the textures and colours of apt7

I think this detail Sara Rahbar's work sums up the whole Asia Pacific Triennial in Brisbane.... 

Ive been trying to write this post since i arrived back from Brisbane.

I rarely struggle with a blog post, as I usually try and keep them simple, like a diary entry.

But this one has been hard. 

Simply because the 7th Asia Pacific Triennial (APT7) at the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane was...
Incredible. Massive. Detailed. 

And overwhelming. 

Again.

Three years ago I went with my mate Amelia to see this exhibition that had been celebrated and loved for some 17 years. We didn't know what to expect.
And as such, we were completely blown away. 

I remember how excited it made me about art - and more specifically - the contemporary art world. 

This year was no different.

Over two days I learnt a lot about the art and peoples of Papua New Guinea, the emerging artists' of Indonesia, and many places in between.  I realised that the art world is changing, and becoming more diverse in its points of view. As one person eloquently put it: the art world is shifting its boundaries. No longer do we have to look toward New York, London, Paris and Berlin for the experimental artworks and edgy artists. Now we can go to Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka and Tonga - by way of New Zealand!

Anyway.... as you can see... I have a few photos to share with you.

And i hope they give you a tiny idea of how amazing this massive exhibition was.

The APT celebrated its 20th birthday this year.

I cant wait to see where it will be in another 20 years time!

 This is what greeted you as you entered the massive doorway of GOMA!
Brikiti Cultural Group (Abelam Peoples, PNG),  Korumbo (Spirit House) 2012.

( clockwise, from top left)
Aware Peoples from PNG with their ceremonial masks entitled Tabuan Katmut Mut 2011;
Kwoma Arts Project from PNG and their 200 panel Spirit House Ceiling that was mounted on the wall;
Alex Gabour (PNG), and his Ule and Neo (male and female fish Masks) 2011;
 Iatapal Cultural Group (PNG), Mary 2011 headdresses 

Made in Company (China), Spread 201009103, 2010.
This multicoloured installation greeted you as you entered one of the rooms at The
Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) which showcased some of the APT7 artworks. 

(clockwise, from top left)
Solpolemalama Filipe Tohi (Tonga/NZ), Kulasi 2003-12 ,installation of lalava;
Asmat wooden carvings from the Asmat region of Papua;
Sulka Peoples of PNG and their beautiful headdresses;
Sara Rahbar (Iran/USA), and her multi textured recycled flag artworks on the wall

(Clockwise from top left)
Nguyen Manh Hung (Vietnam) and a detail of his amazing installation Living Together in Paradise 2009;
Takahiro Iwasaki (Japan), Reflection Model (Perfect Bliss) 2010-12;
PARAMODEL(Japan), How to Make a Paramodel,  Room Installation,2012;
Huang Yong Ping (China), Ressort 2012, steel water snake sculpture @ QAG

Lorainne Connolly-Northey (Aust),  Narbong (String Bag) Installation 2012;
Shirley Macnarmara (Aust), Wingreeguu 2012, floor installation;
Detail of Lorainne's steel string bag installation (this was an big as me!);
Patrick Freddy Puruntatameri (Aust), Wooden Carving sculptures
and paintings by Timothy Cook (Aust/Tiwi), Tutini 2012

u n n a t u r a l. b e a u t i e s.

unnatural tendencies + unnatural acts, two jewellery exhibitions at Craft, Melbourne, 2012

How lucky was I?!

While on my whirlwind trip to Melbourne last weekend, I was able to catch the colourful last two days of Unnatural Tendencies + Unnatural Acts - two exhibitions which featured some of Australia's most innovative and celebrated contemporary jewellers. 

Yep - I was lucky indeed!

Mel Young and Lauren Simeoni - two of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet - are the creative brains behind the 'unnatural' series of exhibitions' that have been travelling around Australia, and the world, for the past 3 years. Way back in 2009 I reviewed their very first collaboration at Metalab in Sydney. And if you're curious at how much these two women have come since then, please have a look here! 

{But please excuse my writing and bad images....eep! The blog has come a long way since 2009!!)

I feel very fortunate to have seen the latest instalment of this series of jewellery exhibitions. And in a space that celebrates contemporary craft and design in Australia - which is rare these days!

Over the past month, the beautiful main space at this basement gallery on Flinders Lane had been transformed into a colourful + textural wonderland with every kind of material bent, beaded, reconfigured and re-imagined into wearable jewels that asked to be noticed and admired.

I know its always difficult to get a true sense of a show by photos on a blog... 

But  I hope you enjoy this tiny walk through these two amazing exhibitions.

