Learning a new Technique

Each exhibition I try to learn a new technique. I appreciate the mystery and excitement, the meeting of new people and sharing of knowledge. With my initial paintings in mind, I tried to work out which method would be appropriate. How to show the mysterious and uniqueness of the seen and unseen I appreciated in our garden . . . in a new way. 

initial - oil on canvas

With my knowledge of jewellery making I realized that the method of fret-work I used in silver-smithing would be ideal for what I wanted. To remove rather than to add. To create the what-if of the design. To allow for movement through the creation of depth and shadows.

initial painting - oil on canvas

However, I wanted the work to be in metal and of a size approximating an A4 sheet. I knew I did not want to do the work by hand-saw. Asking around I learnt that I could have the work fabricated from metal, if I produced Vector files. What on earth was a Vector file?????

I started by drawing the designs I required for each basic human need, and then cutting the nine works out of paper, I then scanned the cut works into the computer, so I could use photo-shop to start the long process of manipulating the images.

 

Asking around I learnt that I needed Adobe Illustrator to make Vector files.  Attending a course in Illustrator at The Edge, in the State Library, I then routinely returned to the computer lab to spent months using you-tube and the assistance of helpful staff, to learn how to make Vector files from my drawings. In the process of making the files I learn I could attend an induction course to learn to use the laser cutting machine they had on the premises in their fabricating studio.


The Edge Fabrication lab

I applied, but for months the machine was fully booked. In desperation I rang the edge and was informed I could attend the Wednesday Bump-in session, where you can use the machine for thirty minutes. . . . enough for one design to be cut.

BEING, HAVING, DOING and INTERACTING

LEISURE

Attending weekly, I managed to cut three works from 4mm ply and instantly I knew they were what I wanted..

FREEDOM

But, suddenly I was well into 2018 and I was only just finishing my images to convert to Vector files, while the laser cutting was a weekly trial in patience. The possibility of finishing all nine images seemed impossible. . . however I kept examining our garden, reading about gardens and working on my images.

AFFECTION

I visited a fabricator to discuss having the Vector images laser cut from metal, however when they tried loading the files into their machine, they crashed the machine. My images were far too detailed and I needed them created with auto-cad, not illustrator . . . ahhhhh!!! Panic.

What to do?

Never give up.

While I tried to learn coral-draw and auto-cad, I worked on some of the other images to represent the nine fundamental humane needs. 

 

PARTICIPATION

Meanwhile, each week, on a Wednesday at the bump-in session at The Edge, I managed in thirty minute sessions to cut out another one or two laser cut images in 4mm ply. 

PROTECTION

With each cut I was starting to appreciate the 4mm ply. I liked the fragility, the weightlessness. The ephemeral quality of thin ply.

I started experimenting with painting and mono-printing the cut-outs. . . .  it had possibility.

All I needed to do was make and cut the remaining works.  All nine of them, when it had taken me three months to complete three . . . help!!!

UNDERSTANDING

2011 Drawing in Beijing

While Bri is away I am finding things to do . . . .
I decided to take myself off for Life Drawing classes, something I have not done for YEARS.
I emailed The Hutong and booked a session for myself and Brianna when she returns. My first class will start at 7.30pm.
I walked out of my apartment building not knowing which way I was going.
I stood on the side of the road with a copy of the address and hailed a taxi. At this point, the idea that a detailed map of Beijing would be a good idea, crossed my mind.
I was lucky to have a young man take sympathy and without a shared langue manage to explain to the driver where I wanted to go, and to have a driver who was honest, friendly and able to drop me close to the train station. Exiting the train, I found myself standing on the side of a major cross road, not knowing which way to go, until a nice young man took pity on me and without any verbal communication directed me to the hutong entry.

It is so very easy to get lost in the warrens that are the Hutongs

Being early I stopped at a cafe, Grandmas Kitchen, for apple pie and coffee. Yah!, not your usual Chinese fair, but something left over from the French, which I certainly appreciated .

Finally I arrive at the door for The Hutong cooking and art center. A place founded by creative Australians who live in Beijing. There were a dozen individuals all from varied backgrounds. There were easels, a generous supply of great paper, charcoal and a male model from Finland. (He looked awfully familiar, but as he was naked I was not about to ask if we had met before.)

After 90 minutes we had a break. Red wine and lots of talking.

Then I had to ask.

(He  had modeled at BIA in Brisbane? Was travelling the world.) 

We did several 3 minute warm up drawings, a few 5 minute ones and then some that were 15 minute poses. Half time through the second half we had a break and I managed to talk to people from South Africa, Sweden, Mongolia and said Hi, to the other people attending.


The time went all too quickly. 9.30pm arrived and I was just feeling like I was finding my stride.
Now I was filled with trepidation . . . it was dark and I had to find my way out of the maze.

