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Wednesday, November 27, 2019

A house and drawing in progress




For the past several weeks, I've been juggling house moving with work, a balancing act that's becoming increasingly precarious as the settlement date for our old place approaches. Throughout this unsettling and disruptive time, drawing has provided a much-needed sense of equilibrium and continuum.

Several of the drawings will eventually form the basis for larger scale works, once the dust on our move has settled. The most recent drawing, pictured above, was started at our old place and further developed in my new studio (pictured below). Like the rest of the house, the studio is very much a work in progress. It's unlikely to remain in this minimal state for very long.


The following photos were snapped a few weeks ago, the day after Shane Jones and I got the keys to the new house. Our friends Tim Gresham and Gaye Britt popped in for an impromptu celebration that started in the cinema room on the first floor, then gravitated downstairs.














Our new home is gradually taking shape as we simultaneously cut ties with the place we called home for the past nine years. Pictured below is an updated view of our cinema room. The easel painting to the right of the windows is an trompe l'oeil work by Shane.


Alice is loving the new house and has made herself completely at home. The sculpture on the far right, below, is by Dean Bowen.


Pictured below is a cosy corner of our reading room. Originally the projection room for the cinema, it's my favourite room in the house.


On the table in the library is another trompe l'oeil painting by Shane, paired with the paperback novel, Shane, on which it's based.


On Monday morning the removalist will collect the really heavy stuff from the old house and studio, including our etching press. Setting up a shared printmaking studio/workshop in our new place will be among the challenges facing us in the new year, and beyond. The prospect is somewhat daunting. But we've already come this far, I reckon we're up for it.

Friday, November 22, 2019

An invitation to WONDERMENT


Please find attached your very own invitation to Queenscliff Gallery & Workshop’s summer exhibition, WONDERMENT. Pictured: Splendid emerald wasp woman' (detail).

Exhibiting artists: Antonio Balletta, Christine Gibson, Lizzie Horne, Hyun Ju Kim, Deborah Klein, Michael Leunig, Soula Mantalvanos, David Moore, Geoffrey Ricardo, John Ryrie and Lucinda Tanner. 

EXHIBITION DATES: Nov 29 — Feb 24
OFFICIAL OPENING: Dec 1 from 3pm 

We do hope you can join us, either at the opening or during the exhibition's run. 

To learn more about WONDERMENT, go HERE.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

SOLD


Now it's official. Special thanks to Terrence Morse and thanks to everyone for all your good wishes. Shane, Alice and I will miss this house, but are excited for the future.


Photos by Terrence Morse.

Monday, November 18, 2019

Under contract

In the middle of a busy weekend, this happened. (Photo credits: Terrence Morse and Shane Jones, who also appear in this sequence).










Monday, November 11, 2019

WONDERMENT


WONDERMENT, QG&W's summer exhibition, is fast approaching and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.

Exhibiting artists: Antonio Balletta, Christine Gibson, Lizzie Horne, Hyun Ju Kim, Deborah Klein, Michael Leunig, Soula Mantalvanos, David Moore, Geoffrey Ricardo, John Ryrie and Lucinda Tanner.

Step into the personal world of the artist with this year’s summer exhibition, WONDERMENT. Join Deborah Klein, John Ryrie, Lucinda Tanner and more, as they invite us on a journey to take a closer look at life and venture beneath the surface. 

Spanning multiple landscapes and continents, stories and characters, this collection of artworks encourages the role of the spectator, with its suggestion that things may not entirely be what they seem. 

DATES
Exhibition: Nov 29 — Feb 24
Official opening: Dec 1 from 3pm

LINKS
Exhibition online soon: https://qgw.com.au/wonderment

FOLLOW
Facebook: QueenscliffGalleryWorkshop / Google: Queenscliff Gallery Workshop / Instagram: @queenscliffgalleryworkshop / Pinterest: queenscliffgalleryworkshop / Twitter: @Q_cliffGallery / Vimeo: qgw

Queenscliff Gallery & Workshop (QG&W)
P 03 4202 0942 M 0438 866 068 A 81 Hesse Street Queenscliff VIC 3225
Open 6 days (closed Tues & between Nov 25 – 28)

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Harlequin bug tattoo

On the work table: Harlequin bug tattoo, pigmented drawing ink and gouache on Khadi paper, 21 x 15 cm

Following directly from my previous post, Harlequin bug tattoo is another work begun in my hotel room in August during the 2019 Melbourne International Film Festival (see below). The drawing, pictured above, was completed after my return to Ballarat. Scroll down further for selected progress views and to meet a real Harlequin bug.






