Workings from the shed...

A few weeks ago i mentioned that i had recently purchased a Gelli Arts Plate.

That is it in the image below - its a soft plate which can be inked up for mono printing. The appeal, is to 'press' objects onto it to create an impression, or lightly draw on it.

Here i was experimenting with a handcarved stamp. I then inked up the stamp and 

stamped on top of the print.

Same sort of thing here, experimenting with order, then just random overlaying..

 You can also paint on the plate itself, here i used acrylic block printing ink - with a bit of retarder to stop it drying so quickly. I enjoyed reusing the plate as the ink became less and less. It reminded me of inking up an etching plate - but oh! so much quicker (and far less messy!).

 I then cut up my samples and collaged a few bits together.

I found it hard to decide where to go next - so it was easier to scan it in and play some more in a digital way. A little bit cowardly - but i just needed to see options. How do you get around this?

I was happy with this, as it did remind me of the subtleties of etching. This is a hand carved rubber stamp on the gelli plate, some additional lines drawn with a piece of card, then stamp repeated on top.

It had just the right mix of ink, which i guess is why doing an edition is an art. But hey, this is indeed a mono print - as i couldn't get the exact effect again!

 A couple of collaged bits..

 With digital additions, bird?

or cat?

Not sure if I'll find the answers to this one -
meanwhile the experiment continues.

Out and about..

Today Mr R and i popped into town to see some more of the
Biennale of Sydney at the AGNSW.

I was a little disappointed that so much of it was viewed in low lighting - but i did have some 'highlights'. This whole room was a soft sculpture piece. The viewer was behind a 'viewing line' which made it even harder to see  that all objects were stitched from cloth..

Here is a close up of the door frame, with an even more close up of the 'peeling' paint, where you actually can see that it is stitched. Amazing work by artist Gao Rong.

Equally amazing were a row of paper shopping bags enclosed
in perspex containers

Exquisite work by Yuken Teruya, each bag housing it's own tree.
Somehow painstakingly created from the 'hole' in the bag.

This piece by a Colombian artist Juan Manuel Echavarria and is a lenticular print, which is like those postcards you could get of say, horses - standing still - then you tilt it, and the horse appears to run.
In this case the images are of NN graves (no names), but then as the viewer passes by names and flowers, or items become apparent.

I don't know about how you approach a visit to a gallery? I often don't try to make sense or understand why the work has been created, i just enjoy wandering amongst it happy to discover the unexpected.

Quite a few sketchbooks created from 'rollie books"
So tiny, and yet so detailed

The winter sun was soon disappeared, but i had some visuals to ponder.

quick to take effect..

These are sitting ont he kitchen bench. They have been there for 2 weeks and even though they were lovely, their time is ... well, just about up.

Last night i read about pic grunger app. Nice. I took the snap above
on the iphone.

Opened it in pic grunger, selected and effect and.. hey presto!

I could've spent hours in the darkroom... I could've tracked down
a specialist photographer..

or i could've apped it in 60 seconds..

Feel the texture...

I do love seeing a little texture on my travels ( i mean - just walking around, not anywhere especially exotic). You know the kind of thing... peeling paint, rust, decaying signage..

While at Cockatoo Island recently for the Sydney Biennale - it was hard to stroll past all that yummy, scrummy texture.. editing out little areas with my iphone i snapped away.

It's funny how things appear on your radar just when you need them. The universe can be handy like that, don't you find? I came across this:

Drawn to Stitch by Gwen Hedley, is amazing. Gwen looks at mark making and how to convey texture and mood in embroidery and textile art. The book walks you through heaps of great examples, techniques and shows you great ideas.. like this...

The lefthand page shows a paper collage, with the stitched pieces of art on the right are created after zooming in on a section and 'translating it'
with thread, fabric and stitches.

I love this idea - suddenly all those shots of texture i have
could go somewhere! Be something! So i went back to the shed..

with printouts of my textures and started to mimic them..

Here's a couple of details of how that went..

I used wax crayons, distress inks, modelling compound,  acrylic paint.

I was looking at creating smaller pieces of texture -
which i then cut up and collaged together.

They would make great studies for larger abstract pieces..

It also occurred to me that i could even use the actual shots of texture too..

So i began a fabric piece... using iron on transfer to well, transfer the image.
i also used some crayons (recently discovered at the craft show), which blend and work on fabric.

I only just 'roughed' the pieces in here - but can't wait to spend a bit more time 'with Gwen',

then really get those stitches cranking!

Oh, the possibilities... thank you Universe. Thank you Gwen Hedley.

Out and about

Yesterday was almost a touch of Spring at around 19 degrees. Perfect for catching a free ferry across Sydney Harbour to Cockatoo Island
for the 18th Biennale.

Set in a former industrial space it is photographer heaven - all those gorgeous textures!

This piece echoed the machinery feel but
was constructed from polystyrene.

It was wonderful wandering in and out of the huge spaces - never quite sure what you were about to discover. This one (below) was our favourite by far. Completely engaging - designed by artist/Professor of Architecture Philip Beesley.

By allowing 'lines' to be touched the feathers then moved with slight vibrations.

The sensors enabled the lights to activate as people moved through the work.

This work is a 'hybrid of sculpture, engineering, experimental chemistry and architecture'. It illustrates 'the concept of hylozoism – the belief that all matter in the universe has a life of its own'. By creating  interactive environments that respond to the actions of the audience, Beesley has offered a vision of how buildings in the future might move, think and feel. 

This piece was also captivating - being a shipping container laser cut with lacework on site.

Watch artist Cal Lane in action here

Awesome lettering - or littering? It was my type of art.

We spent 4 hours there including lunch at the cocktail bar - think deck chairs on astro turf, a freshly squeezed grapefruit with gin, the sounds of George Benson and harbour views.

I'm sure there were a few things we mist.

now for the other venues...

lights, camera, action ...

well maybe not lights.. and sorry i missed you last weekend, too much action of the graphic design kind. But, today i had a day off and was happy to help my 'jeweller' friend at Anthaus.  She has her own business crafting beautiful handmade loveliness in silver.

From stylish shapes..

to sweet nature inspired pieces.. 

a while ago we discussed styling some shots together with the help of my daughter and a friend..

today we turned the lounge room into a make shift studio

Here's a sneak peek of shots that will be on the Anthaus website soon

in the meantime pop over here to the shop for a detailed squiz.