'productivity rules ok' (part of the 'up against the bird wall' series)

It’s been a busy few months. Last month I had an article about the Newcastle ceramicist Helen Dunkerley published in Ceramic Art & Perception magazine. ‘A highly conscious unconscious- the well travelled towers of Helen Dunkerley’ the article describes Helen’s migratory lifestyle pattern (she divides her time between her hometown of Newcastle, Australia, a teaching job in upstate New York, and studio time in the Caribbean) and tries to make the argument that she dream-thinks her way around form in a way that is guided by her memories of these places. Neither the way she thinks or the way she lives is static, it has this permanent, instinctive fluidity. I think of her as being like a migratory bird, constantly in motion, but that’s probably just because I’m into birds at the moment.

In terms of my own art practice, I had some work in Despard Gallery’s ‘works on paper exhibition’ and some other small images, from the ‘up against the bird wall series’, exhibited at Griffith University’s Pop Gallery as part of the Australian Animal Studies Conference ‘Animals, People- a shared environment‘. I had a fantastic time at this conference, thoroughly enjoyed every second of it, and had that lovely feeling of meeting a bunch of people you have lots in common with. The ‘up against the bird wall’ series is a large, multi-paneled work that will eventually be made up of one hundred small canvases, all 20 x 20 cm square. It will be on show in the ‘Year of the Bird’ exhibition at Maitland Regional Art Gallery in early 2013. In terms of other upcoming art projects, I’m currently working on paintings for my next solo exhibition at Despard Gallery, ‘Strange Tales’, opening in March 2012.

'even birds wear Blahnik 2' (part of the 'up against the bird wall' series)

 

Saturday 1st October, 2011

I think it was also in August that I found out that a team I’m part of had won a $45k Community Builders Grant to run art events in Morisset, NSW. We’re really excited about this as it will bring art, music, theatre and dance workshops into an area where there just isn’t that much going on for young people. Professionally I’m kind of chuffed because I drafted much of the application, and this is my biggest win to date. Here’s the executive summary:

‘Designed to engage socially isolated young people in the Morisset area, this monthly project brings art and cultural activities into the newly constructed Morisset PCYC. Recreational and social spaces for youth are largely non-existent in the Morisset area. The ‘there’s nothing to do’ syndrome results in issues around youth crime, violence and property damage. art2264 aims to build community capacity by channelling some of this destructive energy into the formation of positive social networks’.

Happily Ever After at Artspace Mackay

In July Happily Ever After, the artists’ books exhibition I co-curated with Caelli Jo Brooker, opened at Artspace Mackay; it will be on show until 28th October 2011. The exhibition opened at the John Paynter Gallery on June 10th and closed on June 26th. We were really thrilled to receive a NAVA Marketing Grant to publicise this show (operating on a zero budget breeds resourcefulness but can be stressful) and have, although obviously I’m biased, used this grant well. Our latest bit of publicity is an advertisement in September’s edition of Art Monthly magazine.

Over the last few months I’ve been working with Fig Tree Community Garden, next to the Croatian Club in Wickham, and artist Trevor Horsnell, to deliver Seed, a series of art workshops that run alongside their monthly working bee. Seed is all about bringing the community into the garden and making art that reflects this link. We had one day of painting terracotta pots up to look like old Moroccan ceramics, and another ‘Birds with Bling’ workshop, where we made bird shaped bird scarers. The final workshop in the series will happen on Sunday 30th October when we’ll paint a mural on the side of the Croatian Club and there will be various activities for kids. I’m thinking of making a few more bird scarers as these were something of a hit with the under 10s. Seed is the happy recipient of an Octapod Seedpod CCD grant.

'engineered like no other bird' (part of the 'up against the bird wall' series)

In other news, I’ve had a journal article accepted for publication in the inaugural edition of a new Griffith University publication on studio research. 100 women, the University of Newcastle book I co-wrote last year with Katharine Gillett of the Hunter Writers Centre, and featuring an interview with the late Margaret Olley, will be launched in October. I’ve also been continuing work on my erotic novella ‘1001 nights: being an erotic memoir, and private journal, of the virgin Scheherazade- a gripping tale of love, death, identity, transformation and metamorphosis’. Phew! How do I fit all this in? All I can say, to badly paraphrase another writer with young children, is that it’s amazing how much you can get done in the barely conscious hours between 7.30 and 9.30pm.

