Discover the autumn bliss of travelling to East Gippsland and Bogong with me.

This week, I returned to playing with landscapes.  This time I worked with ink rather than water colour and quite enjoyed doing it. I've decided that rocks are quite fun to paint and can look very zen.  I must rediscover some of my rock photos and have another attempt at capturing them on paper.

We made a quick trip down to Bairnsdale, which is in eastern Victoria, in a beautiful location between the ocean, the Gippsland Lakes and the snow capped mountains.  It was a cool 15 degrees with an icy wind blowing through, so it was bracing after the rather balmy 24 degree days of Brisbane, but I found it exhilarating.  We were staying with my mother in law, who has a beautiful home overlooking the Mitchell River valley with the mountains beyond.

The autumn colours were beautiful this year and gave me a bit of inspiration for some future art work.

Cold is very good for encouraging one to knit, so I finally made inroads into my various knitting tasks while sheltering inside the house.  As a result, the week I got back, I managed to finish knitting the doll's clothes.

Next on the schedule is to sew some additions to the doll's knitted clothing.  I have enjoyed this knitting experience so much, I have also started knitting a little rug in the left over wool, and a shrug in some Noro wool I had left over.  Hope I get them done while it is cooler in Brisbane.  I can't imagine using either of them in the sticky middle of summer.

As well as knitting, I made some more little hares.  I need to get the sewing machine out to make some clothes for them too as I am a bit over making tiny little jumpers.

At this week's class, one of my fellow artists brought in some freaky dolls her daughter made.  Very scary.  I have a feeling I may go back to making little monsters at a future date as a result of seeing her work.

Our other quick trip was to one of my favourite holiday spots in Victoria, Bogong Village in the Victorian Alps.  This hidden treasure is a great artist retreat at any time of the year, but it has also been discovered by cyclists, bushwalkers, ski and snow ski enthusiasts, bird watchers, wine and foodie enthusiasts and holiday makers of all ages because of its beauty and its proximity to many tourist spots in the north-east of Victoria.  We first discovered it when it was owned by the State Electricity Commission and were blown away by the way the cottages face Lake Guy, nestling into the European style gardens which were planted by the European immigrants who came to work on the Snowy Mountain scheme, surrounded by the native bush, and encircled by the mountains. Nowadays, the village houses are able to be rented by holidaymakers, and our family often visit with our friends. On this trip, there was snow on the the mountains, and the deciduous trees had almost finished their display of autumn colours, but it was still pretty stunning and I took a lot of photos for future works.

Early one morning, with the mountains exhaling a misty breath as the sun gradually warmed the frost ground, I walked beside the lake to the two streams that feed it and took a lot of rock photos to work from when I get home:

I saw no dingoes or wallabies on this trek, unlike other lucky hikers in the past, but I did spot swarms of wrens and finches, crimson rosellas, kookaburras and currawongs.  Really, this place is my idea of heaven.

Much as  I have enjoyed these two quick trips reacquainting myself with the beauty of  Eastern Gippsland and the drive to Mt.Bogong through the Ovens and Kiewa valleys, I am really in need of a break from travelling.  Getting up at 4.30 am to catch flights which are delayed is not my idea of fun, and my hips seem to be stuck in a sitting position due to all the car and plane trips. Collapsing on the couch at home in Brisbane seems like bliss right now.

Etching the non-toxic way

 

I've finally finished my quilt!  Yay!  What a long process, but it was worth it!  Time to start another one!

 

 

 

 

This weekend, I did a non-toxic etching workshop with Carolyn McKenzie.  I think I was the worst person in the group - I couldn't quite catch on to the progress of ceaning off the bitumin in the bath, and was accused of having a memory like a goldfish, but I still had fun.

 

These are my efforts at collographs (using chocolate boxes!):

  

 

 

 

 

  

I also discovered how to transfer photocopies of my self-portraits by using eucalyptus oil  (I hope I don't really look like these!  I distorted them by doing them as a loose drawing exercise, then moving the photocopier a lot).  I can tell I am going to be using this method again!  Just think of the things you could do with photos too

 

 

 

All the following etchings were done using postcard sized sheets of aluminium plate.

This etching was done using the non-toxic etching process ( degreasing with cloudy ammonia and whiting powder, coating with bitumin and turpentine, etching, then rinsing in a solution of copper sulphate, salt and water, then inked and printed on the press).
This one, I just etched the aluminium, then inked up.

