Span

Following the themes for Stockrooms end of year exhibition, Span: exploring connection, distance and the passage of time, I set to work on these two drawings in watercolour and pencil.

'Measurement across time II'. 2012. Watercolour and pencil on paper. 40 x 45cm.

'Measurement across time I'. 2012. Watercolour and pencil on paper. 40 x 45cm.

 I have always found the Imperial standard of measurement to be for more intuitive than the Metric system, as it reflects the proportions of the human body. Imperial measurements explain the space around us and the distance between things in relation to our own bodies- which is how we perceive and comprehend most things anyway.

So this proverbial bee in my bonnet, the changing of such a personal unit of measurement to a cold, and dare I say it, ruthless system, was the inspiration I took hold of to explore the themes of distance, connection and the passing of time.
I was also thinking about the emphasis on materials and craftmanship evident in imperial-measurement-era objects and how a lot of those principles, like tactility, ornate design and the skilled working of natural materials has too fallen by the wayside. I don't know that I can rightly blame this on the introduction of the Metric System, but I do nonetheless.

These works are a kind of meditation on the shift over time from a humanist to a more mathematical/ scientific paradigm. Where our understanding of distance is removed from any relations to our own bodies and a special connection to the space around us is lost in translation.

Or maybe they're just pictures of a whole bunch of rulers...

Either way, these works are now on show at their lovely new home, Stockroom Kyneton.
Follow the links below for Stockroom:
On the web: www.stockroomkyneton.com
Or on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StockroomKyneton?fref=ts

New works at Tinker Tailor!

I've just dropped off a bundle of watercolours to the charming Tinker Tailor in Trentham.

Tinker Tailor is a little space for artists and makers and they boast some pretty stunning wares, you can follow this link to their blog http://tinkertailortrentham.blogspot.com.au/ and have a little sneak peak.

Tinker Tailor is open Thursday- Sunday and my work will be up for the next month, so if you're in town, or even near by, pop in and have a look.

x

Watercolour peg studies

I found a bunch of beaten up old wooden pegs and spent last week doing a few watercolour studies.

I enjoyed the process of observational drawing so much making these. Foreshortening decreasing angles and translating the stack of pegs on to paper was a lot of fun.

Even after all these years, I don't think there is a paper that comes close to the Fabriano Artistico 640gsm hot pressed paper. I adore it! 

Here are the studies.

Rags an' old iron

It's been a while since I last posted, but here's what I've been up to...

A couple of Charcoal studies on paper.

These two drawings are studies for an oil painting I'm working on at the moment, here's a sneak peak of the underpainting.

The Wood Duck

After seeing the little watercolour ducks I'd painted (see "Quack" post for photos) my mums boss asked if she thought I could paint wood ducks, she just loves wood ducks and who can blame her, they are so beautiful!
So my gorgeous mother commissioned me to paint one for her as a gift. Now, I don't think Mrs. M follows my blog so it's pretty safe to post a picture of the painting here without ruining the surprise...

So here it is. The Wood Duck. Oil on linen panel. 26 x 28cm. 2012.

A foray in to Printmaking

I have had the pleasure of being invited to participate in Rona Greens' Beautiful Soup printmaking folio exchange and exhibition. (I'll post more details in the coming weeks)



I was very honored to be invited to make a work for this show, but naturally quite nervous about doing a poor job of it.



Not having had experience with printmaking
 and only having only the most basic tools
 at my disposal, I set about creating my first Linocut, a reduction lino, with 3 colours.

After weeks of research and planning, I took a deep breath and jumped in to the unknown, the dark art of printmaking, with surprising results.
           

I didn't do too bad a job of it and had a lot of fun in the process.

 I really enjoyed the focus and care required for such a meticulous process and I'm looking forward to bringing more printmaking in to my practice.

All systems go (or getting ready to)

So it's official. We got the house and I'm moving to Trentham!

My studio is all boxed up, which I must say is a little bit sad, but I can't wait to unpack it at the other end... There's a huge box labeled 'PAINT' that I reckon will be unpacked before anything labeled 'KITCHEN'!

I just can't wait to really get in to it. I've been gathering all resources at my disposal and I'm planing to put myself in to home school and learn all the things I was never actually taught at art school.

 Painting is #1 on the list of things to explore and I found numerous boxes of charcoal when packing up my studio and remembered how much fun it was to make big messy drawings, so that's #2.

Going through my studio was extremely tedious, but very rewarding... For every box of bullshit I sorted through I found an inspiring sketch or some materials I haven't used in the longest time. My most exciting find was my small embossing tool and a WHOLE BOX of graphite blocks, which I was using in Honours to make these...

Installation View. Graphite on paper. 2008

Detail. Graphite on paper. 2008

Now I don't think I'm likely to go back to working so geometrically, but this process is a way of working that I think I will pull off of the back burner...