Pop-Up Store Opening Night

Last night, I went out to the opening of the Pop-Up Store at the Logan Art Gallery. 

It was a huge night, as it not only opening that exhibition, but also three others in the art gallery. My work of beanies is on display in the first gallery, and I'm so proud to be able to show my work in there at this time of year - because people can buy my work and enjoy them; and hopefully buy more off me too. 

Other work there included an exhibition of the winner of the Artwaves Exhibitions - whose works include watercolours of dragons; and mixed media as well. And there's an Indigenous display of gorgeous works. And then there's one about Seria as well; all in photographs.

The Pop-Up Store is at its very best this year with everyone adding more and more into it as the years go by. 

I do encourage you to go to the Logan Art Gallery to have a look at everything there. We change our exhibits every six weeks; and every time, there's always something great to look at and experience.

A Busy Time

It's been busy over the past few weeks, and I'm glad it's been like this. But, it's also been a weird time too. Over the past few days, I've been losing my voice - so I'm off to the doctors tomorrow; and I know I'm going to be sticking around the house for the rest of the week.

But I've been knitting and doing arty things while I've had my art in those three galleries across Brisbane. So far, one of the exhibitions finished - and nobody who put their work in sold their work. So, my piece came home and his currently on my bedroom wall; awaiting next year to be shown again. 

Then, in the next week or two, there'll be my 'Crazy Beanies' being sold at the Logan Art Gallery's Pop-Up Store. And on 9th, November, I'll be there doing a demonstration day in their workshop - which is always fun. I take along my knitting, yarn, and other gear and set up a table and demonstrate what I do, and how I do it, and make some sales there too.

My other piece is still in at the Judith Wright Centre in the city. I'm not sure if somebody has bought it or not. But people are liking '18 Butterflies'. 

I'm still knitting and painting right now. However, with my throat, it's a very quiet time for me. How's your craft and work going? 

Arty Things Afoot!

Well, I've got art in three galleries across Brisbane as I write this. 

One is in the Judith Wright Centre. Then, there's a painting in the Abel Gallery at the Logan Artists Association and then just this week, I dropped off my Crazy Beanies to the Logan Art Gallery. 

This is looking really good. 

I may sell some of my works, and yet over the Christmas Season when the Pop-Up Store is on at the Logan Art Gallery, I always sell something there. So, I will make some money from that. I'm really looking forward to the demonstration day there where I can sit and knit there and sell things there too. 

This is going to be a good year for me in the way of money and art.

I've had a friend remind me that I've got a Red Bubble account, but as in the past, I still have problems with people wanting to buy things which are printed onto items of my paintings which aren't the original things... I know that sounds strange, but really it's been 9 years since I created that account and I still don't like that idea. 

Well, it's just me I guess.

So, what have you been up to with your creations? As you can see, I've been really busy! Until my next post, keep creating!

Big News!

Okay... I haven't been in here as much as I wanted to be, and there's a really good reason for it.

I've been knitting my fingers off to get as many Crazy Beanies finished - and Baby Beanies - finished to put in an application to the 'Pop-Up Store' at the Logan Art Gallery this year.

And....?

Well, they accepted my application! I'm so stoked about this! So far, I've knitted three more beanies and five more Baby Beanies... and the number is just increasing.

That's not all!

At the Logan Artists Association, I'm putting in 'Morning Storm' to the September Members Exhibition - as I finished it just this Tuesday gone! It's an extraordinary piece of a morning storm at Brunswick Heads which will be going for $95 or so at the Able Gallery next month. 

So, that's two art galleries I'll have work in next month. What a great time to be working, right? Until my next post, keep creating!

I'm In the Logan Art Gallery Store!

I didn't want to tell you guys - not until it was certain! But last week, I got confirmation that my Itty-Bitty Pin Cushions were accepted into the Logan Art Gallery Store between October and December!

This is so cool!

I was sent out a spreadsheet to fill in pricing and titles. Then, I had to write a bio about myself... then I had to give them a photo of myself. This was tough seeing I never like any photos of myself. 