In this image you can see the long wooden table showcasing the first exhibition entitled Unnatural Acts, curated by Mel Young and Lauren Simeoni, who asked 13 Australian contemporary jewellers to create wearable pieces of jewellery using a bag of odd materials that they sent each jeweller in the post. Each bag contained a variety of different and unusual materials including fake plants and fruit.

How amazing is this installation of 98 pieces of technicoloured jewellery?!
Entitled Unnatural Tendencies, this two-person exhibition by Mel Young and Lauren Simeoni brought together the collaborative thoughts and creations of these two contemporary artists... 

These next 3 images give you an idea of the detail and sheer beauty in each piece of jewellery.
Every piece is unique and made by hand, and focused on pure colour and pure fun!
Each piece also pushes boundaries and expectations of what we believe jewellery to be... and be made of. 

And in this last photo, you can see the latest addition to my humble collection of artworks.
Can you guess which one it is?
Thank you Lauren for suggesting an artist swap!!
A drawing will be heading your way soon!

Unfortunately these two exhibition closed on Sunday in Melbourne.
But look out for the next instalment in the new year!

thankYOUmelbourne

Melbourne - December 2012

WHAT A MASSIVE WEEKEND!!
And I have a few lovely friends, and one amazing city to thank for that!

Im sad to this this...

But until last weekend it had been YEARS since I had visited Melbourne. 

Through a combination of bad health, bad timing, and working most weekends, that trip had stayed on the wish list until last Friday! 

But boy - was it was worth the wait. 

For two days my friend Amelia and I wondered the lane ways, galleries and beautiful cafes and bars from morning till night with a massive list of places to see and sample.

And today Im just trying to piece it all back together, through the photos Ive found on my camera and phone in the last few hours! 

So for this tiny post I thought I would just look at a TINY sample of what I found in two long days of walkin in my little black boots!

I hope you enjoy...

supporting a creative voice

Jodie Noble, The Tiger in the Sea, 2011

Start of a new week and the end of another month. Where is October hiding? Maybe this Tiger ate it? It could have happened... seriously! Baffling questions like 'Where did this year go?' deserve surreal and baffling responses I reckon. Can you believe that November starts tomorrow? I cant believe that I am already seeing Christmas decorations in the shopping centres and stores. That, my friends, is Surrealism at its finest. 

Looking back at what Ive talked about this year on this tiny blog Ive realised that there are certain things I naturally gravitate to, like photos of planned and unplanned incidents of colour, pattern + texture... art, craft and design workshops Ive been involved in... exhibitions Ive seen and loved... festivals, holidays, Sydney strolls... and developing projects and playtimes in my studio. 

But one area I have consciously or unconsciously lost focus on is the state of the arts in Sydney, and across the globe in general. Maybe because it is a difficult subject. Things are changing at a rapid rate as galleries close their doors, artists' take their art to the world wide web instead of hanging it on a wall, and the public scratch their heads and try to work out where the arts community has disappeared to. These days you need pateince, time and a brilliant GPS to find galleries, artists' and art classes, as the creative pulse seems to have skipped a few beats in past year. Sad but true. The cultural climate is changing and you have to adapt, evolve, interact and be POSITIVE in order to keep going....

One thing I seem to be intuitively doing more of these days is talk to people about art and how to get involved at whatever level that suits you. The key is to just have fun and let go. For your sanity and mental well being! Enjoy the yang to your ying and indulge the big kid in you... 

You will never be disappointed. 

And one thing I love to discover is the way in which the arts community is trying to help people be happier and healthier. Arts Project Australia is one such organisation. In existence since 1974 APA tries help people with mental disabilities get in touch with their creative heart and mind, and in the process, produce amazing artworks and happier people. Now that is something to talk about and share....! And isn't this work (above) by Jodie Noble called 'The Tiger in the Sea' amazing?? Look at that teal colour! Beautiful...

If you would like to help support a worthwhile organisation you can find out how to donate/sponsor/volunteer some Christmas goodwill to Arts Project Australia here...

Now that is one way to celebrate the wonderful + colourful world of art! x

k i r r a...

Isn't she a beauty?
I cant believe its taken me this long to post some of Kirra Jamison's work on this space!
Yesterday I just happened to be sorting and filing in the studio and came upon this lovely image and article on Melbourne artist Kirra Jamison.

Kirra is an amazing 28 year old artist from Melbourne who's career has just started to reach fantastic heights after her 2007 Samstag Scholarship win which took her to the Californian Arts Institute for one year...

Since then she has been regularly showing at Jan Murphy Gallery in Brisbane, Sophie Gannon in Melbourne, and recently at Sydney's Firstdraft Gallery in Chalmers st...
Working from her studio in Melbourne...Kirra has been busy!
But with a space like this I can see how she could enjoy being ensconced at the easel for weeks at a time!!


