a previous life this kind of week would have seen me diving under the doona, emerging only for Cheetos and a family block of Cadbury chocolate but, I've discovered something....I can still work. Actually, it goes even further than that. If I commit myself to working even when things are going badly, not only is the work often good, I find myself going off on unexpected tangents which may (or may not) result in some satisfying artwork down the track.

Drawing in particular is cathartic for me and somehow allows me to see things more clearly and in a much less catastrophic way. Although I wasn't conscious of it at the time, the drawing that I did on Saturday (top photo) is a pretty accurate depiction of my feelings at the time.....I just thought I was drawing goblins.....

So, although I'm not terribly happy with certain events in my life at this time (and before you lovely folk start sending concerned e-mails, please let me clarify that there is no illness, death or divorce involved, mostly just disappointment and mostly with myself) I am cheered by the knowledge that I am no longer reduced to being a non-productive basket-case just because I'm feeling down. It's very odd when you think about it...I can think of no other profession that lets people off the hook (of working) so easily. Sometimes it feels as though any excuse is a good excuse to not work....no energy, no space, no money, no time, no motivation, no inspiration.

On the subject of 'inspiration' I'd like to make mention of one of my very favorite artists (and writers), Ursula Vernon. Here is a wonderfully entertaining (and in my opinion, spot-on) article written by Ursula for EMG-Zine on just that subject. (If you enjoy the article you may like to check out Ursula's bizarre and brilliant world at Red Wombat Studio)

The up-shot of all of this is that I am carrying on regardless. I've built a small(ish) goblin and have started painting him.....yes, he does have a blue nose and he will also have blue-tipped fingers and toes. I've also been completely re-designing my website.....after three years it's well past due for an over-haul and I'm completely 'over' the black pages. The new site will be lighter and brighter and I'm thinking of moving my shop page to ETSY.....haven't made a final decision on that one, so would definitely welcome any thoughts and opinions.

I've also posted a shot of Sunday nights magnificent sunset and one of the full moon several hours later.

Here's to a better week.

Till next time.

In the wild.....

2010-03-25T21:20:00.000-07:00

As soon as I'd finished making this piece I just knew that I would have to take it out and photograph it in a natural setting. There are some lovely little "faerie spots" near my home, so early this morning, while the light was soft and there was no wind, I set out for one of my favorites. This old Peppercorn tree is such a perfect faerie haunt....it's down some secret stone steps and sits right on the banks of the little Angus River.

(One day I'm going to make a faerie boat (with faerie crew) and photograph it amongst the reeds and duckweed.)

It was important for me to establish a strong relationship between these characters....love, trust, comfort and acceptance....all the things we hope to feel within the family unit. And of course, the fact that they are 'travelling' symbolizes our voyage through life and the fact that we are always on a path heading somewhere, however ponderous it may seem at times.

So, now I have that lovely feeling of having completed one piece and ready to start the next....an earthy little goblin I think, with teeth, big feet and an oversized cap on his head. That's the plan.....for now anyway.

Till next time.

Slow going on the 'snail' piece....seems appropriate.

2010-03-22T00:54:00.000-07:00

The "Dragon-snail Travellers" piece is progressing well, but slowly. All of the painting is finished now but the costuming is proving to be a little more problematic than expected due to the position of the characters....this afternoon I had a total 'brain fuzz' and almost dismantled four days work(!).....luckily, I stepped away for a much needed coffee and when I returned I realized that I was on the right track after all. It's times like that I really envy people who work in teams with other creative souls (truthfully, this envy is short-lived....if I know anything at all about myself it's that I do not play well with others)....

So, I've posted a few semi-cryptic photos and will hopefully complete the piece over the next few days.

Oh, and today I ate a big salad for lunch and everything in it came from our garden....

Till next time.

Adelaide Festival & life in our garden

2010-03-15T00:20:00.000-07:00

The Adelaide Festival and accompanying Fringe Festival is officially over. In one way I feel as if I should have made the effort to see more, but on the other (much more grounded in reality) hand, much of the stuff I did see was disappointing to say the least. I think I've spoken before about 'concept art' and my increasing intolerance for it and I'm the first to admit that I understand little of what is happening in the world of contemporary 'Art' with a capital 'A'.

What I can say, and this is only personal opinion, is that a fair amount of the visual art I went to see was derivative, dull, (in some cases) poorly constructed or it was so bewildering that it failed to engage the viewer in any way. I have to ask the question, 'who are these artists making this work for?' I just can't bring myself to stand in front of a pile of string, scratching my chin and nodding in that insufferable way that suggests I actually see a deep and profound message in a tangle of knotty fibers (this is a totally fabricated example....I'm not referring to anyone's work in particular, but I think you get my drift).

However, there were some highlights for me. The Helpmann Academy Graduate Exhibition had some fabulous work by Klaus Gutowski, Joshua Searson and the extraordinary charcoal drawings of Kim Buck. The Samstag housed an amazing, huge sculpture made entirely from styrofoam cups and hot glue and the Biennale at the AGSA was home to my personal favorite; papier mache and inked sculptures by James Morrison.

The absolute winner for me, on every level, was Amococo, a construction by The Architects of Air and designed by Alan Parkinson. I visited this incredible structure twice (took my kids the second time and they LOVED it). The three photos at the top are shots that I took from inside....the color was so intense in some areas it was almost painful to look at it....we were immersed in color. A wonderful experience and one that I highly recommend, if you get the chance.

Other than Festival shenannigans and sculpting, most of my joy at present is coming from our garden. The no-dig beds that my husband built several weeks ago are flourishing. We have beetroot, peas, beans, assorted lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, carrots, radishes and marigolds (because they're beautiful AND they confuse pests) practically leaping out of the earth. Our herb garden is now threatening to cover the path into the backyard and the smell of sage, thyme, rosemary and mint permeates the air. This past week has also seen our three chickens begin laying and our beautiful walk-in aviary (another of Guy's wonderful constructions) is a hive of activity with our quails hatching eight tiny chicks and many other birds nesting.

So that's pretty much it for the moment. I've started painting the 'dragon-snail' piece but am being slightly thwarted by a burst of hot weather (the paint dries too fast on the polymer clay)....I'm afraid the air-conditioning in our house doesn't quite cut the mustard, but we press on regardless.

Lots of projects on the go and some exciting things in the pipeline. Hope to fill you all in soon.

Till next time.

New piece in progress....

2010-03-09T22:01:00.000-08:00

I started work on this piece last week and thought I'd post some pictures before I begin the painting and costuming. Ever since seeing Patrick Woodroffe's 'elephant snails' many, many years ago, I've loved the idea of different kinds of creatures emerging from snail shells. That, and the fact that we are currently at war with the little blighters in our newly established vegetable garden, made me think about the kind of pest I'd welcome amongst the spinach leaves......a benign 'dragon snail' and an old faery taking his grand-faery for a leisurely crawl, perhaps bagging a few cherry tomatoes and pea-pods along the way.