Today, I dropped off them off in this lovely little container. Even though the lid and box don't match, it doesn't matter, they're not going to be on display, they just hold my pin cushions out the back with the label on the lid (so they know who's they are). So, they don't really have to match.
The funny thing was that when I dropped it off, Shania was amazed at the box and the pin cushions... she thought they were the cutest things! Three other ladies, who were also there, also loved them. One of them spotted the only heart-shaped one and was amazed at how I got that done - I told them that I was too! I haven't been able to figure out how I did it. We all laughed about that and I said my farewells until this Saturday when I work there.

Well, that's all there is for now. I'm exhausted. Last weekend, I spent three full days working my butt off painting pegs and other things around the place - spray varnishing them and all - to get them ready for the Bartertown Markets at Enoggera, only to find out I'm unable to go! I have volunteer work on this Saturday... darn! I was looking forward to this market too! Well, next time I guess. Until my next post, keep creating!

Social Engagements

So much has been going on since my last post here; and I haven't had much time to get on here to tell you all about it.

But today, I do.

My needlepoint - 'Autumn's Journey' is now on the wall of the Logan Art Gallery and will be there until the end of June in the Allsorts Exhibition. This exhibition showcases the talent of Logan City residents and volunteers of the gallery - and are there some brilliantly talented people out there! 

The opening was on 27th, May and just last Saturday was the Garden Party (yes, the same weekend as the weather event that inundated the East Coast of Australia in rain). Even though a lot of people pulled out of the Garden Party, we still had a nice gathering of artists show up for it in the second gallery. I didn't stay to the end as I wanted to get home before the rain became too heavy.

'Autumn's Journey' is for sale at the Logan Art Galley for $220 if anyone is interested in it.

I've also been working on new things - new work - for another exhibition I'm hoping to get in and apply for in the next year or so. I can't say much for now, but I hope to get in and work on more of it soon. But I will say it's bigger works than I've been working on in the past.

Then, I've been knitting again and doing more needlepoint pin cushions. I have so many pin cushions that finishing the ones I have now aren't really important, but just something to do. I hoping to just get in and paint more than I have been over the last six months; space is something of a problem - but I have worked through that before. 

Anyway, there's not much more to tell you about. I'm hoping to look into doing some sewing soon - over the next few weeks - and then see if I can make something that will work out for the markets next year. Otherwise, I'm still looking at making bookbags something of a permanent thing at the market stall - seeing how people love to cover their Kindles, Nooks and other ereaders in something pretty and not just something durable. Until my next post, keep creating.

Opening Night!

Last Friday night was opening night for the Workshop Wonders Exhibition at the Logan Art Gallery.  My piece - along with the other pieces - was there, and the gallery was packed!

I saw my script up on the wall with my photo and found my Mum had just arrived too.  It was a great success for us all to have so many people looking at everything we had done.

A few people thought we had been given the plaster casts and we worked on them, but I told them that we made them from scratch and how it was all done.  Quite a few of the parents were impressed at how brilliant and thought-provoking everyone's work was. 

One lady said that mine was very relaxing and she said she loved books the same way I did... and it was good that somebody out there enjoyed them as much as I did in the same way.

Before long, Mum and I were both off home.  It was 7:30pm.  The speeches had been made, the other exhibitions has been opened and I had a Dawn Service to attend the next day for Anzac Day, so an early night was called for for me. 

Opening Night

It was a great success.  The Workshop Wonders Exhibition will be in the Logan Art Gallery for 6 weeks before I can bring it home and find a place for it here in my home office.  Until my next post, keep creating!

Plaster Torso Workshop At the Logan Art Gallery

Over the last two weeks, I've been working hard on some workshop things... well, just one thing really.  It's a plaster cast torso - no, not of my own body, it's of a mannequin base with 3 layers of plaster on the inside of it, then we all cleaned it up, painted on a hardening resin and started our work on it... of a 3D piece of more plaster.

Well, it's day 3, and I'm up to my finishing touches.  I just need to get in and find some quotes and opening lines from famous writers to write onto the torso in paint after I finish up the flowers and make them look better, then glue on the bling and then?  Well, I gotta sign the thing!  

On 24th, April, there's an art opening at the gallery and my piece will be in it.  It's about my passion for books and how much it takes up my life, my mind and how far back it goes into my soul... and how much I find reading and writing like oxygen; and if I stop either one, it would destroy me, so to me it's like living in my own self-designed dreamworld where I hope I never wake from.

