Dream Menagerie

I'm part of a group exhibition that's opening on Friday at DVAA. The title is dream menagerie.

I've known this show was coming for nearly a year, and had hoped to have half a dozen or so good paintings to exhibit, but sometimes a long deadline is as difficult as a short one. For some reason I found it so hard to find a way into this theme... maybe I got too stuck on the idea of animals and not enough about dreams!

We had a great blurb about exploring the animal in our nature, but I needed something visual to latch onto. I started taking photos and sketching dogs and horses at the beach. I noticed there are animals in the patterns of the indian skirts that I wear, and did some drawings from them of strange birds and girls leading camels. I got a corner of an idea about including the skirt with the pattern of the animal, and playing with positive and negative. I guess that doesn't make a lot of sense, and makes a better lino print! Here's a sneak peak at two of my pieces.

I can't wait to see how the other artists have interpreted the theme. If you're in Darwin it would be lovely to see you, 6pm at DVAA Friday 20th June.

walk 12 The seabreeze festival

Way back on the first Saturday in May I took my regular walk by the sea at Nightcliff, and enjoyed the seabreeze festival.

graffiti wall

I spent an hour or so at the dance stage...

belly dancing

and had to stop for a few tunes from a brass ensemble. I didn't make it as far as the main stage, but had a great couple of hours. My photos don't do it justice!

Best wishes to all :)

All work and no play ...

So I wasn't around much in May, partly because my son was hogging the computer and partly because I've been working full time. My workmate left and I'm filling in with extra days until a new admin person starts.

The downside of this is the lack of time to make art. I've been trying to squeeze in some card making, 10 minutes in the morning before I head to work is enough time to handcolour a lino print or cut out some foam prints and juggle them on different coloured backgrounds. Here are some of the cards I've made using up some of my stash of foam prints and painted papers.

Last weekend was the garden spectacular and the writers festival and I missed them both. I hope you had a great time if you went along...

Walk 11...from april...the pretty bit of the park

My son's laptop is back, so now I'm playing catchup. Here are some photos from a walk I took at my local park (Jingili watergardens) in April. There are a couple of ponds with fountains and formal gardens, the canna lillies are looking great and might turn up in a painting!
Hope your May is going well, and hope to catch up with some blog reading soon!

...and the winner is...

Many thanks to the people who dropped by to leave a comment. The lucky name out of the hat is Carole Reid, please can you email me with your address and I'll get the cards in the post this week!!

This is another on the hop post, I'm hoping I'll get my computer back to myself by next weekend, so I can find out what's been going on in blogworld, and post my latest walks.

200th blog post and a giveaway!!!

Way back in September 2009 I nervously wrote my first blogpost (after reading the whole of blogging for dummies!). I never imagined I'd plod along at this for over 4 years, or that I'd get to 200 posts.

To celebrate I have a giveaway of a trio of my lino print cards. Just leave a comment on this post to enter, I'll pick a name out of the hat on 10th May.

I had intended to write a bit more about my blogging experience, but my son's laptop is at the repair shop and I'm lucky to get 5 minutes to check my emails this week so I'm keeping it brief!

If you're in Darwin there's plenty on this Saturday. The opening of the art of tea exhibition, combined with a morning tea fundraiser for the cancer council is on at Tactile Arts. In the afternoon - and on into the evening - is my favorite little festival, the Nightcliff Sea Breeze festival. All along my regular walking track by the sea, there will be stages, an exhibition and stalls. I'm hoping to spend some time at the dance stage before I get dragged by my family past all the music stages to find the food!!

Hope you're having a great week!

in progress

I don't have much to show you at the moment!! The lino from last week is almost ready to print, I've also started some sewing for the animal theme exhibition but I suppose I should keep them under my hat until exhibition time - late June.

I did another attempt at the horse painting and have been sitting looking at it for a couple of weeks and hate it as much as the first version!! So I'll be gessoing over it today.

A good spin off from doing the walking project is to be doing some sketching, either on the spot

or from my photos.

I'm hoping to do a lino cut based on the dog drawings and photos.
Hope you're enjoying a relaxing long weekend!!