It was important for me to establish the relationship between the three characters here - the love of the small faery for her grand-faery, the protectiveness of the grand-faery and the acceptance of the snail in bearing them along. I remember very clearly the wonderful feeling of falling asleep in the car on long drives home when I was a small child. This is the faery equivalent. It's uncomplicated emotion, but hopefully one that we can all relate to in some way.

Till next time.

First completed piece for 2010!

2010-02-26T02:26:00.000-08:00

Yay for me! After what truly seems like an eternity, I have completed my first piece for 2010.

This is 'Sienna' and she is a very sulky faerie girl. Having three daughters (delightful though they are) I had much to draw on for this piece. I love the idea of faeries in moods other than the commonly depicted cheerfulness....and let's face it, anyone who knows anything at all about faeries knows that they are unpredictable, vengeful and contrary little blighters!

I really tried to get not only the facial expression to convey Siennas mood, but also her body language.....she is definitely not in the mood to compromise!

I had lots of fun constructing Siennas costume, most of it being comprised of leather and felt - two of my favorite materials to work with. She stands 40cms tall to the tip of her pig-skin cap.

Even though I have my life-size goblin built, I have started sculpting another piece.....suffice to say that it involves a snail.....truly I have the attention span of a flea!

Till next time.

ps. Sienna is for sale on my website. Not all Faeries are Beautiful.

Back to work at last!

2010-02-23T03:51:00.000-08:00

After a very slow start to the year I finally feel settled in my new space and have spent the last few weeks working on a number of projects. The piece that has my full attention at the moment is the 'life-size' goblin in the first photos. The head took three days to sculpt and another two days to build the body armature and put him together (very awkward at this size). He needs more work on his knees and elbows and there's still the painting and costuming to go, but I'm pleased with him so far. I'm aiming for a fairly high level of realism with this piece....the scale is certainly helping, larger pieces definitely make their presence felt!

You may notice in the studio shots a small faerie girl on my worktable. She was actually my first sculpt for this year, but I was side-tracked by the big guy so she remains incomplete. I will be working on finishing her over the next few days and will post pics as soon as she is done.

I promised myself that this year I would devote more of my work time to drawing (my first love) and the young girl is the first piece of work that I completed in my new studio. While sculpting seems to set off a chain reaction of ideas and concepts in my brain, hammering at the back of my eyes demanding to be let out, drawing has a very calming effect which I completely forget about when I'm not doing it. I'm talking here about tighter, more 'finished' drawing as opposed to rough sketching and doodling (see bottom photo), which I do a lot of, most of it at a frantic pace before the idea is lost. I spent two days on this piece (it's quite large) and it was a lovely way to ease back in to the work year.

And so it begins.......

Till next time.

New workspace & gallery

2010-01-11T21:27:00.000-08:00

My new workspace and gallery area are finally set up. The move from the old studio actually went very smoothly, although it was more work (of the physical kind) than I had anticipated. Guy and myself had made a lot of changes which had to be returned to their original state, so there was the taking down of walls, shelving and cupboards as well as the usual packing up and cleaning out that invariably comes with such a move. I somehow managed to only be teary once during the whole process, but I did find it quite difficult emotionally speaking. The breakthrough for me came last week when the wonderful Linda came up and spent the day with me, helping me clean and sort through my gear and generally giving me a boost in the right direction re the setting up of my new space. My ever-patient and long-suffering husband, Guy has again been indispensable and he and his mate Steve made short work of all the heavy lifting, which is no mean feat when there are three flights of stairs to contend with. So, I say thankyou to Guy, Steve and Linda and also to all my blogging and facebook friends who have sent messages of support and encouragement over the past few weeks.

As some of you may know, right in the middle of all this we had our beloved dogs Jasper (the pug) and Poppy (the staffy) taken from our backyard. They were missing for two days and the entire family was in despair. I really felt completely at the end of my rope....not only did last year end on a bum note but 2010 was shaping up to be even worse! Thankfully, they were turned in to the pound in the nearby town of Goolwa (under very suspicious circumstances) but I was just so over-joyed and relieved to have them home safe and unharmed. For the next two days Jasper did not leave my side, following me from room to room and settling down to sleep wherever I was. I think they both had a pretty nasty fright, as did we.

So, as you can see from the photos above, I now have an upstairs workspace with a gallery area downstairs. There is very little in the gallery at the moment and those pieces I do have in there are sold and being held for safe-keeping. I'm incredibly happy with both spaces and actually have more room than I did in the old studio, not to mention a ton more light. It's also fantastic to have everything to hand all the time, although I do anticipate some difficulty with keeping my kids out of my art supplies.....even though they have their own, mine seem to be considerably more desirable!

I have a bench full of creations waiting to be finished, a major project in the works, several folders of notes and drawings of other ideas and a head over-flowing with creatures yet to be realized in any tangible form. Looks like 2010 is going to be a great year after all.

Till next time.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-22T12:56:00.000-08:00

Seeing as how the year has ended on a fairly bum note for me (see previous post), I've decided to make this last blog post for 2009 a list of some of the wonderful things that happened in my life during the year.

* flying to Melbourne to see Ryan Adams in concert.

* successful re-construction surgery that gave me back that which had been taken away.

* the 'Mutant Barnyard'.

* watching my daughter Taylor have an amazing year that included "Youth Opportunities', Medspace camp, and acceptance into Eynesbury College for her final two years of schooling.

*Patricia Piccininni exhibition.

*joining Facebook and making some amazing (albeit long-distance) friendships that I absolutely treasure.

*SALA Festival.

*seeing my youngest daughter Grace achieve her Brown Belt in Karate.

*Bonfire night and 'Top 5 Songs' with the wonderful Blackeby family.

*a sleep-over at Monarto Zoo.

*a truly fabulous Halloween.....made extra special with gifts from friends in the US and a film of the party shot by the amazing Linda Pill.

*Neil Gaiman....his books and his blog.

*my eldest daughter Megans year 12 success.

*celebrating my 3rd Wedding Anniversary.

*date nights with my husband.

*watching my 10 year old son Noah do his 'robot dance' on the kitchen floor on Friday nights.

*hearing Grace sing.

*the addition of Frankston the Siamese kitten to our family.

*selling out of everything in the studio.

*continued friendship, fun and support from Linda, Nick and Lily.

*still having mum with us after a very close call.

This isn't a definitive list and some things are of more significance than others, but that's how life is. Of course we're grateful for the big things like love of friends and family and triumph over illness, but the little things like reading a good book and laughing at cartoons are what make day to day living such a gift.

Thankyou to everyone who has read my blog over the past year. Your comments and support mean so much to me. I hope that Christmas is a wonderful, joyous time for you all. The pics above are some shots of our house and some of my favorite decorations.

2010 will be a year of change for me and there are already plenty of new pieces just waiting to emerge from my new studio space. I hope you'll all keep in touch.

Till next time.

New Faerie.....and studio woes....

2009-11-30T21:52:00.000-08:00

Well, it seems that time is just racing by of late. The comedown of Halloween and the subsequent lead-up to Christmas are partly responsible for the absence of blog posts on my part.....apologies for that.