Well, that's kind of what I'm hoping to put across in my piece.  It's been fun doing it... and my 3D piece of a book is going to be hung in my office... well, somewhere here anyway... if I can find a place for it.  So, what have you been up to lately?  Until my next post, keep creating! 

Turning Your Hobby Into A Business

I've been busy lately.  Busy with my Crafty Pegs, busy with my house and busy painting bigger things too.  And on Saturday, I was busy at the Logan Art Gallery doing volunteer work - well, trying to, as I was rostered on, but I was also invited to attend a workshop about turning my hobby into a business.  This is something I'm definitely interested in!

There were three or four guest speakers from different areas of the business world.  John Kenny was a lawyer who worked in the music industry to begin with and is now in the arts and other industries.  Then, there were two ladies who had begun a business named 'Made of Australia' which was begun with almost no money, but they've gotten it off the ground.  Then, the last speaker was Brian Tucker who is an artist and art collector, but is an accountant by trade.  He gave us all the information we'd need about ABN's (Australian Business Numbers), tax returns and what to claim on them and what can't be claimed.  All our speakers made the change from our love of art - and making arty things - from a hobby into a business where we make money from it.
Brian made the line between a hobby and a business very clear.  He told us that if we enjoyed making our arty things but gave them away freely, it was just a hobby, nothing more.  However, if we are forever trying to sell it, trying to get people to buy them from us at any cost, we are seeing a bottom line and have turned that corner from being a hobbiest to being a person who wants our art to start making money for us.  
When he mentioned this, I knew that for a long time, I've been trying to sell my artworks; for over 10 years in fact.  Each time somebody looks at my paintings, I'm always trying to figure out a price for them to pay me and how much I'd be prepared to go down in price; even if we didn't talk money, I'd still have the prices  go through my head for about a minute.  

After the hour and half workshop, we all got to talk about our arts and how we wanted to work on making them a business with the people who talked.  It was wonderful.  I totally enjoyed being there; but knew that I also had to be at the front desk too.   

This was a great insight to seeing what goes into a business and how easy it was to know when people are ready to get their arts and craft turned into a business.  And honestly, I think I'm ready.  I've got my pegs and my ideas and really, all I need is a business plan a little help in marketing.  Well, until my next post, keep creating!  

Busy Art Week

This week has been one for the books.  I've been so busy art-wise that I've found myself wanting to just turn out the light without reading at night.

On Monday - as you know - I began attending a craft group.  And what a group!  The ladies at this group are lovely and very informative and friendly.  They do all kinds of art and enjoy each others' company very much and do the most wonderful art and craft.  And they have agreed to help me with learning to crochet too.  Fortunately, I took photos of how the hook has to rest on my fingers and the position of my hands so I don't forget for the next time I wish to crochet.

Otherwise, I've really gotten into my painting again; in more ways than one, and I got the best idea for finishing off a painting I got stuck on last year in of all places, but my shower (isn't that always the way?). Anyway, after I had the idea in my head, it wouldn't leave and so I pulled the painting out and tried out the idea and found it's worked!  How cool is that?

And over the last day or so, I've been sitting and painting more clothes pegs than I actually own personally.  These are to hopefull sell at the Logan Art Gallery.  If I can't sell them there, I'll try selling them at the Queen Beez Craft Group as the ladies there are anxious to see what other crafts I'm into.

So, that's what I've been up to this week.  I've been very busy and so I'm very tired from working hard at my art and craft.  What have you been getting your nose and hands into lately?  Until my next post, keep creating!    