 

This is another etched image .

And this one uses the non-toxic method too.

 

Hope I manage to get into another of her courses in the future.  I found this one really inspiring

Rediscovering Embroidery

It is autumn in Brisbane. The frangipani have lost their leaves and are now knobby little stumps blindly probing for more warmth.  Some of the natives have got gold, pink and orange flushes on their leaves, so I am collecting interesting ones to photocopy onto fabric and press. The papaws are ripening on the trees and you can hear the fruit bats squabbling over them at night. The days are warm and the evenings cooler.  There is less chance of rain.  And I can work on the verandah or in the shed quite comfortably.  A lovely season, as autumn is in most parts of the world.

The return to, for me, a more bearable outdoor temperature and humidity had me sun printing a bit of white cotton I had left over from a previous project.  This is a great activity for artists and non artists, children and adults alike, for all you need is a bit of pale silk or cotton with a weave that is not too open.  An old shirt that you want to give a new look to will do.  Wet the fabric and lay it down in the sun. Mix some screen printing ink with water and slosh it on with a sponge or sponge block.

 Now place things on it - keys, leaves, flowers, cut outs, sticks, scissors, circles.  If it is windy you will have to weigh them down with tiny stones.

When the sun hits the fabric, it will dry the uncovered bits first.  This sucks the liquid away from the wetter bits that are covered by the leaves etc.  When the fabric is dry, if you take off the items you should have a pale bit under the items, so you will have the outline/ shadow of the item.  It really is like magic.  Unfortunately, in my enthusiasm, I used a very light colour and inadverently chose a site without much direct sun so it took ages to dry.  Then when  moved it to a sunny part, I decided it was going to be too pale, and instead of starting all over again, I sloshed on some darker liquid on some bits.  Then the sun went out.  So, in the end, I had a very odd bit of fabric, with some dark bits and some light bits.  This is the result.

Still, I got some nice details from it:

And, as I am going to cut it up, it isn't a problem.  Enough of the printing worked for it to be a good background for a lot of  machine embroidery.  Next time, I think I will look up,  and check the direction the sun is moving, before I start.  Mistakes are great for teaching you what not to do.  Plus, they sometimes create something better.

I've been tidying up my stacks of work and putting aside those I am unhappy with to transform into something else.  Collage, mixed media, a paper quilt, overprinting, part of a book.............  It is fun trying to see a piece with new eyes.  I reinterpreted this old print with colour:

  I have also been reacquainting myself with  Sandra Meech's wonderful series of  books- I particularly like "Connecting Art to Stitch" for ideas- Cas Holmes "The Found Object in Textile Art" and  Gwen Hedley's "Drawn to Stitch". These books have given me lots of ideas.  As a result, I did some test machine embroidery on a scrap of cotton adhered to a sticky label, and liked what I saw:

Then, using that experience, I tried the same on some of my left over hand dyed paper.  This is the result:  a paper quilt. 

Very rough and ready, but I love it!  I'm running out of hand dyed paper as a result.  I'll have to start preparing my witch's brews again!

My other fabric quilt using hand dyed fabric is coming along.  I have adhered all the leaves and have  machine embroidered them on with satin stitch. I have also run some strips of machine embroidery along the quilt.  Now, all I have to do is to back and edge it.

A third quilt is in the making.  I have started photocopying my nudes onto fabric and like the results, but have decided I need to draw and wash some more nudes to have enough to make a quilt.

I have finished a knitted top for a hare, am sewing up some new hares, and am knitting a new top  for the doll.

And, I have been inspired by a jacket one of my fellow artists brought into class.  She embroidered it when she was fifteen and it is amazing:     

 

    I must get back to hand embroidery one day!  I adore it! but.....my eyes aren't what they used to be.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that.

I had a lovely session in the printing room this week with some friends.  I'd forgotten how much I love making monotypes!  I brought my box of pressed leaves, along with my stack of pieces of lace, circles, feathers, letters, etc. and decided to stick to using just one colour -  black.  I really like how powerful the first print looked,

 

 but, as usual, loved the ghost images best.

 I especially love the ones I did using the cotton tree leaves that have been eaten by insects.

 

 Some prints, I wasn't so keen on, but I will use them later with ink or watercolour or collages.  I really must get back to printing on a more regular basis.  It really is a lot of fun, although, in my case it is a brilliant way of getting ink everywhere (see Tip #3 below).   I was also pretty inspired by the etching that was being done by some of the other artists in the studio with us.  So much so that I wanted to buy some pieces right there and then.  Can't wait for their exhibition in a fortnight at the BIA!  And  I can't wait for the etching workshop I have enrolled in at the BIA to come around.

