tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31322971270454730532024-03-05T07:56:44.857-08:00Nicole MurrayThoughts from the painting studio.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-18556707607706842152022-03-21T01:51:00.005-07:002022-03-21T01:51:56.209-07:00Washed away in the flood.<p> In a year full of historic events, Brisbane experienced a 'once in a century' flood event in February. Except we also had one eleven years ago.</p><p>My house was all safe in spite of 80% of our usual annual rainfall arriving in one week, and I was just about to breath a sigh of relief. Then I was notified that my art and document archive, located in a storage unit in inner Brisbane, was inundated, and closed until the water had gone down and it was safe to enter.</p><p>Two days later we were allowed in, and water had reached chest height in my unit. Many things were out of reach of the water, but more things had been drowned. The entire exhibition of art painted on books, which I showed at Toowong Library (there's a post about it with pictures further down the page), had to be thrown away. Lots of other works on paper had to go, but I'm doing my best to salvage The Fiddle Icons series, which are oil on board with gold leaf. They are in a muddy state of disrepair, but they seem stable, so I've started by working my way through the archive of family documents and photos. Many photos have been too badly damaged to save, and I'm deeply sad to see family history for the Murray, Fenwick, Mathiesen and Gilchrist families in Scotland, England, Denmark and North Queensland and Victoria, in ruins. </p><p>I'm scanning many things, and then disposing of many of them. Some are able to be saved. I've been doing this for two weeks now, and I can see an end somewhere in sight. There is a lot of grieving to be done while peeling apart all these papers. Thank you to many of my dear friends who helped with all sorts of things, from moral support to hefting wet things out of storage, to helping with logistics and acquiring a dehumidifier (one of the world's wonders).</p><p>At the moment, I'm not too proud to say all donations to my "donate" button will be gratefully received.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-80870663590562167002021-10-03T16:47:00.005-07:002021-10-03T16:56:07.975-07:00Lamb Island Storytelling Festival<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDl7I7gX4m_96rjbx_RyHQbapiJJfcqotgXChweC0UrHa5W3BXiwwuCenp_wp0HIHUj75EJ9llApbczhGLLA2isu46wd7WLDFrY_wTMa7krXVBoTfPd6C_PLBccIcL_A906Jn_k291xJo/s1368/Lamb+Island+view.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1026" data-original-width="1368" height="327" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDl7I7gX4m_96rjbx_RyHQbapiJJfcqotgXChweC0UrHa5W3BXiwwuCenp_wp0HIHUj75EJ9llApbczhGLLA2isu46wd7WLDFrY_wTMa7krXVBoTfPd6C_PLBccIcL_A906Jn_k291xJo/w436-h327/Lamb+Island+view.jpg" width="436" /></a></div><br />This weekend I am presenting at the Lamb Island Storytelling Festival as a songwriter, and talking about two or three songs I've written, under the trees at the community garden. My auspicious company for the session includes Joe Geia, Vicky MacDonald, John Willsteed and Esther Bertram. <a href="https://www.islandstorytellersfestival.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Check out the island and the festival here.</span></a> This afternoon at 1pm, the songwriting session is called "Words that change the World".<p></p><p>Here are the lyrics of two songs I'm singing and discussing in case you'd like to consider the words.</p><p style="break-before: page; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Leander, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="break-before: page; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Leander, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The Wooden Spoon</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">© Nicole Murray</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">The wooden spoon is in my fingers, it is dancing in the dough</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Creaming butter in with sugar, beating egg-whites into snow</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Folding milk and flour in turn, and fragrant tablespoon of liquor</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Lightly rising with my thoughts as little candles burn and flicker.</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">I'm the cook of all the ages, in my arms the mixing bowl</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Baking tray or double saucepan, raising up a banquet for your soul.</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">I make rituals to mark you rites of passage, spoon and knife</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Dancing as I place along the table all the courses of your life</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sweetest mother's milk I gave you, at the triumph of your birth</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Filled with magical protection, honouring your first day on this earth</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Every year a fine confection of a cake to mark that day</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Candles, sparkles, cats and spacemen,</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Princesses in sugar-spun array.