Life Drawing Masterclass

Yesterday, I was off early in the day to attend a Life Drawing Masterclass.  It was a full day - from 10am until 2:30pm - of learning the basics of Life Drawing; with a model there as well.  
I arrived there about half and hour early because my bus was either going to make me early or late - depending on with one I caught.  This gave me a chance to walk around the 'Artwaves' exhibition and to vote on the one I loved the most (which was Identity by Chanel Tanent in Gallery 3).  By the time we all signed in and had picked our places, the teacher was ready and the model had arrived.
Kay Kane works at Griffith University teaching students how to draw with pencil and charcoal and she also teaches animators drawing as well.  The model we had was somebody known to me as I had drawn him before at Southbank last year.  The funny thing was that I didn't really know him until he disrobed and posed that his name popped into my head; just before the teacher told us his name.
We learned how to use the cloud technique with drawing people.  This is when you use the side of your charcoal to shade what you see of the model; starting at the centre of him, then going up and filling in where the arms are and legs.  It was a great exercise for us to do.  By the end of it, we had to draw a fixed line around the cloud with the pointed end of our charcoal and then fill out where the arms and legs would have been.  And believe me!  Mine didn't look anything like what he did!  It was a mess.  We had a break and I went and said hi to the model - seeing I knew him - and caught up with him.  Then, the teacher worked through until around midday - lunch time - and we worked for another hour or so and we had a few more exercises to do before going back to clouding again; but we found we had all improved on that morning.
Kay Kane then talked about her doctorate and what her main piece of work was and how long her current works took her to do, where there's other Life Drawing classes and asked if we'd like to attend another class like this one at the Logan Art Gallery.  Most of us wanted to know faces and heads - portraits - and she was pleased to see we wanted to get into the nitty-gritty of all; and said she'd love to do another workshop in the future.  This is something I will definitely be looking out for!  
I got home at around 3:30pm - when Dad picked me up - and as soon as I walked through the door, all I wanted to do was go to bed and sleep until this morning.  My feet hurt from standing in front of that easel for 5 hours.  My knees hurt from not being able to sit once in a while; and I was so very tired from looking at the model, then looking at my work, then looking back at the model again.  But you know?  I'd do it all again because it's the passion of working with the human body that keeps me wanting to learn more about how to paint it and draw it.  Until my next post, keep creating!  

Life Drawing Workshop 

The Home Festival

What a day it was yesterday!  I was up by 7am and out the door by 9:30am.  All my gear fitted in my bag and my little blue trolley.  The day was nice, clear and fine - just as we had hoped it would be.  And it wasn't a scorching hot day either.  

The Art Installation was called 'The Pop-Up Museum' (I didn't know it was called that until yesterday afternoon) and it attracted a lot of attention from the public. People were reading my book and enjoying the pages in the trees as well as the other artist's collections.  It turned out to be a great hang-out spot for a lot of people.  And as the day wore on, and the sun moved, there was plenty of shade thrown by our tree and it was used by the performance poets and community choirs.  People enjoyed the shade and basked in the sun as well; lazing about under the tree with the extra plastic leaves, reading my pink/red leaves and the larger ones of green that Doug Cartwright had put up.  

Too soon, though, it had all had to come down.  We were all tired from the day, eating and laughing.  I had gone to the jumble sale and bought myself plenty of goodies to add to my various collections and scored myself a first edition of an American poet from 1968 - which stunned my fellow collectors - for only $2.  My brother, his fiance and my niece were there to see the installation; only to unfortunately take off and not able to see the rest of the festival.  Oh well, there's always next year's.  I hope you enjoy the photos below I've put together.

The Home Festival 2012 

Jumble Sale Scores 

Home Festival Postponed!

Over the last few days, I've been informed that the Home Festival has been postponed from today to 25th August.  This is because the weather has been unpredictable and wet; and the park wouldn't be any good to anyone if it's a mud-city.  So, they're hoping it'll dry out well enough for the festival to take place a week after the RNA Show here in Brisbane.

As for my art works?  Well, the Altered Book is now complete and ready for show.  The pages I've laminated are ready - except I need to buy fishing line and that's it.  So... that's all there is now.  Just that fishing line.  I punched the holes in the tops of the pages last night with a single hole-punch last night after dinner and set the rest of the pages to one side.  And below is the the collage of the Altered Book!  I'm so excited about it! 

Altered Book - Complete! 

Finishing Touches

Over the weekend and the last day or so, I've been working on the Altered Book like a crazy person.  I have gotten off here and been sitting at the kitchen table for 2 and 3 hours at a time without a break just to get it finished before the deadline.  How exhausting!

But as of today, it will be finished!  I have just one more page to finish gluing up and then I can paint up the rest of it!  How cool is that?

Right now, I've glued up the last lot of pages together and organised the last piece of paper to write on to go into it.  The paint plate is in the fridge ready to be used and I'm going to paint all afternoon today.