Those of you who are in contact with me through Facebook may be aware that I have been having "issues" with my studio space for the last month or so. The real estate agent who has taken over management of the group of shops that includes my studio/gallery is acting to significantly change my lease agreement (including a 25% rental increase), but is refusing to provide estimates of actual costs and is basically trying to bully me into agreeing to terms without actually telling me exactly what those terms are. To make matters worse, it appears that she has now involved a third party, who have come in with a counter offer, in an attempt to orchestrate some kind of 'bidding war'. As it stands at present, I have again requested (for the fourth time!) a breakdown of the costs and the exact nature of the increases, so that I can make an informed decision as to whether I can afford to continue renting the premises......or not.

So, this is a very stressful time for me....all of this came completely out of the blue and I must say that her timing is impeccable....not exactly the kind of Christmas joy I had in mind this year! I'm very emotionally attached to my little space. When I moved in there four and a half years ago I had just completed six months of chemotherapy after a breast cancer diagnosis. It was a new start for me and a way to refocus on my art. My husband Guy worked tirelessly to make the tiny area into a functional and inspiring space for me to work in and constructed a gorgeous little gallery to showcase my creations. Over the past few years I've met hundreds of wonderful people, learnt a great deal and produced some good work....so it's very sad to have all of those experiences tainted by a woman who can't even spell my name correctly. Yes, that's a little self-pitying (and a tad bitchy, perhaps) and although those aren't the only emotions I'm feeling at the moment, I have to say that they are the ones currently taking centre stage.

Anyway, while I've been waiting I have managed to complete (except for her wings) a new Faerie....her name is Helena and she is a gentle, peaceful and happy soul. I feel as though she knows something I don't....a common occurence, as I don't know a great deal more than I do after all.

As soon as I have more information regarding the studio situation I will let you all know.

Thanks for your support.

Till next time.

2009-11-16T14:25:00.000-08:00

Check out the awesome movie that my friend Linda shot at our Halloween party this year.....it's on my Spooky blog.....

My other blog

2009-11-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

Come on over to the spooky side.......

Halloween in the studio...

2009-10-25T14:37:00.000-07:00

Just some final shots of my Halloween pieces as they are in the studio. "Trick & Treat" were sold over the weekend and I only have two 'eeriefae' left.....not too bad, seeing as Halloween is a bit of a foreign concept over here.

Oh, and the two little pumpkins at the bottom are gourds that I painted last week just for my own amusement.

Till next time.

New Halloween blog.....

2009-10-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

What a busy and tiring week this has been!

I've been thinking for some time now that I should have a separate blog for all my Halloween stuff, so I've set that up and you can visit by clicking on the link to the right. I'm hoping to post on there every couple of days between now and Halloween.....I have lots to share!

I've been working on 'The Faery Catcher' this week....the painting is almost complete and I've started to put his costume together. I didn't realize how big I'd made his butt....constructing his pants was a logistical nightmare! All going well, he should be completed next week.

Received a beautiful surprise package today from my friend Cody.....a gorgeous 'dearly departed' piece made by Cody, a lovely ceramic skull bead and two little skellys.....all of which are very at home here in the 'castle of doom'. Once again, I am blessed with a wonderful and generous friend....

I've made more Halloween stuff *sigh*.....but I'll post that on the other blog.

Till next time.

'Trick' & 'Treat'....final Halloween piece!

2009-10-15T22:50:00.000-07:00

"This year I’d like

for you to meet

All Hallow’s piskies,

‘Trick’ & ‘Treat’.

Their acrobatic skills

I’m told

are really something

to behold.

With deftness

and dexterity,

come high-jinks

and tomfoolery.

Into the air

they fly and tumble,

never a mis-step

or a stumble.

Their daring feats

will leave you gasping -

to your seat edge

you’ll be clasping!

They’ll leave you breathless,

but still keen

to see it again...

next Halloween!"

I couldn't resist doing one last Halloween themed piece....I have a number of other projects that I should be working on....but the lure of Halloween is just too strong. The problem is, the more I do the more ideas I get and then they rattle around in my brain, tormenting me until I let them out.

Thanks to Pattee for the 'felty-webby' stuff I used on the little box...it was just perfect! xx

Oh, and yay!....I managed to get a 'proper' Halloween pumpkin today....it cost me twenty bucks!! (which I'm sure is shocking to my friends in the US!), but at least I can make a decent Jack-o-lantern now.

Till next time.

Living like the Addams family (click, click)......

2009-10-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I managed to get most of the house set up for the Halloween season. Due to being so busy with studio committments, this year I have downsized things a bit (not too much...my kids would never forgive me!). So, we will now live like the Addams family for a couple of weeks, which is great fun and something I feel strangely comfortable doing. It's always interesting if we get unexpected (and unwary) visitors - last year, the night after Halloween, we witnessed someone breaking into our car which was parked in the street outside. The police officer who arrived at our house to take the details must have wondered what on earth was going on as he walked up a spiderweb enclosed staircase (complete with web-wrapped corpse), past the mummy in his coffin and up into "The Lab" with our demented Doctor and his table of dismembered body parts!....oddly, he made no reference to it.....

As I've mentioned before, Halloween decorations are relatively hard to come by here in Australia, although the past couple of years have been better with Toys 'R' Us and some of the 'cheap shops' getting in a reasonable range. Most of our props and decorations have been made by me over the years and this year I've received wonderful goodies from friends in the US, which are proudly displayed. My biggest bugbear is that it is utterly impossible to find candy corn here....let alone the magnificent chocolate/caramel variety that was sent to me last year (dear Keri xx). I did manage to get hold of some bubblegum eyeballs and 'gummi' body parts....but it's the candy corn that sends my kids (and me) into raptures of delight....thankyou Pattee! xx

Of course I'll be adding things as we get closer to the 31st - blacklights, dry ice and such - and I'm hoping to do one or two new 'redead' dollies....I found a large, broken, walking one at the op-shop last week. Fun.

Till next time, Happy Halloweening!

The Faery Catcher

2009-10-04T14:53:00.000-07:00

Well, this has been a really busy and excitement-filled week for me. I managed to start a new piece, which came about from a little doodly drawing that I did at the start of the week and by late that afternoon I had most of the face completed. The addition of horns was another couple of days work, but I'm very pleased with the result....also the hands, which I think are improving with each pair I make. I've since completed both hands and the feet (sorry, I forgot to snap them) and am at the body construction stage as of today. He will be big and fat with no neck to speak of....your basic thug really. I'm going to re-visit the "faery catcher" theme with this piece. I made a couple of 'ogreish' creatures with poor, trapped faeries some years ago and feel it's time for another go at a theme that (I'm embarrassed to admit) fulfills a perverse need in me to see pretty little faeries punished and in peril.

It's been very busy at the studio with it being school holidays....there are quite a lot of people out and about, especially when we get a bit of sun and blue sky. On Tuesday, a package from my lovely friend Pat arrived at the studio, filled with the most wonderful Halloween goodies....the best of them a gorgeous little Witch made by Pat. As my children can attest, I was in a state of almost giddy excitement while opening this magical box.....Halloween is not really celebrated here and the stuff that is available is generally pretty crappy.....so to receive this amazingly generous treat was truly delightful. Thankyou Pattee!!