</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Clashing bells and petals floating, wedding breakfast in the park</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Platters of sublime invention, sailing round your incandescent spark</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">When you slid the blessed knife through royal icing's counterpane</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Moistened depths of fruit lay open, all the ringing crystal bubbles sang</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">When your final course was served, the table's merry disarray</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Told of splendour and reknown, a wondrous life resumed into the clay</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">I was there to play my part, for smooth as marble sat the cake</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Clinking glasses, glowing stories, all the love that gathered at your wake.</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fruit cake, fruit cake, Christmas cake is fruit cake, wedding cake is fruit cake</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Nuts and cherries, rum or brandy,</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fruit cake, fruit cake, wrapped in paper new-baked,</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">Festive journeys we make to mark a grand occasion with a.....</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="break-before: page; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Leander, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Violet Sarah</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Leander, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;">© Nicole Murray</span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">We are travelling through a town this day and must have bread</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">And it’s where can I find a good baker in this town she said.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">When we have supplies on board we shall both thirsty be</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">And it’s where can I find a good alehouse in this town said she.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">On the Violet Sarah, Violet Sarah, beauty of the cut, jewel of the travelling waters.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">In the Beehive Tavern by the tow path on the right</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">We will sup on the finest of real ale pint by pint.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">In the Beehive Tavern there’s an ale called Dove’s Delight</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">And it tastes of the raspberries in summer, honey and sunlight.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Do you see that cloud-white swan with trailing cygnets three?</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">She comes asking for scraps at the galley, snapping viciously.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Don’t throw aught into the cut for cygnet or for duck,</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Nor to wash in the vile green water only brings bad luck.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Climbing through the hedgerow not a mile or two from Bath,</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">We go dancing along in the meadow all about the path.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Down the reedy bank unto the river’s shady brim,</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">We can hear that the Avon is calling us to come and swim</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Nancy, dearest Nancy, do not fall into the drink</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">As you’re painting the name on your vessel, toes upon the brink</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Don’t be so foul-tempered, dearest Nancy dripping wet</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">With a bruise like a blackberry and a mouthful of regrets</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">[Sitting in the bow we sing the Green Man song again,</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">And reprise it all afternoon, we sing hundreds of green men.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Don't break my green man, don't break my green man</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Don't break my plaster cast of him, I like him a lot.]</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-52656961781607760762019-05-10T21:52:00.000-07:002019-05-10T21:52:15.934-07:00Scenic Art - a big month at Queensland Theatre Every now and then a big, exciting job comes along.<br />
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In February I painted and finished the set for the world premiere production of <b><i>Hydra</i></b>. A new play by Sue Smith, tracing the story of Australian writers Charmian Clift and George Johnston in their ten year odyssey on the Greek island, <i>Hydra</i> required floor to ceiling plaster walls and a stone floor, with props and furniture. After working on every single surface on the set, I now feel capable of renovating a house!<br />
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Working closely with the building team, Pete, John, Alex, Jamie and Chris, and set designer Vilma Matilla, I created the floor panels first, then experimented with the plaster wall texture, doing final finishes in situ after bump in to make it all consistent.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-74843155048915248352015-08-02T07:56:00.001-07:002015-08-02T07:56:17.692-07:00The Art of the Book - on show at Toowong LibraryI have a new exhibition on show at the Toowong Library. The Art of the Book is a collection of my paintings on books and altered books. The works share an emphasis on narrative and as books, they come with an inherent connection to storytelling. Thematically, they are a microcosm of an actual library, because their subject matter varies wildly from politics to landscape, history and Dr Who.<br />