However, I'm so happy I've gotten as much done as I have over the last week.  Here's some links to the work so far:

Altered Book Cover 1 

Altered Book Cover 2

Over the next day or so, I'll upload more photos and show you all how it finished up before I send it off to the Logan Art Gallery to be dropped off for the Collector's Exhibition.  I have uploaded other photos into the album on the side bar; however as usual, Photobucket isn't behaving itself.  So, I'll upload some links here as well.

Progress Report

I've been busy with the Altered Book and I thought to show you guys some photos of it.  But some apologies about the album.  It's not organising as it should; so I've put in the numbers of the photos to look for.  Just put your mouse over the photo until you find it and it should have the number already on it... Photobucket can have its problems.

Anyway, I have come to the last stretch of my Altered Book.  It's almost finished and I've been painting a rainbow through it - to keep the people who pick it up reading it, following the colours through it and the children's eyes occupied as well with pretty colours.  Otherwise, there have been some setbacks; such as the weather.  It's been wet and cold here, which means it's been taking longer for the glue to dry.  Oh well, beggars can't be choosers.

Photos for this post:

Altered Book Thus Far

 

Homework

I've been busy as anyone can get.  In between catching up with my housework, grocery shopping and cooking, I've been doing my art project for the Home Festival.

I've been fortunate enough to avoid the colds and flu going around (touch wood!) and so have been working on the Altered Book this week.  So far, I've worked on two pages in the last two days, and this morning glued three pages together in preparation for the next lot of artwork to do this afternoon.

I've been able to work on this project for about 2 hours each day after figuring out what I want to say.  But first, I'll glue four or five pages together in advance, then further along in the book, I'll pull out a couple of chapters so it'll work better, the book will be shorter - but the spine isn't damaged - and it'll keep up the appearance of being a proper-looking thick book. 

By the end of this week, I hope to be getting into the painting and fixing up the exterior of the book; as it's a black hardcover; and I don't want its appearance to put people off.  Well, until my next post, keep creating!

Collector's Workshop - Week 4

Today, I was away early and catching the bus by 11:25am.  I wanted to get there by midday, eat my lunch and jump straight into working on my altered book.  When I arrived at the Logan Art Gallery, I was the first to show!  I thought we had agreed to meet at midday; but everyone else didn't.  Oh well, I got into working on my book after my lunch of Ratatouille and a nice hot Milo.

I unpacked my backpack, pulled out old 'Good Reading' and 'Writer's Journal' Magazines and found a pair of scissors and picked through them over the next hour or so until everyone else arrived.  And before I knew it, they all did - one by one - and so did the people who were bringing the laminating machine (which I've never used before).  Once we got it to the right setting, which was the hotter setting, I started slotting my painted up - ready - pages into the pockets and feeding them into the machine.  They came out better than I thought!  And now all I have to do is get a pair of scissors and take off the excess laminate.

I went through my magazines another 3 or 4 times and still brought them home just in case I missed something in them.  But I didn't glue or paint anything.  So, tomorrow, I'll be working on the next phase of my story in them.  After I've got the whole story finished up, I'll work over it again and paint the background with a detailing brush and some bright colours.

Photos for this blog post:

2 photos of the desk full of work and laminated pages - No. 054 & 52

1 photo of a laminated page of my work up close - No. 53

1 photo of the laminating machine - No. 55

Busy Friday

I haven't been working on the pages or the altered book over the last two days.  However, there's a good reason.  On Wednesday, I had to do my shopping and catch up with my mail and bills.  And yesterday, I had two doctor's appointments which had me out and about all day until sunset.

Today, though, I'll be off the net at midday and back at work with my pages; and this time I'll be writing on the backs of them, preparing them for lamination.  And once they've been written on with words of inspiration about reading and imagination, I'll be working on new pages again, cutting out more stuff from magazines for the altered book and work on the book tomorrow while the pages get laminated.

I hope to have more work done by next week - as I'll have a freer week than this week.  I'm sure this will work out really great.  I just wish we had more time to work on our gear; as it would have given us the time to get together the things we wanted to get done.  I guess the best laid plans don't always work out.  Until my next post, keep creating!