Last week I also spent a wonderful afternoon with a high school friend I hadn't seen in over twenty years! It was weird and fantastic at the same time....she is just the same (not really, but you know what I mean....no huge personality morph) and I'm so looking forward to catching up again soon.

Other very exciting news is the launch of my friend Linda's website. Linda's work is, quite frankly awe-inspiring. Her botanical illustration is the best I have ever seen....she infuses her work with a joyfulness that is so rarely seen these days.....and her little "naturalist" faeries are just superb. If you are lucky enough to know Linda, you will know just how much her beautiful work is an extension of herself....her love of nature and in particular the tiny, intricate details of it, is inspirational. I can't wait for her exhibition!

Yesterday afternoon was spent at Joanne's exhibition launch, "Beyond the Boundaries" at the Stationmaster's Gallery. Joanne's textiles and drawings are also beautifully realized and sensitively executed, a real pleasure to view. The last two photos above were snapped yesterday, but the room was too full for me to get properly decent shots.....I particularly love the triptych of "Spring flowers" and the lovely "Flower Brooches" pinned to the cotton dress. You can see Joanne's work (in a much better light) on her blog.

Well, I'm off to the studio to put the faery catcher together. By the way, there are only four "eeriefae" left.......

Till next time.

"eeriefae"

2009-09-21T02:25:00.000-07:00

Continuing the Halloween theme....have spent the past week making these little darlings. There are only 10 available and the plan is to have an edition of 10 available each year for Halloween. Of course, they will be different "eeriefae" each year, so should make a nice little collectible set. They've been wonderful fun to work on and you can check out their shop page here.

I'm still listening to the 'Harry Potter' audiobooks every day in the studio. I'm about halfway through 'Order of the Phoenix' and can honestly say that I'm getting more enjoyment from hearing them read by the great Stephen Fry than I did reading them myself years ago. I had quite forgotten how much they've left out of the movies or changed around....all the small details that make the books so compelling. If you love the movies, I thoroughly recommend experiencing the books this way.....just listening to Mr Fry do the voices is a real treat in itself!

The beautiful Spring weather we've been having the past couple of weeks came to a crashing halt today with a return to wintry cold, rain and wind. A bit of a rude shock really.....as someone who is always freezing during the cooler months, sunshine and blue sky does wonders for my energy levels and my mood. I hope the return to Winter doesn't last too long.

Before I sign off, my good friend and fellow 'Strathalbynite' Joanne Blackeby has finally got her blog up and running. Joanne is a very talented textile artist who creates beautiful, sensitive pieces that reflect her love of nature and the countryside that surrounds her. Being a very private person she was quite nervous about blogging, but I think she's done a lovely job. You can check out Joanne's blog here.

Till next time.

Halloween Faery....finished!...(almost)

2009-09-10T03:48:00.000-07:00

I'm always a little nervous about making Halloween pieces....always just a little afraid that I won't want to stop once I start. There is something so 'addictive' about those Halloween colors....I never use orange at any other time (well, rarely anyway). This has been such an enjoyable piece every step of the way....she almost seemed to be putting herself together, everything just worked and there was no stress involved. Nice change! She is all finished except for the tiny light that will illuminate the jack-o-lantern she is holding....I'm hoping to pick that up tomorrow. The little skulls and pumpkins in her hair were great fun to make too....being able to do these little things makes me appreciate polymer clay all over again!

So, this is the first in a series of Faeries (all around the same size and with sculpted hair) that I will be creating over the next twelve months or so. The next one will be a 'spring' themed faery followed, of course, by a Christmas one. I hope to have her up on the website this weekend.

It's been an interesting week with a few ups and downs. We'll ignore the downs, but the ups have been really lovely. There was a lovely post on Koldo Barroso's blog, a 'sneak peek' at a wonderful treat being sent to me by my friend Pattee, a delightful e-mail from the BuNnY Queen Keri, the joy of knowing that the new 'Alice' book by Nancy Wiley is on it's way, the arrival of Brom's new book 'The Child Thief', the joy of listening to the Harry Potter books on audiobook (read by Stephen Fry) every day in the studio, and of course my youngest child, Noah, turning ten last weekend. Life's good.

Till next time.

2009-08-30T01:01:00.000-07:00

It seems to be becoming a 'thing' with me that the end of the SALA festival signals rising excitement (on my part) about the approach of 'Gothtober' and the unbridled glee (again, on my part) that is Halloween. Yes, I live in the wrong hemisphere for this celebration, yes the seasonal colors are completely reversed (halfway through spring) and yes most people in Australia not only don't celebrate Halloween but see it as yet another Americanism and can be quite hostile to it. A great pity.....personally, I've loved it since I was a child and wanted so badly to be able to go trick-or-treating, bob for apples and dress up in scary costumes. I love the carved pumpkins, the candy corn and the fun of decorating the house and yard with ever more elaborate props. My kids have now grown up with it and the party that we have each year is probably their favorite family event. So, each August I look back through the photos of the previous years Halloween and start planning. The photos above are all things that I made last year....the dollies were ordinary children's dolls found at my local op-shop, which I attacked with paint, scissors and matches (deeply satisfying in a twisted kind of way).....the kitchen props were all made by me and my daughter Taylor.....also, Dr. Death and the corpse in the coffin and the cupcakes (which everyone felt bad about eating because they took such a long time to make). Here in Australia, each year there is more Halloween stuff available in the shops but you really can't beat the props that you make yourself. At this stage I have no idea what I'll come up with this October, but the seeds have been planted....

Till next time.

2009-08-16T18:09:00.000-07:00

We are now over half-way through the SALA festival and I have to say that apart from the 2007 festival, when I was lucky enough to meet and become friends with the extraordinary (I could go on and on here, but I won't) Catchlove/Pills, this has been the best SALA I've experienced. This past weekend I have met some truly delightful, interesting and amazingly talented people. I was very unsure how my 'Open Studio' would be received this year, as I had only a handful of completed pieces for sale and lots of 'work in progress', but the response has been enormously positive with a wide cross-section of visitors (which is what I really love to see; kids, grandparents, and especially those people - usually men - who come in begrudgingly with their families and end up poring over every detail and having to be dragged out!). I've had wonderful conversations with people from Perth and New South Wales, a lovely violinist, an eccentrically fabulous woman with faeries in her attic (no, I'm not speaking metaphorically), two beautiful sisters who touched me very deeply (one is now living with "Old Goat"), two young women who fell so deeply in love with the incomplete "Turtle Man" that they would have bought him 'as is' if I had let them and an incredible artist, whose work I'm ashamed to say, I did not know until yesterday. His name is Ron Francis and I think I may have found another favorite Australian painter. I am always quite overwhelmed when people travel, however long or short, to see my work. Seeing this gifted artist's superb paintings only reinforces this feeling as well as simply making me happy that he could also enjoy what I do.