Kirra's work has an illustrative and detailed touch, but it is the use of colour and play in her paintings, drawings and prints that really does it for me! I'm reminded on Ghostpatrol and Miso's work when looking through Kirra's images.... as they are all artists who use children's book illustrations as a starting point. Long lost images from nursery rhymes that soon shift focus to become darker, bolder or larger than life! One of Kirra's influences is Australian author Pixie O'Harris, and in particular her book The Fairy who wouldn't fly (1945)....

That book was a favourite of me when I was a child. I loved the story of this stubborn bitch of a fairy. Shes' got these beautiful wings and just wont fly, even though that's what she is supposed to do. I can relate to that kind of rebellion.

This article was recently published in a Sunday section of the newspaper, but if you're interested in checking out more of her work, I suggest a quick visit to her blog here...

Enjoy.... and have a great weekend...

obsessions...

Many who know me know that I have certain rituals or routines that make up my day...

I love Vegemite on toast in the morning...

I love a flat white extra hot at about 3 in the afternoon...

And when it comes to my artwork I love a good boat or bird drawing...

Lately my artwork has been taken up with an old love - namely landscapes. Imagined or real, it doesn't matter; what I love is trying to capture the shapes, the light, the textures and most importantly colours of the land. I try to render and rediscover places that Ive been such as Broken Hill and the surrounding sites... and I look for the spirit and the feelings that make me dream about these trips that took place so many years ago.

For some artists, however, their themes and subject matters border on obsessions. Which is what I discovered when watching an Artscape doco last night on the Australian artist Lisa Roet.

Lisa is a Melbourne based artist that has an amazing career, spanning some 20 years. She is a photographer, a sculptor, a drawer, a video and installation artist...and with a deft hand at all these mediums she tries to continuously capture the heart and soul of one subject - namely The Ape. I was fascinated to watch Lisa describe her love of these magnificent primates and watch her magpie tendency to find every myth, story, experiment and history about these gorillas, monkeys, and chimpanzees...

Mugsy 2008

Her latest exhibition of work was exhibited as part of an exhibition at The Ian Potter Museum of Art at Federation square and it was called Re framing Darwin : Evolution and and Art in Australia . The work looked at a captive Gorilla that was brought up by the circus to perform. It was a sad story of a captive animal that had never known another life. Lisa's photographic series seen above, captured the sad story and true nature of this man and his 'son'.

The passion Lisa has for her subject matter is extraordinary and to see her now campaign for habitat rights in countries such as Borneo was fantastic. It really was a great doco and to see an artist and her beliefs and obsessions at their most passionate was truly inspiring....

f o o t n o t e s ....

i love when little reminders or footnotes of my life gently find their way to me.

You know...those little pieces of information that act as a tiny catalyst to unlock a happy memory that you had forgotten about... A word, a piece of music, an image; something that makes you smile inside + out and remember a time when you were happy, or excited or creative....

Well...those kinds of universal reminders have been happening to me alot lately. And old song popping up on my ipod that takes me back to Edinburgh in 2001, or an image popping up in the newspaper that unlocks the memory of a painting or drawing that I completed years ago...

One such image came my way a couple of days ago that intrigued me...

It was of a man selling blown up balloons in Kabul {above}.

Its such an interesting image of a man trying to spark colour, fun and creativity in a city that is grey and torn... These bright, shiny plastic toys mean absolutely nothing in the great scheme of things, yet in this context, they act as a sign of hope that things are recovering ....

A few years ago I saw a balloon selling group of immigrant men on the beaches of Sicily when I was visiting that part of Italy in 2005. I found them so contradictory...Here are these men with no money, in a new country with their families back in Africa, selling these coloured bits of air to the sun baking masses on Mondello beach in Palermo...Their lives are so serious and yet they walk around like brightly coloured clowns at the circus...!

Well....I guess summer in Italy is a bit of a circus...!!

From these images I produced a series of drawings for an exhibition at Ariel bookstore called 'On the Same Page'. Great show and great memories of travel...

Speaking of colour I just had to mention these crayon rings that are now on sale at Third Drawer Down - a brilliant store in Melbourne that now have an online store!
Love that you can now have a coloured pencils at the ready... on your finger!! What will they think of next?? Third Drawer down is such a fantastic store created by the ingenious Abigail Crompton who has recently been interviewed on The Design Files blog by Lucy... It's a great interview, giving an insight into the concept of the store, how they supports local artists and graphic artists with her tea towel pieces and what new projects they are working on overseas... very exciting projects too! Well worth a look...