The insect tattoo is modelled on the species Dindymus versicolor, commonly called Harlequin bugs, that regularly visit my studio in the back garden of the house we'll soon be leaving.


It’s a very pretty insect, but don’t let appearances fool you. Dindymus versicolor is regarded as a pest, reportedly attacking cotton, kurrajong, vegetables, pome fruits, stone fruits, grapes, figs, strawberries, violets, wisteria and dahlias. I don’t like to throw accusations without proof, but think I’ve finally figured out what has been devouring our strawberries all these years. Despite all that, I'm going to miss the Harlequin bugs and my beautiful studio.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Apiarist

Apiarist, ink and gouache on Khadi paper, 21 x 15 cm

Pictured above: Apiarist, a study for a larger-scale work, but also a finished drawing (or near enough to it), made during the interminable house moving that has dominated most of this year. (More about that soon).

The work is one of several undertaken during my stay in Melbourne for the 2019 Melbourne International Film Festival back in August, although the drawing was still barely outlined by the time MIFF had ended.

One of my favourite MIFF films was the documentary, Honeyland. Its message and real-life heroine, Hatidze, a Macedonian bee keeper, impacted directly on the making of Apiarist. 

Following are a selection of progress views.




Monday, October 21, 2019

ANTHROPOCENE - The R & M McGivern Prize 2019


Deborah Klein, Phyllium giganteum homo insecta, 2018, watercolour, 41.91 x 29.72 cm
Shortlisted for the R & M McGivern Prize 2019
Photo credit: Tim Gresham

The theme of the upcoming R & M McGivern Prize 2019 is Anthropocene, and I'm delighted to be one of the 45 finalists.

The Anthropocene marks the commencement of substantial human impact on our planet’s geology and ecosystems, including climate change. The precise time of its inception is unconfirmed, but possibly dates from as early as 12,000 - 15,000 years ago. The year 1945, commonly referred to as The Great Acceleration, ushered in a period when the impact of humans on this planet would increase more dramatically than ever before. 

Yet the Anthropocene has still to be officially recognised as an official subdivision of ecological time; a final decision is unlikely to be made until at least 2021. Meanwhile, my research anticipates a new epoch: The Great De-acceleration, in which humanity acknowledges its contribution to climate and ecological breakdown and recognises that we are not separate from nature, but an integral part of it.

Phyllium Giganteum homo-insecta, pictured top, hovers at the crossroads of science and science fiction. It is one of a series of ‘unnatural history illustrations’ documenting the advancement of Homo insecta, a highly evolved Order wherein human and nature are one.

Anthropocene will be held across two venues: ArtSpace at Realm and Maroondah Federation Estate Gallery, Ringwood from 23 November 2019 - 2 February 2020. The finalists are listed below:



Friday, October 18, 2019

Alice in the collection of the State Library of Victoria


As the second weekend of house inspections approaches, Alice’s star continues to rise. The State Library of Victoria has added the real estate flyer to their permanent collection. SLV curator Madeleine Say found it refreshingly different to any other flyer she’d seen. She was drawn to the story of ‘Alice’s Wonderland in the heart of Golden Point’ and of course its heroine, Alice, even though, as the leaflet states, she is 'not included in the sale’. 

Huge thanks to our agent Terrence Morse for his creative vision and sense of fun, to photographer Angela Hayward and the team at Biggin Scott Ballarat. We couldn’t be more thrilled that an image of Alice is now held in such a venerable institution. Not bad for a two-year old.



To learn about the State Library of Victoria's extensive Ephemera collection, go HERE.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Alice's Wonderland

Alice occupies her favourite spot in our sunroom/outdoor entertaining area

Our home at 7 Bradshaw Street, Golden Point in Ballarat is now on the market. The agent describes it as ‘Alice’s Wonderland,’ which indeed it is. (See if you can spot her in the first view). 

For detailed views of the house, garden and my studio, click on the link directly below: 
https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-golden+point-132155998.*

*Please note the proviso following the property description: ‘Alice the cat not included in the sale'.

All photos by Angela Hayward, courtesy Biggin Scott, Ballarat.