And all of this reminds me why I do what I do. Of course, I'm driven by what's inside of me....a personal vision.....but it's the sharing of this vision and the response of other people that provides the greatest satisfaction. I've always maintained that I would have to make these creatures even if no-one ever saw them, but lately I'm not so sure. That response from another individual is so important to the work.....it gives it meaning. I can derive great personal satisfaction from a well-built armature, nicely sculpted features and a decent paint job, but all of this pales into insignificance when someone looks at a piece with tears in their eyes because, for reasons known only to them, they feel a connection with it. Nothing beats that.

So, I'll keep sculpting and hope that people keep responding. There are some very exciting projects in the works, one of which has to be secret for now, but there will be plenty to blog about. "Turtle Man" is my newest piece, as yet incomplete. The turtle shell is a real one, salvaged by my good friend, Steve. When it came to me it was covered in at least two inches of tube worm casings.....the poor turtle had long since perished, but it took me two weeks of scraping and cleaning to get the shell to it's present condition. "Turtle Man" will be wearing the shell as a kind of armour and if all goes to plan and Steve manages to procure a smaller shell for me, there will be a young'un to go with him.

Again, I really want to thank all those wonderful people I have met over the past week, as well as all my blogging and facebook friends who are so supportive.....special thanks to Nancy for her friendship and wise advice from across the miles.

Till next time.

2009-08-06T05:25:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post tonight (it's late and I'm very tired) to let everyone know that my website is now fully functioning with its new 'Shop' page. There will be new items added as new pieces are completed and of course I will keep you updated here on my blog.

Have had an article in the local paper for SALA and another one going in a different paper next week.....good start! Speaking of good starts, I sold 'The Faery Nanny' and 'Spider Girl' earlier this week....they are off to wonderful, loving homes (I still have them with me for the Festival). Photographed the nanny today and am pretty pleased with the pics.....poor thing, I feel the way she looks!

Well, I need a good night's sleep....

Till next time

2009-08-02T15:35:00.000-07:00

Finished the week off well last week, with domestic faery number three coming together without too much stress.....the foot positioning was tricky but I think I'm learning more all the time in regard to creating movement (or a sense of) in these characters. This little girl (yes, girl) is a 'Rumpled Kitchen Skulker' and her story will go something like this:

"The Rumpled Kitchen Skulker

is a complicated beast,

with oranges the only food

on which she likes to feast.

So while you're sleeping soundly,

dreaming of your hopes and fears,

she'll rummage through your kitchen

seeking out those orange spheres.

And when the fruit bowl's empty

nothing left but peel sucked dry,

she'll climb up on your kitchen bench

and in your cupboards pry.

She touches every surface

with her fingertips and lips

leaving sticky smudges

and a trail of orange pips!"

Only a few days now till SALA and all the new cards etc are almost finished.....I hope to have them up on the website before Friday, but that is looking like it could be wishful thinking so may be the following week. Just hoping the weather isn't too dismal.....last year it rained and was freezing......

Had a brilliant night with friends Joanne and Steve on Saturday.....roaring bonfire, lots of food and drink and great music.....it really doesn't get much better than that, plus I managed to get some nice shots of my kids....that orange light is beautiful and the last shot of Meg has that lovely grainy quality....nice!

Well, I'm off to get stuck in....hope to post again before the end of the week.

Till next time.

Cooking with gas now!

2009-07-23T17:30:00.001-07:00

What a tremendous week this has been! Preparations for the Open Studio are gathering momentum.....much time spent printing up new cards, bookmarks etc, and I'm finally happy with how everything is looking. As far as the studio window, I have to thank my incredibly talented and generous friend Nancy Wiley for inspiring me with her own 'window cupboard' at her new studio. Nancy's and my studios are spookily similar in look and when I saw her beautiful piece in her window I finally realized why I'd hung on to this old cupboard of mine. My studio window has always been a bit of a trial....it's quite big and I found out the hard way that even though it's protected by a verandah, things still fade if they're left in there for too long....so most of the time it sits empty, which is a huge waste and looks very uninspiring. So, I asked Nancy if she would mind me stealing her idea and she kindly told me to go for it. The cupboard was a very dingy yellow so I re-painted it white and painted the black thorn and vine design, painting the interior black as well. There is a light mounted inside so that it can be lit at night, which looks terrific....I'll try to get a shot and post it next time. This is the first time I've been truly happy with how my window looks.....I'm planning to change the piece on display regularly, but it seems to be quite protected inside the cupboard.

I've also finished sculpting another domestic faery....this is Toody the flatulence faery. I was going to get right on to painting Mouldy Odorous, but this little guy just had to come out.....no pun intended! Needless to say, my ten year old son and my husband just love him....now they have someone else to blame other than the dog :)

So all in all, a productive and happy week. It's my daughter Taylor's 16th birthday tomorrow and I continue to be awed and delighted by the wonderful young woman she has become. I'm also overjoyed that she has opted for a quiet celebration with family and friends......no scary teenage party requiring security guards and ending with the cops being called......yes, I am truly blessed and thankful each and every day.

Till next time.

"Spidergirl"....bondage Queen!

2009-07-07T23:44:00.000-07:00

After a total disaster of a day yesterday, I'm so pleased that 'spidergirl' co-operated enough today for me to finish her. I spent six hours yesterday painting tattoo-like patterns all over her torso....but when it was finished I didn't like the effect at all. The idea for her is that she is the ultimate 'bondage' queen, being part spider and all, and I thought that tattoos would work well. Unfortunately, to me they distracted too much from the look I was after, making her look more feral and less sexy.....I'm not saying tattoos are feral, I LOVE tattoos, but they just weren't right on this piece. As soon as I dressed her in leather with the front lacing, I knew it was the right choice. Sometimes it's really hard to let go of something when you've put so much time into it, but I never would have been happy with her if I hadn't gone with my instincts. I'm very pleased with that lovely contrast of the very pale skin against the jet black spider body....you just know she doesn't see a lot of daylight!

So it's now just under five weeks until SALA (South Australian Living Artists) Festival. It feels a bit strange to not be having an exhibition....this is the first year in the past four that I haven't....but I am excited about having an 'Open Studio'. It's always great to meet and chat to people and most people really like to watch artists at work in their studios....I know I do! It's also nice not to have the pressure of having to produce so many pieces.....although I'm probably working harder now because I feel like I have to make up for all that time spent recovering from surgeries earlier in the year. Anyway, should be a great couple of weeks.....hope those of you who can drop in and say 'hi'.....would love to see you!

Till next time.

"The Royal Faery's Nanny"

2009-06-25T22:06:00.000-07:00

Well, I wasn't going to do a new blog post until I had a new piece completed but I've had a few concerned e-mails and have realized that its been a while since the last one. These last few weeks have really got away from me.....!

So the piece above is still not quite finished - there is more work to do on the hair and she also needs some wings. These pics were taken at the worktable but I'll be taking some nice finished shots very soon. There is a poem to accompany this piece, which is also not quite finished but it starts off like this:

"The royal faery's nanny has a job that few could bear;

To placate bawling infants without tearing out their hair!"