I have gone off on a few tangents with my watercolour.  I am still working with mixed media, and  learning with every piece.

Tip #1:  seal the back and front of cardboard, plywood,  or anything likely to react badly to water. I started with a piece of cardboard for this one, and applied gesso to seal the front, then added modelling paste to give it texture and more dimensional depth.  I applied the first coat of ink and thought disaster had struck as the liquid seeped to the back of the cardboard.  Luckily, it reverted to the original when it dried.  Then,  I remembered that I had to seal the back before I wrecked this piece, which would have devastated me because I really like how it turned out after the wonky beginning.  It reminds me of the tropical  sea.  And, I will be giving it a coat of sealer to just make sure it stays as is.

Tip #2:  glue is sticky, therefore be careful where you put your brush.  I managed to stick my brush  to my brush case by mistake. I got it off, but left a residue of glue on the case. 

Tip #3:  baby wipes are brilliant for cleaning up anything- even ink on skin! ( now I know why some mothers won't use them on their babies!)

I also like this latest piece, which uses pen drawings of hands, pieces of dress patterns and ink. I was thinking at the time about how important our hands are in craft and woodwork, and of the fact that I have a bad habit of sewing my fingers with the machine, cutting myself on the hands with scissors and sticking my hands with needles and pins. This one started with a wash of inks, followed with a drawing of my hands, developed into a bit of cut and pasting of an old dress pattern (See Tip #2), followed with a wash on the hands and finished with a stressing of the outlines in ink. Then, I thought it needed two coats of modge podge for endurance.

I have always been fond of chickens for their eggs, they way they appreciate my food scraps, their great compost, the lovely sound they add to every garden and their odd little ways.  I don't appreciate them digging up the garden, pooing all over the back steps, eating my vegetables, going broody, or drop kicking me like one of my Hamburgs used to, but I still miss having them.  One day, I firmly intend to get some more - preferably fluffy and fat, like Buff Orpingtons or Wyandottes, rather than one of the leggy, raw necked game birds.  In spite of my aversion to their looks, somehow become I have become obsessed with the mad looking chickens I have encountered  when visiting the country shows.  I don't want them: I've decided that I find the ornate combs, wattles and flesh around their eyes rather horrible and reptilian, but I find these characteristics  strangely compelling too.  That is what I was trying to convey in these pictures, using ink.  The first is of a silkie.

The second is a frizzle.

 I think they both look rather mad - just like the real thing.

I also got rid of my yearning for a bit of life drawing, by doing these quick little pieces on 10 by 26 cm paper.  I actually sketched the bodies very quickly using a dark grey Staedler triplus fine liner.  Then, I washed the drawing with water and a watercolour brush.

This lovely Staedler pen runs delightfully to create a watercolour effect.  It doesn't work for all the Staedler colours, but the black and grey are terrific.  Having created all these backs, I'm not sure what to do with them.  One idea is to photocopy them onto fabric and make a quilt of backs.  Another is to make a paper quilt.  We'll see.

Lastly, I reverted to my love of trees for this piece.

This one started with a gesso background.  Then, I added a tree made of PVA glue.  Next came the inks.  At the end, I cut out leaves from the local newspaper, the Courier Mail (the best use I can think of for this newspaper, other than using it for mopping up spare glue and ink) and glued them on with ricepaper glue.  This one will be sealed too.  I think this design would look good as a quilt, too.

As well as painting, I have been making more felt hares and have started knitting another little jumper for one.  They are very cute and easy to make.  No thinking, which makes a change.  Usually, I have to do one of my pieces in stages, and it involves a lot of walking round, thinking, researching,  then applying layer after layer after layer.  I envy those artists who can just jump in and create something straight off, but it is definitely not my modus operandi. I rarely end up doing what I thought I was going to do.  The work usually tells me what to do.  Or, Bob or my teacher tell me it is lacking something, and make suggestions.   Also, memories have a habit of intruding on my work.  I can also see why a lot of people prefer to follow patterns rather than make up their own.  I do too for some things, but often find that I change the pattern.  Must be something about me.  I have trouble following cooking recipes too , as you probably know if you follow my other blog (www.patapanfood.blogspot.com.au)