Art Gallery Papakura

My exhibition time is nearly here. The work is to be installed this week, with the opening on Thursday evening. This is exciting and I am looking forward to seeing my work displayed in a new environment. It is a day's drive for me to get to Papakura but I have family in Rotorua so will make a stop-over there, then return to them for the weekend. A great time to catch up on everyone and to see how the grand children have grown since I last visited.

I won't be blogging again until I return and hopefully I will have lots of good reports as to how everything looks, and went, at the opening and talk. Stay tuned....

Art Gallery Papakura, 10 Averill Street, Papakura. Hours Monday to Friday 9am - 5 pm, Saturday 10am - 2 pm. My Fibre Reactive exhibition will be on display July 9 to August 7. I will be giving an artist talk on Friday, July 9, 11 am. All welcome! Exhibition sponsored by the Papakura Creative Communities Scheme.

Entrance. This shows the first gallery where my work will be, the second gallery is through the doorway in far wall.

Looking back to the entrance.

Photos courtesy of Art Gallery Papakura.

Snip and tear

Following on from Monday's blog about rejecting the top portion of the latest piece, it was a simple matter of making that snip and tearing the piece in two. No regrets. The abandoned piece is currently put away and may be re-visited at a later date. End of, moving on....

One of the advantages of working on the now half size piece is that I can manage it on my smaller printing table in the studio. It is warmer in my studio than in the garage where I have my larger printing table. What with our mid-winter weather it is very cold in there and not at all pleasant.

The retained piece is coming along nicely, looking good and is nearing completion. Here are a couple of details:

Major Shift

A major shift with my latest piece is about to happen. I did some further work on it over the weekend with very pleasing outcomes. So pleasing in fact that I am now keen to reject the top portion and proceed only with the lower. This seems to stand alone very nicely and with some more applications it should be a great outcome.

I frequently make such major shifts as this. It does pay not to be too precious about one's work. I could be upset about the time, effort and materials I have used in producing the portion I am about to reject, but prefer to see it as all part of working this piece. In other words, if I hadn't done what I have already done, I may not have achieved what I now have. Does that make sense!?

This shift came as a result of painting some figures on to my large screen with dye and water, as part of my original design. Once dry, I screened this on to the fabric with sodium alginate (manutex) and soda ash. Everything transferred beautifully....

Painted screen in place on the fabric which, at this point is covered with plastic to prevent any surplus dye spreading through. I also have paper templates for guidance under the screen.

Screen after printing, nothing much remains.

Progress again

I have been able to concentrate on my latest piece this week and there has been progress. I am still establishing the first layer of applications and once these are all achieved, I can then focus on some of the details. I like to pull these details together after the first layer is in place. If I start too early on this it can be difficult later on as I may regret what I have done too early in the piece. So far so good. Below are three details.

BTW for those in the greater Wellington area I suggest a visit to Pataka, Porirua, will leave you fulfilled. Current exhibitions include Double Vision - artists collaborations, carved muskets, and exquisite glassware.

Fibre Reactive Expressions

In two and a half weeks my exhibition at the Art Gallery Papakura will be open - official function 5 pm July 8, then from July 9 to August 7. The exhibition title is Fibre Reactive Expressions and is the second showing of the exhibition I had in Upper Hutt last year. Two new pieces will be shown which help to replace those already sold. The exhibition is supported by a Papakura Creative Communities Funding Grant.

There is always a great deal to do before such an exhibition of course, apart from preparing works for display. Keeping good records while information is still fresh is the best way to tackle this. Physical data such as dimensions, inspiration, materials etc are a must, and keeping the CV and artists' statement up-to-date is essential.

Last week I packaged all my pieces for despatch during this week. All the works are rolled around padded cardboard rolls. With petrol prices to rise early July, I am getting in beforehand to make the most of the current rates. Getting quotes for cartage, there and back after the exhibition closes, had me accepting a courier that will deliver door-to-door. Expensive, but this is not an exercise to risk the quality of the journey.



Art Gallery Papakura, 10 Averill Street, Papakura. Monday to Fridays 9am - 5pm, Saturday 10am - 2pm. www.papakuraarts.co.nz


The box ready to go.....

The student v the artist

My blog of a week ago, posted June 11, titled A Powerful Tool gendered a couple of very good comment responses. This week I have been giving these some thought, and would now like to offer the following:

When one is a student in a specific line of study with an eventual outcome of achieving a qualification, one has to work within the parameters of the established course of study. The tutor is also bound by this!

The basis of any course is to learn, to learn how to accomplish new skills and ideas. Any hands-on, practical learning, will involve lots of experimenting and samples. Achieving major assignments can become a daunting task, not so much because you haven't yet mastered all the skills, but mostly I suspect because the theme/topic given is not your own choice, and you have to get your head around what you must try to achieve. This skill is very important if you plan to go on to employment, or work on commissions, where the client's requirements are paramount.

However, if you are an artist, you are expected to find your own visual voice, and the approach is quite different. The way you have worked during studies needs to be abandoned. You should have enough skills to get on with 'it'. Experimenting and sampling is still valid, but not to the same extent as when being a student. In fact, I suspect that too much sampling is a hindrance, meaning that an outcome when sampling may be successful, but then incredibly hard to achieve again. This can result in unease and disapointment. Sometimes it is best just to go with it, do it, and live with the result. Start again if necessary.

I hope this helps.

Yes, I have started on my next piece. I have drawn some gestural lines in black pigment/paint. While the paint is still wet I have spritz parts with clear water which softens the lines and adds some interest.



A house.....

Costume and Textile Association Conference

This last weekend I attended the 9th Annual Symposium of the Costume & Textile Association of New Zealand, held at TheNewDowse, Lower Hutt. I didn't need any encouragement to register, it was great to have such an event in my home town. About 120 people attended, many from the greater Wellington area, but others from Australia and the USA. This conference was centred around research and conservation practices rather than hands-on.

During a fairly intense weekend we had a programme of 19 presentations. The conference title was Hanging By A Thread and many papers referenced the survival of textiles (and people) in dire circumstances such as war time, Antarctic exploration, and lives of poverty.

Specific topics of interest (to me) included the stitching of Maori dog skins (these dogs are now extinct) in pre-European times; the resurrection of Cambodian weaving; German paper textiles of WW1; the emptying of an old poof (hassock) filled with remnants of torn and mended clothing from the family who owned it, and the stories they engendered; the fight for survival in WW2 and post war Germany; making it last and work in early Antarctic expeditions; replicating a lost carpet in its original style produced in the 1860's for Victoria Mansion USA; the Victorian Tapestry Workshop, Melbourne; a light-hearted look at keeping a stash (knitting wools, fabrics etc); and masculinity and the knitting pattern; plus much more.

Such a lot of wonderful information and food for thought. It was a well organised weekend and great to catch up with many people I already knew, and to meet many more. Next year this conference is to be in Christchurch. Stay tuned!


Natalie Cadenhead, Curator of Antarctic and Canterbury Social History, Canterbury Museum, Christchurch, and Clare Plug, recipient of Antarctic Artist Fellowship, 2006/7, enjoying a light-hearted moment.

Where have they all gone?

Ahhh... its lunch time.