.....and so it will go on.

I've always been a bit disturbed by The Duchess in Alice in Wonderland and didn't want to make this nanny look at all mean....she is tired and careworn and a little 'over it' but she also has enormous patience and love for her charges. The baby, on the other hand, is a spoilt brat :)

This was lots of fun to do, but I found the costuming difficult to get right. This is the third version and although it's quite understated I think it's right for the character....when you're taking care of babies, clean and functional is probably the most you can hope for!

And speaking of Alice in Wonderland, how amazing do those first pics from Tim Burton's version look? I am SO excited about this....if anyone can do the book justice, he can. I can't remember a time when I've had so many movies to look forward to.....Harry Potter, Coraline, Where The Wild Things Are, Alice, not to mention Del Toro's The Hobbit (ok, I know it's a long way away!) but this is a fantasy film lover's dream come true....very exciting!

On a sad note, I can't end this post without saying how sorry I was this morning to hear of the death of Michael Jackson. His personal life notwithstanding, his music was an enormous part of my life, as a teenager particularly and I'm so very saddened that this is his end after struggling through so much. I spent the morning listening to his music in the studio and it was such a weird feeling of reminiscing about high school years, joy and appreciation at and of his extraordinary talent and great sadness that we'll never know what he might have done next.

Thankfully, the music lives on.

Till next time.

2009-05-26T03:00:00.000-07:00

Today I am a very happy girl.....after two long days of painting, "Old Goat" is finally complete. This is the first piece I have finished this year, although I have quite a number already sculpted and ready to go.....it's been difficult to concentrate on just one piece. I'm very happy with how this one has turned out.....I think I've gone some way towards achieving the naturalistic look I was after. I've finally realized that what interests me most in regard to my own work is trying to depict an attitude or emotion in the character. For me, this takes precedence over just about everything else and if the piece doesn't have that quality then I feel that I've failed in some way. "Old Goat" looks like he has quite a bit going on inside that shaggy head.....I like to think that, like all fauns, he had a rather "eventful" youth and rather enjoys these moments of reflection that come with age and experience.....there is still mischief to be made, but it's now a more considered and sophisticated affair.

So, there it is.....one down, finally. I took a couple of shots of the completed sculpt of 'spider girl' while I was photographing today, and will most probably tackle her painting next. Then again, I have another attention demanding piece sitting on my studio computer table (it's a long-suffering Faery nanny complete with squalling infant!) built and ready for painting.....decisions, decisions.....might just wait till I get to the studio tomorrow and see who talks to me the loudest. Stay tuned for the winner.

Till next time.

Awesome day at Mt Lofty gardens!

2009-05-24T15:30:00.000-07:00

Well, I think someone must be looking out for me because after a truly awful week I had the most wonderful day on Saturday at the Mt Lofty botanic gardens with our much loved friends Linda, Nick and Lily. After a delicious picnic lunch, we spent our time photographing fungus, watching our kids roll down the steep grassy hill (some things never change, thank goodness!), walking, talking and laughing. My laughter deficit of the entire previous week was more than made up for in just a few hours! Guy was relaxed and happy too and I could just feel all of the tension lifting.....being in such beautiful surroundings with such wonderful company.....heavenly! Of course the time flew by at a ridiculous rate, as it always does, but there never seems to be enough time does there?

Linda set her camera on timer to take the shot of us all (Linda, Nick, me and Guy at the back, Noah, Lily and Grace in front) and she also sneakily shot the pic of me lying on the ground getting up close and personal with a Fly Agaric toadstool. I really dislike having my picture taken but she always manages to sneak a few.....and they're always good.

Fungus has always held an enormous fascination for me....it is so connected to Faery lore and it also has those wonderful 'Alice in Wonderland' connotations. I'm determined to one day sculpt the caterpillar on his mushroom.....another one for the ever growing list!

I hope to be able to post once more this week before I go in to hospital on Friday. I'll be spending the next four days hard at work in the studio so hopefully will have something worth sharing.

Till next time.

2009-05-21T16:09:00.000-07:00

Spider girl is progressing well. It was always a bit of a gamble as to whether she would actually work as a sculpture, the legs being the biggest hurdle. Too thick and they would destroy the look of the piece....too thin and they just wouldn't support the weight of the torso and abdomen. Happily, it seems to have worked out and better than I expected. There is still a bit of fine tuning to do, but I should be able to start painting her in the next day or so. I ended up working at home on the kitchen bench (again) because she is too big to fit in my studio oven and she needed multiple bakings. I don't like using the home oven because of the cleaning required afterwards, but sometimes it's unavoidable.

Apart from work going well, it's been a pretty horrible week. I had my pre-admission visit at the hospital on Monday which was all fine (no bloodtests!!) but they forgot some stuff so I had to go back in again on Wednesday. Of course that means that Guy has to take more time off work and it's an hour trip there and an hour back.....we were ten minutes late so they kept us waiting for two and a half hours in a tiny shoebox of a waiting room....for an appointment that would have taken no more than ten minutes! Anyway, to cut a long and boring story short, I ended up having a panic attack and we had to leave before we saw the doctor. I've never had anxiety (except the usual kind) and panic before in my life and I have to say that I really don't enjoy the feeling. I just hope that once this final surgery is over next week, things will get back to normal and I won't have to even see a hospital again for a very long time, if ever.

To top things off, we lost our much loved pet rat Bernie on Tuesday. His brother Vern died a couple of months ago, so we kind of expected that old Bern wouldn't be far behind....he was a loving, gentle and intelligent member of our family and we will all miss him.

So that's the week gone and I'm glad to see the back of it. We're getting together with wonderful friends tomorrow, the weather is beautiful and it will be 'Friday night groove' in the kitchen after work today. Nothing cheers me up like watching my nine year old son do his 'robot dance' in his socks on the lino.

Till next time.

Spider girl

2009-05-08T21:29:00.000-07:00

It's freezing cold (damn it!!) but it's been an interesting and busy week at the studio. While I was VERY keen at the start of the week to get straight into sculpting 'spider girl', I decided to first re-work the 'fat faerie' head as the eyes have been bothering me for weeks. I needed a softer expression for what I've decided to do with her, so have made the eyes smaller and added a network of wrinkles and lines.....I've since finished building this piece, but haven't taken photos yet. Next post, hopefully.

With another piece built and ready for painting and costuming I moved onto tackling the armature for the spider girl sculpture. I drew out my idea of what she should look like and then tried to visualize an internal support structure that would not only hold the weight of the clay, but also allow for any changes I might decide to make along the way. You can't really tell from the photo because the whole thing is wrapped in masking tape, but the armature is very sturdy with the legs acting as a kind of cradle for the torso and spider body. The final spider legs will be longer than the armature so the whole thing will sit up higher.....at this stage, the most important thing regarding the look of the piece is that the legs remain quite spindly and delicate looking, but not in a 'pretty' way.....I want her to look elegant but dangerous at the same time. As you can see, I've already started to make changes from the original drawing by giving her multiple breasts.....at this stage I like the idea, but we'll see what happens as the sculpture progresses. So, all in all a good, productive week despite the cold weather.....I've strung some fairy lights in the studio for cheer and covered my blackboard with interesting quotes from interesting people. With luck it may just be enough to stop me from hibernating under a blanket (or several) for the next few months. Brrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!