Looking hesitant, yet again! a young girl took pity on me and offered to walk me back to the main street. (I am so very thankful to all the generous souls I have encountered during my stay. I would have been so lost without them)
Standing on the side of the main crossroad I was not sure which way I was meant to go . . . so my beautiful young companion hailed me a cab, told the driver my address and waved me goodbye. Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!

Arriving at my apartment complex, I did my nighttime shopping for water, fruit and bread, had an evening meal of pumpkin deep fried in egg white (like sweet chips with a crisp tempura coating), a mango smoothie . . . then made my way to my apartment.
It was a great introduction that confirmed my passion to draw. 

Once I reached my apartment I sat down and emailed to make further bookings. Will do some cooking classes and visit some markets and gardens.

Mixed media, layers and then booked

Friday evening as the group gathered to meet and share a glass of wine, ( a very favourite time of day for me ! ) we discussed what we would experiment with over the weekend. We had a show and tell and everyone decided that doing works of a set size, to be housed in a hand made book, would be an idea worth further exploration.

So Saturday morning the first order of the day was to let RIP . . . . . so that all our pages, or at least most of them, would be of a uniform size, to be assembled into our own hand made book.

Setting up in the shade, under the blue tarp on Saturday morning, (assembled competently by Mr Lee, of the perfectly barbecued eggs ) was the start of some fantastic exploration of mark making and layering. The process was addictive and the results were so varied.

I loved that each and everyone, from people who haven't done art, to those that practise on a regular basis, embraced the creative adventure with such enthusiasm.

Bitumen, shellac, tea, sand, gesso and acrylics were sploshed, sprayed, splattered and layed on the paper. Again and again . . . . . . and again !

Bummer ! By Saturday afternoon I had allowed an unknown BUG to invade my innards. It was adamant that I lie down and be very ill. ( No nothing to do with my food preparation !!)

Fortunately I had already asked a dear friend, to come and play with the press, so in the after noon Jennifer Hamilton, guided the group through the delightful process of Mono printing.

Out came the inks, rollers, Mylar and papers to press, squash and extract every ounce of impression that could be made from our found and collected objects.

Between my bouts of sleeping, I could hear the OHHHS! and AHHHHHHHHHHHS! all afternoon . . . if I had have had the least bit of strength I would have dragged myself downstairs to see what all the excitement was about. As it was I had to wait until Sunday morning to see the beautiful results.

Thank GOD for forward thinking. I had prepared the Saturday evening meal prior to feeling ill . . . . . . thankyou to Cameron who played a very good Mr MUM. . . . . with the help of some of the other guests, so that the evening meal was a success.

So, as I lay sick and sad, the delightful sounds of laughter coming from 11 individuals enjoying themselves, kept permeating through to my fog.

Not amused !

I didn't even get to eat my Tia Maria layered cheesecake ! Jennifer who had 3 servings said it was scrumptious. Thanks Jen !

Sunday morning I was past the worst of what ever had ailed me and surfaced to much sympathy ( thank you one and all ) so that we could try out various ways to embellish the work from the previous day.

With glazing, layering, collaging and further printing the pages were developing into a sound body of work, that was ready to be housed in the book that we constructed on Sunday afternoon.

We used the magnificent hand made Himalayan rice papers to cover the back and front of the covers. In went all these extremely creative pages. . .. . . what a sight.

A complete packaged treasure !

Sunday afternoon as we had our show and tell, I was conscious that this was our last workshop at the Rusty Roo for 2009.

Still feeling slightly precious, I thought that it was good that I would now have a break to relax a little and do some of my own work . . . . however, I was also thinking how much I relish the joy of sharing and the camaraderie that always developes over these weekends. . . . . Yes ! I will miss them.

So . . . . . thank you to everyone involved throughout 2009. It was a true Joy and a privilege to have your involvement, enthusiasm, laughter, excitement and creative juices at the Roo with us.

Best wishes, for a joyous Christmas and a truely happy and Creative NEW YEAR

Sharon & Cameron

Rusty Roo artist retreat

a place to let your soul breathe

www.rustyroo.com

Sublimely satisfying

ANOTHER DAY . . . . A considerable amount of the joy of creating, commences with the finding of Snake skins, leaves, bark, bugs, butterflies and beautiful foliage. Gathering ideas and being in the landscape, all contribute to yet another day full of marvellous 'small joys'.



We sat beside the dam soaking up the cool breeze and solitude. To have time to lie on our backs watching the sun, dazzling blue through the leaves . . . the water being a canvas to the reflections of mountains and sky . . . . all left us feeling like we had spent a luxuriously, languishing, relaxing and almost forgotton childhood LONG day.



"....This is the most delightful experience. Creativity and indulgence are just the tip of the iceberg here at the six day art retreat. I wanted to know how to express by love of nature and to have a breakthrough from my technical legal mindset into the world of the abstract.
The results are beyond my wildest imaginings. . . ." Felicity


Learning to let the process determine the art piece rather than force myself on the blank space has been a revelation. It is sublimely satisfying.