Working From Home

Today and yesterday, I was very busy catching up with housework and working on the art I'm contributing at the Home Festival.

So far, I've got 9 pages fixed up where I've wet them onto sketch paper, painted them up with red paint - smudging them to look like they're bleeding a little - and then letting them dry and pucker; and not gluing them.  On the back piece of sketch paper, which is partially attached, I'll be writing a line of why I collect - or a word - to let people know in as little as possible of the reasons and purposes for my collecting.  Tomorrow, I'm hoping to get around the same amount of pages done again in the afternoon.

Then, tonight, I worked on another two pages of my altered book.  This book will tell the story of how my passion for reading and books turned me into the writer I am today through pictures and collage.  I've made up 4 pages already and tonight did another 2 of them; but they still need more work.  

The book I'm using is 'The Dark Half' by Stephen King in hardcover and so, seeing it's black, I'll be doing up the cover in different colours, styles of things and items to make it attractive to people at the festival; to make them pick it up and read it.  It will still be called 'The Dark Half' (as there's no copyright on titles) but it will be about how writing is a craft that is honed, it can also be used to be something to hide in from the world too.  So, my story inside that book will have a moral as well as be something about me.  I hope the pictures can speak about my passion as well as my words; as my writing has helped me through a lot of pain, problems and personal issues.  However, my art is something else that has begun to bring something out in my life - something visual - that my writing can't do.  Bringing them together is difficult, but I've found it's something I'm enjoying.

It's only been two days and I have paper and scraps from one end of the lounge room to the other... something I hope will be gone by the end of the week!  Well, I am hoping... anyway, until my next post, keep creating.

Collections Workshop - Week Two

Today, our workshop was off to the city by mini-bus.  We all arrived there about half an hour beforehand and and chatted amongst ourselves, then piled into the bus, and were off!  It didn't take us long to get into the city and parked outside the GoMA, State Library of Queensland and Museum and Art Gallery.  All of us walked to the old section of the Queensland Museum and found that a lot of it hasn't change; and it was soon to be undergoing new construction.  However, a lot of it has changed.  We were taken to a section of it that hadn't changed in around 20 years and shown how our exhibition could be at Pineapple Park in a few weeks.  I took some photos for ideas and then, we had some lunch at the new cafe for half an hour before meeting up again for a brainstorming and the workshopping part of afternoon out.

We sat in an area away from the milling crowds that were there to see the Egyptian exhibition (which was every man and his dog!) and we worked on what our collections meant to us in drawings.  First, we drew our collections with our eyes closed - as a visualisation technique - and then we were asked to draw it upside down on a separate piece of paper.  After that, we were told to put them both up on the opposite wall and explain, one by one, what our collections mean to us.  We more or less said the same things:  we began collecting our things in our childhood, we associated our collections strongly around our families and when we were around our collections, it immediately took us back to our childhood or times of strong memories surrounding our friends, family, travel or childhood.

So, our exhibition is going to be about just that... our collections and when they started and how they affect us now.  But it was a great day out; I totally enjoyed myself and really came up with some great ideas for next weeks' work.

Peter - our train enthusiast - needed the noises of a train.  But nobody could think of how to get anything like that without paying for it off iTunes... not until I said I had a sound effects cd that had those kinds of sounds on it which I had had in my collection for years we could nab the effects off and put them on a loop.  The organisers were amazed that I had that kind of thing, until I said that some of the noises I needed were of pub noises, parties, storms and battles and sword play for my books.  These were just noises I used for effects so I could close my eyes and write a good scene for a chapter.  They thought it was genius I wrote that way; however I've been using sound effects for years.

I have gotten so many ideas for my exhibition, I can hardly keep up with them here or on paper.  But I do need to go to the Thrift Store down the road and buy some old books that I can take apart and use... and I need to soak some of the caffeinated tea bags Mum left behind at my place to age the pages I'm going to use next week.  Yes, there's going to be a lot of preparation done before next Saturday's workshop; and I'll keep you guys fully up-to-date.  Until my next post, keep creating!  

Collections Exhibition Album - The excursion 23/6/2012 

NB:  I've tried three times to get the photos on photobucket to organise in the right order, and it won't do it.  I'm sorry if they're backwards, guys, it's just how the stupid program has worked out.