Till next time.

Old goat

2009-04-29T22:57:00.000-07:00

I started working on this guy last week (on the kitchen bench) and have just finished his final baking. Although I love school holidays, I really miss my studio and it's been fantastic to be back in there every day this week.....I certainly achieve a lot more without constant requests for sandwiches and milk drinks, although, god love them, I really do have it easy when it comes to my lovely brood.

Anyway, a couple weeks ago I overheard a woman in the supermarket call her husband (a rather crotchety looking fellow) an 'old goat'.....and this is the result. The hardest decision I had to make regarding him was whether to sculpt the fur or use a real pelt of some kind. I chose sculpting as I thought it would be more controllable and not so potentially bulky but, it was a decision I regretted several times, particularly when working up an actual sweat trying to push clay through a very small clay extruder.....my fingers are still bruised.

Regardless of the pain, I am pleased with how he's turned out.....of course he still has to be painted and costumed....and I can't quite believe I managed to get him to stand on his hooves (or is it 'hoofs'?). I'd like to say I'll be painting him tomorrow, but I've got some more ideas I'd like to get sculpted first so he'll have to keep 'evil tree lady' , 'fat faerie' and 'small dragon thingy' company in their shared incompleteness.

Till next time.

2009-04-19T22:26:00.000-07:00

Have made some good progress with this piece....she is now base-coated and ready for painting. Things got a little tricky with figuring out how to join her torso to the bottom half of her body, but filling in and adding more roots with paperclay seems to have worked out ok. As she is over 60 cms tall she was much too big to fit in the oven all in one piece, so her head, torso and tree trunk all had to be sculpted and baked separately. The pics above go in order from the bottom one to the top one. She is going to be a nightmare to paint....all those little nooks and crannys, but I've really enjoyed working on her so far.

I'm getting quite anxious to get back to working on my 'goat girl', so I may finish sculpting her before I get too heavily into painting this piece.....then there is the 'fat faerie' that is going to be a costuming dream....and of course the small 'dragon creature' that I'm only halfway through scaling.....oh yes, and the huge Griffon head.

Feels a little out of control actually.....no wonder I'm not sleeping well.....it's that little voice that whispers "FOR GOD'S SAKE, FINISH SOMETHING!!!" at around 3am....every night....on the dot....without fail.

I did find a gorgeous quote from Jim Henson however, so I think I'll finish this post with a wonderful thought that I can really relate to:

"As children, we all live in a world of imagination, of fantasy,

and for some of us that world of make-believe continues

into adulthood."

Till next time.

Something wicked this way comes......

2009-04-14T01:04:00.000-07:00

Ok....I said I was going to make something evil, so here are some wip photos of 'nasty tree lady'. The quality of the shots is not great as I've been working in the kitchen (again) to be around my family for the holidays. I'm quite pleased with how she's progressing, but I have to build her in sections as she's too tall for the oven, so anything could go wrong at any time.

The menacing trees in 'Snow White' had a huge impact on me when I saw that film as a child......years later Brian Froud and Alan Lee talked about willow trees uprooting themselves at night to creep behind people as they walked home alone. My most beloved book as a very young child was "The Magic Faraway Tree"......my favorite part being when the children jump the ditch into the enchanted wood and hear the trees whispering to each other, 'wisha, wisha, wisha.' My sister and I spent wonderful days playing on and around the huge roots of the Morton Bay Fig trees in Botanic park during school holidays.....we were also lucky enough to have trees that we could climb in our own (very unkempt and therefore magical) backyard. So trees have had an impact on me.....most of it positive but I've always felt the possibility of a more sinister aspect. Hence,'nasty tree lady'. And, I have to say, I just love this darker aspect of Faerie.....there will be more!

I also received something wonderful in the post today.....two stunning postcards from my lovely friend Koldo Barroso. Koldo produces some of the most beautiful, imaginative and sensitive illustrations I have ever encountered.....and what was particularly delightful about receiving these today was that one of the cards is an illustration called "The Homesick Willow"......trees again! If you haven't already seen this extraordinary artist's work, check it out HERE. He is also in my favorite blogs and sites list.

I would just like to say thankyou to everyone who has commented, followed or e-mailed me with support and encouragement re this new blog. I read everything and do my best to answer all correspondence.....sometimes it takes a while, but I get there eventually. I'm still working towards a major overhaul for my website as well as designing new cards, bookmarks etc. I have to be careful that 'computer time' doesn't eat too much into 'sculpting time'.....so easy to do.....I love reading other people's blogs and checking out their work. If only I didn't need to sleep!

Till next time.

2009-04-13T14:56:00.000-07:00

Have just had a lovely four day break for Easter.....beautiful weather, family and excessive amounts of chocolate.....wonderful! We took the kids to the zoo on Saturday, none of us having been for well over twelve months. It's certainly a vastly different zoo from the one I used to visit as a kid....virtually no bars in sight and masses of trees and gardens. They let the Macaw out for a free flight on the central lawn which is awesome to watch, particularly when he flys right at you and skims over the top of your head!

I felt a bit nostalgic for the years when I lived near the city and used to spend entire days at the zoo, sketching the animals and just sitting quietly watching them going about their business. During one visit I discovered, quite by accident, that the beavers emerge very early in the morning (their enclosure usually appears to be empty) and I sat and watched them in rapt fascination until they retreated back inside their dam. It was like a kind of secret that we shared and the magic of it was only matched years later when I went with my daughter's class on a 'zoo sleepover'. After a fairly restless night's sleep (sharing a room with thirty snoring kids will do that) I was awake VERY early. We'd been instructed by one of the zoo staff not to wander around the zoo outside normal hours but at that time Adelaide zoo was playing host to two lowland gorillas and the lure of seeing them without the massive crowds of people was too much for me. I made some coffee, crept around the corner to their temporary home and sat silently watching them eat their banana leaf breakfast for over an hour.

I've always been a little uncomfortable with the term 'animal lover', not because there is anything wrong with loving animals but for me it conjures images of over-indulging people with tiny over-bred dogs (ha!...this from a pug owner!) and fluffy over-fed cats. But I DO love them, and observing them, drawing them and photographing them brings me enormous joy. If I hadn't become an artist I would have worked with animals in some capacity......but then, we do have a lot of pets so I guess I get to do both.

Till next time.

Too much to sculpt....never enough time!

