 'STRIKE A POSE' MANNEQUIN EXHIBITION PRIZEGIVING Knox Street, Double Bay 23 September 2010 The boutique & eatery-lined throughfare of Double Bay, Knox Street, was closed to traffic for the day while Sydney radio station 2GB presided over a number of announcements and activities. As the winner of the inaugural 'Strike a Pose' Exhibition, I was awarded my prize by the sponsors, Westpac Bank and the (ex) Mayor of Woollahra, the Hon. Andrew Petrie. 
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STRIKE A POSE EXHIBITION Double Bay, Sydney: March 17-28, 2010 The decision to make an angel was inspired by a pair of glass wings I made at Sydney Glassworks during a one day workshop with local artists from the 2007 Arcadian Artists’ weekend. When I collected my mannequin in January 2010, it was as if the shape of her back had been made for these wings. The wings are made of recycled float glass which I shattered, arranged and then had kilned, under the mentorship of Jennifer McIver. This glass has a transparent, blue green look to it, and I found that esthetically, a theme of black and white would best suit this glass. Black and white is also a popular theme for formal dress functions, hence the title ‘Angel in evening dress.” Apart from finding a glue to secure glass and ceramic tiles onto plastic, the next challenge was how to convey the ethereal qualities of a spiritual being. I decided that using the medium of mosaic, combined with glass would give the reflections, sparkle and conveyance of light necessary to achieve this. To further enhance these characteristics my husband, Herman, suggested LED lighting be integrated into the bustier, underneath the glass finishes and wings. As my vision came together I began to think deeply about angels, what they do, how they could look and where they might manifest themselves in a modern context. "Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have entertained angels unawares." (Heb 13:2) was an inspiration too. Even at a formal dress function, there could be an angel in the room. But she’s not connected to anyone. Nobody there knows who on earth she is, so they remain indifferent. Although she is beautiful and you can sense an unseen quality about her, why is she completely alone in a room full of people? Cross the floor and talk to that stranger. She could deeply enrich your life and reveal another dimension to you...  Angel in Evening Dress was designed to look at 360 degrees. She can be displayed with or without the black and silver tulle skirt. I was especially pleased with the way in which the black grout turned the white tile-work into 'fishnet stockings!'  After two solid months of mosaicing and thousands of cuts, working with epoxy glue and then grouting the piece...the fingers on my right hand looked like this! She certainly was worth it, though!  MAANZ EXHIBITION Eden Gardens Gallery, Ryde, July 2010 Inspired by the Ella Mosaic, I decided to create and enter a 'Potrait' in this exhibition. I had already mosaiced the recycled glass 'headband' in December 2009, and created the eyes and lips in 2008. So it was simply a matter of putting the face together and integrating everything. I did this in 2 days- a mosaic record! GALSTON SCARECROW GATHERING Bushland Festival, Fagan Park, September 2010 In the four years I've lived in Galston, I helped the primary school make scarecrows and I have given lots of advice to candidates every year, but never actually made and entered one myself. From the beginning, it was clear that this scarecrow was going places! He was the only scarecrow to 'ride' to Fagan Park and back, and the whole family had great fun trying to keep up. During the festival, he was spotted handing out postcards with a map of where to ride in Galston. He won first prize for his efforts! Now, I just hope he can scare that annoying little Pee Wee that keeps swooping us in our garden... ELLA MOSAIC: OFFICIAL UNVEILING Ella Centre, Haberfield, 29 July 2010 Members of the YODSS named the artwork 'Ethereal Light.' It was unveiled by the minister for Disability, Hon. Peter Primrose, who announced over a million dollars in funding for the centre. It was a very gratifying project to work on and I really enjoy working with community groups and facilitating the process of mosaic with them. 'THE LEGEND OF GALSTON GORGE.' Galston, June/July 2010 In 2008, my husband 'kidnapped' a chicken at the bottom of Galston Gorge. He obviously hadn't heard all the local legends of how the chickens got down there in the first place! This got me thinking about how anything foreign always seems to be an imposition upon the Australian landscape. And, if it has the capacity to go forth and multiply, it absolutely thrives in this natural environment... ultimately becoming a menace. I've documented the process of creating this painting. It was quite confronting at times; I haven't done an oil since 2008, I've never painted a 'landscape' and the canvas was big: 1.5mx0.90m. It took me weeks to paint it. I entered it in the Mosman Art Prize but it wasn't selected by the cogniscenti and now I'm $40 the poorer for my efforts. At least the kids and I had a great time down in the gorge and on Balmoral beach. I'm now heartily sick of painting chickens! It's time to put this subject to roost (no pun intended) and move on to another fixation...  |
