Virtual exhibition

I was fortunate to be an exhibitor in this year's Auckland Festival of Photography, in a signature show called Matakana Images at RD6 in Matakana.

I exhibited a set of contrived and deadpan images, with the intention that the viewer would make up their own narrative. Here are my four images.

Girl in Repose

Before Crosses

Woman with Agapanthus

A Huia Stream

   

Thanks to my family, and my friend Laurel who do things out of the ordinary for me (like sit half naked in a river bed, or submerge themselves in a bath of milk). Exhibitions are great things for making you get some work done, and pushing the boundaries. Looking forward to the next one.

Assembrush

One thing I've learned from assemblage artists is that you can pretty much use anything to build your assemblage on.

Take Ron Pippin for example, an artist of genius proportions. He created an entire work built on a Kayak And here's one from Michael Demeng from, well you can see what he uses. Seems like you are limited only by your imagination.

So here I took an idea from a Michael Demeng workshop entitled Good Brushes Gone Bad and created 2 small assemblage pieces from used-up house paint brushes, you know the ones where the bristles are so stuck together that painting is impossible anymore. Anyone with the right sense of mind would chuck them in the bin. OK, so anyone in their right sense of mind wouldnt' chop the faces off baby dolls either! The old layers of paint create a natural start to the assemblage and I retained some of this in the work. 

Bad-Ass Baby

A Brush with Bling

Both pieces are up for exhibition this weekend in the Martakana Art Show, another fundraiser for Warkworth Wellsford Hospice at Matakana primary from Friday  24th to Monday 27th January. Come along if you are local. 

I'm honoured....

I was talking to my talented print maker friend Glennys Patterson about whether it was time for me to do another exhibition. And Glennys said "you don't always have to do your own exhibition, you could join someone elses ya know". Which is very sensible advice and a helluva lot less work. So I went home, and lo and behold in my in box is an invitation for the Nelson Camera Club Triptych Salon. So I entered 3 digital images, and they awarded me an honours for this triptych of Queen Anne's Lace.

I was pretty stoked about this, my first honours at Salon level, and one of 4 honours awarded out of 340 digital entries. So thanks Glennys for your direction and inspiration. Unfortunately I won't be able to go to the awards and exhibition opening tomorrow because of course it is in Nelson and I'm a hockey mum this weekend for my daughter. Her Underwater Hockey team is in the Nationals event after receiving gold medal at Regionals - another reason to feel proud and honoured.  It's a good life.

In a frenzy, yet again.....

I have a million ideas spinning around my head, here is where my prioritizing skills will come in handy.  In November I am part of a group exhibition at A Fine Line Gallery in Matakana called Ink, Paper, Thread. Yes November seems a long way away but that does not seem to reassure me out of my sense of panic when I think about how many works I have yet to finish, and how many more left to start even. But start I have, and hopefully by the time we hang I'll have 6 pieces done. Ink, Paper, Thread is to be presented by a group of 11 women who are either book artists, calligraphers or printmakers. Our work will be varied, but basically the common thread (is that trying to be punny?) is the use of paper, ink and threads as the main medium used in construction. It's going to be exciting and unique.

I can tell you it takes a long time to make 109 tiny paper beads, several cups of coffee and an episode of Junior Masterchef later.........These beads were formally from a 1950s edition of a Boys Our Own annual, the story is called 'Masquerade in Baghdad' which sounds quite mysterious dont you think? These will be incorporated into an installation somehow, don't know quite how but the call was heard and I followed it, destination unknown. Watch this space.

Study is over, time for me to create

Last week I finished my final university paper for a post-grad cert (yahoo). So now no more weekends of study in front of YouTube medical videos on how to find the JVP or what a rhonchi sounds like. I spent an entire 4 days on art work and my psycke is soaring. First up, making two small artworks to donate to a fundraising exhibition for the Matakana-Omaha walkway This is an initiative from ceramacist Mike deHaan and A Fine Line Gallery. Tickets are sold for $40 each, and throughout the evening the artworks are numbered off to match the number on the tickets. So everyone gets to go home with a unique piece of local art. Great idea huh?

The brief was to make a piece around DLE size. This mini shrine is a symphony of diaxozine purple in a tin pencil case. A tiny musical scroll in a little bottle, a light bulb, a mesmerizing photograph of a woman underwater, and lots of luverly super-glue. Not sure what to call her.

My second donated piece is a fine art print of delicate wild-parsley. Quite a contradiction to black skeletons. 

This is a real buzz, first to be asked to contribute, but also to be a part of this amazing community initiative. Tickets are sold out but you can just turn up on Saturday night to be part of the fun, buy a raffle ticket, have a glass of wine and meet some neat people. 

Degas to Dali, and around the city for Richard.

On the weekend I went along to the refurbished Auckland Art Gallery to see the....

exhibition. Now I'm not one of these people who likes to take photos of other peoples artworks as such, but I do love to photograph people as they look at other peoples artworks. I find it fascinating to see their responses. But I got as far as the foyer with my intentions, no photography permitted in the gallery and about a hundred gallery staff making sure we all behave ourselves. Interesting that I can photograph Degas in the Musee d'Orsay

Woman in a Gallery (mine 2005)

but not a Degas in Auckland.  So I resign myself to just looking at the paintings instead, choosing my favourite three to take home with me (again, not allowed!! Who would have thought?).  The works are all relatively minor really, compared to the awesomeness of the big European galleries, but despite that I soaked up the creative vibe and just about melted in awe at the Dada wall. In the end I decided I would (like to) take home a Miro, a Tanguy and a Degas. 

Yves Tanguy

And then this little fish went into the big city and spent the afternoon shooting off the hip as I walked about. Here are some of my shots. This is for you Richard - "I'd fly, a rowdy kaka from my body, if I could". For today Richard, let me be your wings. The city waits for you. 

Images exhibition opens

Friday night at RD6 gallery Matakana. Exhibition opens to thunderous applause. Well, OK not exactly thunderous but definately a good crowd through the gallery, enough to stroke my ego anyway. Somewhere between 100 and 150 people I'm guessing and the place was buzzing with good conversation, yummy wine and a lovely feel good atmosphere. Thanks to all those who attended - or who  plan to catch up with the exhibition later. My undying gratitude and aroha to Barbie Cope, organiser extraordinaire, and my good friend Sue (that's Sue Who? to you) who was the best back stage manager on opening night and very handy with a tea towel (eh Charlie!).

Festival time

It's that time of year again for the Auckland Festival of Photography, and I am part of an exhibition to be held at Matakana, as part of the Matakana Pictures group, along with Richard Smallfield and Jenny Tomlin and many other great local photographers.  So that's not only exciting but also a privilege to be in such good company.

Help! I better get busy framing before panic sets in.