2009-04-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday morning I hurt my back lugging the vacuum cleaner up and down the stairs (there's a lesson here folks), so had to spend the day standing up......a perfect excuse to do some more work on the Griffon head. I was shocked when I looked back through my documentation, to see that I haven't touched it (except to move it a couple of times) since last July! Then we had that incredible heatwave a couple months ago and the poor thing was literally melting....the original horns fell off along with an ear and oil was leaching out of the clay. So, some re-working was definitely needed. I ended up working on it all day Thursday and again Friday. It's evolving fairly significantly from the original drawing I did, but I expected this to happen.....I don't often draw things out first as I think more clearly in three dimensions and prefer to work out problems in the sculpture as I go along. This piece needed some kind of plan however, mainly because of the size of it. It will be around seven feet tall when it's eventually finished. You can see more of the initial planning in my old blog archive on my website. Click here. There is something wonderfully freeing about sculpting something this big.....of course down the track there will be much cursing and gnashing of teeth but, for the moment, bliss reigns.

Till next time.

Distracted.....again!

2009-03-31T15:33:00.000-07:00

Well, it may be a new blog home but nothing's changed.....I've been distracted from the 'dragonthing' and the endless scaling by this lovely fat faerie who wouldn't stop beating on the insides of my eyelids until I acquiesed and let her out. I now have three pieces on the go (four, if you count the giant Griffon creature) and I also started a 2D piece earlier in the week. My optimism certainly does keep me amused! This faerie has been lovely to work on.....her hands are a bit of a challenge for me as I've not made such chubby fingers before and I really do detest making hand armatures but the hands are too heavy to get away without them. At this point she is telling me that she is a Queen, regal and indulged but slightly unsure about something.....just what should become clear as she progresses (I hope!).

It really has been a beautiful week. The weather here at the moment is just divine and I'm soaking up as much of it as I can....all too soon I'll be freezing and fighting off the numerous colds and sniffles that my lovely children bring home from school to share with me. A winter person I am not. Being back in the studio every day has been wonderful.....I feel like I have creative energy leaking from every pore! It's difficult to stay focused (nothing new there!) but for the moment I'm just going with the flow, enjoying the creative process and letting myself work in a fairly haphazard way. Like I've mentioned previously, after such a long break you're bound to get some backlog and my brain is teeming at the best of times. It does make for interesting days however and I can't ask for more than that.

Till next time.

Just a quickie....

2009-03-24T22:17:00.000-07:00

Just a short post today.....have spent the last couple of days working on this piece. It's so weird how your mind works sometimes.....I started this sculpture last year and was really excited about it for a few days, then got to a point where other pieces started to take precedence (happens to me quite often!) so kind of lost interest in it. I've been looking at it now for months and it was only when I started to work on it again last week that I realized how flat and static it was. SO, now I've adjusted the body into a more dynamic pose, twisting the head further around and bringing the tail out to the front of the body......I'm excited again! Unfortunately, in my excitement I decided to scale the entire body by making each tiny scale individually. In two days I've completed one side, which I guess isn't too bad but rolling all those little balls is possibly the most tedious thing I've ever done. Oh well, nothing for it now but to press on.....I'm just glad I have a studio where I can blast music at a deafening level to keep me awake.

Till next time.

2009-03-19T16:46:00.000-07:00

I have clockwork on the brain at the moment. I stumbled upon a book put out by the Devices gallery and something clicked in my mind and now I find myself pulling apart clocks and watches and scouring antique shops (thankfully there is no shortage of those here in Strathalbyn) for anything that looks like it may have interesting and beautiful inner workings. Ideas are forming in my head involving faeries and clockwork and keys and cogs and springs......nothing fully formed as yet, but enough to render me continually preoccupied and distracted......although that's a pretty normal state of mind for me, let's face it. I've always loved clocks. Before she came to live with us, my grandmother lived in a little house in Broken Hill that, in my memory, was filled with all kinds of treasures one of which was a large clock with rows of glass pipes hanging below the face. I can remember running my fingers gently along these pipes, listening to the soft tinkling sound they made as they knocked together. I also remember a cuckoo clock, although that may have been in another house.....I would have only been two or three years old at the time. Those clocks, along with a selection of music boxes - two of which I am lucky enough to have in my possession - were completely magical to me. I am still fascinated by them and very excited about the possibilities concerning my work. There is something about faeries and clockwork that just seems right to me.....should be interesting.

Have spent some time in the studio this week working on this creature that I started sculpting last year. During that devastating heatwave a couple of months ago, he actually started to melt in parts. So, I've been re-building and reworking and it's been just heavenly to play with the clay after such a long time. I'm in that state at the moment where I have SO much I want to do that it's very difficult to know where to start......it's an almost manic state but there is so much going on that it's impossible for my hands to keep up with my brain. Fortunately, I know myself well enough now to know that I just have to wait it out......pick a project and go with it and the rest will follow. Very often when I concentrate on something else, the thing that's giving me grief will resolve itself quietly in the back of my mind. I love it when that happens.

Till next time.

A new home for my blog

2009-03-15T18:18:00.000-07:00

Well, this is the first post on my new blog site and the first post in a number of weeks. Those who have followed the other blog on "Not all Faeries are Beautiful" will know that I have had some fairly major surgery recently but things are finally getting back on track in the studio and new work will be appearing soon. Thanks to everyone who sent well wishes.....I was so very touched and grateful to receive them.

I've made a few decisions regarding this new blog.....it will be mainly studio related (as it has always been) but I'll be treating it more like a diary than before. Some posts are likely to be wordy and quite possibly boring to anyone but me, but there will still be lots of wip photos and pics of other stuff that I find interesting. I'll be aiming for regular posts, but I'm finding it increasingly difficult to fit 'computer time' into my day. In fact, that's the main reason I've changed my blog location.....this is more portable, I can take my lap-top to bed and post from there if need be. In any case, there will be large gaps where I don't post anything.....do not be alarmed :)

So, yesterday was spent checking out a few Fringe events in Adelaide. I found Tom Moore's beautiful glass creatures at the Jam Factory gallery just stunning.....beautiful and joyous.

Pity I can't say the same for the Helpman Academy graduates exhibition. A couple of the pieces were interesting, but I was really propelled right back to when I was at art school and everything I hated about it. I'm not sure if it's an age thing, but I just can't be bothered anymore trying to wade through the quagmire of 'concept' art, particularly when there is no technical skill evident. Of course, this is only my opinion and I am always open for and interested in discussion but, I found it all a bit depressing. I did enjoy the piece called "Wake me if I'm sleeping" mainly because I like dark tunnels and there was a bit of a horror movie element about it......not what was intended I'm sure.

We also visited "Body Arts", a small but interesting showcase for special effects make-up, sculpture and art. I met Corrie Emery in person after conversing via e-mail and phone and am looking forward to his help with the mould making for my HUGE Griffon project.

After dodging the rain we ended up in the Garden of Unearthly Delights which I have to say is just that and more for me. I love the blend of carnival tackiness and artsy sleaze (I mean that in a good way) and this year there was an amazing looking giant contraption that appears to do something with oranges.....it wasn't operating when we were there, but Guy and I will be back there Friday night, so fingers crossed!

There was also- wonder of wonders- a barnyard freakshow! Still stung by the profound disappointment of the "Odditorium" a few years back, I didn't go in (maybe Friday night) but I did get some shots of the tent artwork.....I just LOVE this stuff!

There was also a beautiful carousel unicorn hoisted above one of the tents.

Well, that's about all for now,

till next time.