'pigeon chested' (part of the 'up against the bird wall' series)

To add a degree of verisimilitude to this glowing professional account, in all honesty I’ve got to report, in the same time period, a number of rejections, knock backs or no thank yous. These include two art prizes, three exhibition proposals and one art residency application. Why do I fess up to this? Well one of the reasons I keep this blog, as well as it being a useful tool for myself, is the hope that young artists can use it as a professional resource (what to do/what not to do/and most importantly, ‘are you frigging kidding?! That’s never going to work’). I think it’s important to note that for every win, there’s a small queue of failed attempts, and that any creative career path is never straightforward. So kids, you’ve just got to keep punching away.

🙂

Manly Library

Saturday 1st October, 2011

Another couple of pieces of news. The first is that this week we confirmed a third venue for Happily Ever After, the artists’ books exhibition I curated with Caelli Jo Brooker. Hurrah! After the show closes at Artspace Mackay, it will open at Manly Library, probably sometime in December. We’re pleased about this for a number of reasons, firstly because Manly launched an artists’ books collection earlier this year, and has good display facilities, and secondly because the show represents so much work (both for ourselves and the participants) that we really want it to live on.

It occurred to me the other day that libraries are, culturally speaking, in a difficult position just now. Like so many cultural institutions, they’re being expected to do more with less resources, and in particular respond to the rise of online reading platforms (kindle, e-books, blogs etc) as well as the perennial debate about the death of the book. Anyway, the only good thing about this type of pressure is that it drives innovation, and as a result there are some excellent things happening in libraries across the country. On a recent trip to Brisbane, Sophie and I were very impressed by the State Libary’s children’s activity centre: we could have stayed there all day! And I’ve noticed increasing crossover with cultural institutions, such as museums and art galleries, taking on some of the functions usually reserved for libraries. For example, MONA’s public exhibition of a private book collection, and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery’s recent display of a reading room, complete with comfy sofas and lamps. It seems like at the same time there is lots of debate about the future of the book, or what future forms will look like, the book is becoming a cultural fetish item. Which is obviously good news for anyone interested in artists’ books. I expect people are missing the tactility of the book form, becoming nostalgic for its cultural presence, and yearning for the quiet, reflective mental space that reading represents.

productivity rules ok

The other piece of good news is more low key. I had a small painting, pictured above, selected for the Gosford Art Prize; it will be on display at the gallery until the 27th November.

And, of course, to further demonstrate that the life of an artist closely resembles a giant game of snakes and ladders, I’m duty bound to report this month’s failures and disappointments. These include not getting a literature grant, which would have made a huge difference to my circumstances, and the repossession of my car, both of which happened at more or less the same time. The latter is an inconvenience, representing the inevitable fall out from a divorce, and an embarrassment (this week’s difficult conversations included telling the toddler what happened to the car, and cancelling the vehicle insurance. Nice lady in insurance office: ‘what do you mean you no longer have the car? Did you give it away?’ Me: ‘errr, it’s a long story…’). Ah well. As a writer friend once said to me ‘it’s all copy’.

Saturday 8th October

This month I’ve got an book launch and an exhibition opening to spruik…

On Thursday 13th October, from 6pm, Despard Gallery’s ‘The collector’s exhibition’ will open in Hobart. A few of my small bird paintings will be on display, this is the first time they’ve been exhibited in a commercial gallery, so if you’re in town do go and check them out. Obviously I’m biased, but I think they’re kind of cute.

And on Wednesday 19th October, from 5pm at the University of Newcastle’s gallery, will be the launch of the 100 women book, the publication that I co-wrote with Katharine Gillett of the Hunter Writers Centre. Here’s the official blurb:

‘Bringing together stories from Australia and around the world, 100 Women celebrates the achievements and challenges of one hundred remarkable women. Women profiled include artist Margaret Olley, actress Susie Porter and country singer Catherine Britt, as well as women who inspire through their daily achievements. In their stories, women reflect on the changes they have seen in their own lifetimes, and tell of their hopes for the future. From eminent scientists and award-winning poets to single mothers and refugees from war-torn regions, the women in this collection inspire by sharing their personal stories.

The 100 Women book is also available for pre-order at $29.50 per copy, with a discounted rate of $24.50 per copy applied to orders of 5 copies or more. With Christmas fast approaching, 100 Women is a perfect gift for family and friends of all ages’.

Copies of the book can be ordered online by clicking here.