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Here are some images from the show. Please come along and see the works while they are at Toowong. The show runs until the end of August 2015.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLloO5lBA8F2VnM_1p4p2PR_GACmNP8YJH2ryrl8UCN2VJoaMoCcYUJowomR75uz4KZmhdNyTe1DloKDSEpAKLTpqQneo7qIdqMUauAIFhOFbJ_Y89-ujc6ujEzSGO1uyvfHTkagMh4fL/s1600/Horsey-banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLloO5lBA8F2VnM_1p4p2PR_GACmNP8YJH2ryrl8UCN2VJoaMoCcYUJowomR75uz4KZmhdNyTe1DloKDSEpAKLTpqQneo7qIdqMUauAIFhOFbJ_Y89-ujc6ujEzSGO1uyvfHTkagMh4fL/s640/Horsey-banner.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>Carousel.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;">
Acrylic paint on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Images
of circus and fairground recur in Nicole's work, the places where our
imaginations run wild and where our dreams live.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZOZ66VB_PSScnBsIwyiCvHQ_RmIxqzN9-Da410Kkt6JkyCqqafi4b0wjmUdWBUllXuvfQouTakomXfvlcOT4inEGIqnoOcn4OTXdQG1m41AjBPDSuUrkMGBu0zYfjFKEnfnDzEvbW9y1_/s1600/cloud-crown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZOZ66VB_PSScnBsIwyiCvHQ_RmIxqzN9-Da410Kkt6JkyCqqafi4b0wjmUdWBUllXuvfQouTakomXfvlcOT4inEGIqnoOcn4OTXdQG1m41AjBPDSuUrkMGBu0zYfjFKEnfnDzEvbW9y1_/s400/cloud-crown.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>The
Magical Cloud Crown.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;">
Collage, acrylic paint and metallic leaf on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">This
evocative occult image, with it's intimations of magic spells, comes
from a collection of occultism found in a remainders bookshop called
“Book Off”, in Tokyo.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgcEagE6B8DwsLzR0nzlyl5dBeSHme9wYKJgqvfhJb3zNGrCtPjG-MWdTreBittceGhyPXSEL1-BI_dlPY7NyOF8IghxrpsWarIACxBfJXvc9DCjUBIbyGvG2yg4uZOqBVfMT_gSoF4iEg/s1600/blink-pages.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgcEagE6B8DwsLzR0nzlyl5dBeSHme9wYKJgqvfhJb3zNGrCtPjG-MWdTreBittceGhyPXSEL1-BI_dlPY7NyOF8IghxrpsWarIACxBfJXvc9DCjUBIbyGvG2yg4uZOqBVfMT_gSoF4iEg/s320/blink-pages.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF1wAHQBXFNZVQmNg4GFYuatEf2WRTxmyW_03XNb1W3QFG34S57wpiaBolI87SnToz49Dur0pqwMEjEq19iKT3l1TlCXR18umrC-Ccxoj86MGSOFMp4iVzT1rX3cTRwvuVWZ6o3VZ8lwvL/s1600/angel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF1wAHQBXFNZVQmNg4GFYuatEf2WRTxmyW_03XNb1W3QFG34S57wpiaBolI87SnToz49Dur0pqwMEjEq19iKT3l1TlCXR18umrC-Ccxoj86MGSOFMp4iVzT1rX3cTRwvuVWZ6o3VZ8lwvL/s320/angel.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>Weeping
Angel. </b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;">Polymer
clay, collage and mixed media on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
are as culturally bound together in contemporary society by shared
televisual fictions as we once were by literature. Weeping Angel is
an expression of one of our most surprisingly resilient stories.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrY14GxPhSjZrpgKTu7E_wwGNHiv_y31Xmdft7rnxJp04QdH_cpWFzLRZklPIQF6lzy1zGB8foUt7Y6KKdsk-nvv5McWPDQxqrNMEaL5Tegj1qMkSmO65UX9yypZq-tu-In7p4Ef9CmTp0/s1600/weird-fish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrY14GxPhSjZrpgKTu7E_wwGNHiv_y31Xmdft7rnxJp04QdH_cpWFzLRZklPIQF6lzy1zGB8foUt7Y6KKdsk-nvv5McWPDQxqrNMEaL5Tegj1qMkSmO65UX9yypZq-tu-In7p4Ef9CmTp0/s400/weird-fish.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>Weird
Fish.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"> Shellac,
acrylics and oil paints on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
idea that water creatures might worship the moon came from Maleny
painter Peter Hudson. These water creatures evolved from pictures in
a mediaeval manuscript.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-N533e0YkQrr6_yhs771P8n-snQYYY0OZ2RrCdwpop_OrlJaPlGwi_dbrnWUxa3IM40334CTpriLt55DKL-aclYhnqn5VHaPOPvzlXanXIRhqquCnT53ZK8y7ML4qQiwcgsUwQx3hnqy/s1600/corbies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-N533e0YkQrr6_yhs771P8n-snQYYY0OZ2RrCdwpop_OrlJaPlGwi_dbrnWUxa3IM40334CTpriLt55DKL-aclYhnqn5VHaPOPvzlXanXIRhqquCnT53ZK8y7ML4qQiwcgsUwQx3hnqy/s400/corbies.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>Twa
Corbies.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"> Acrylic
paint and charcoal on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
ancient Scottish ballad, Twa Corbies, tells of two crows in a field,
surveying the abandoned body of a knight in a ditch, and deciding
which part to choose for dinner (his bonny blue e'en, or eyes) and
which part to line their nest with (his gowden hair).</span></span></div>
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</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAKy07cAIAURBIITNBsCs2Pwa9Owcbv3tEdWoHleP4jYNC0hhxvkGE7BdUYfDNPuoAGdAp_pXIjayEbgfs-vRiFRt-sQip_oxwI3ilH8XTzwe2g1RN0E17OUjDBB92MT4Xf1hXsDxg7a5y/s1600/Dragonflies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAKy07cAIAURBIITNBsCs2Pwa9Owcbv3tEdWoHleP4jYNC0hhxvkGE7BdUYfDNPuoAGdAp_pXIjayEbgfs-vRiFRt-sQip_oxwI3ilH8XTzwe2g1RN0E17OUjDBB92MT4Xf1hXsDxg7a5y/s400/Dragonflies.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>The
Dragonflies.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;">
Acrylic paint on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Some
artworks are a direct response to the book at hand, and the book's
original title sparked an exploration of winged cut-outs and the use
of book pages for paper art.</span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_PN2UEBJX04hOcyLgLu7R0OBy8koMiAUHNMdjp0cVL15PkTIcE_qboTN93p-dOvJPYwWrhKVWAaCe0LwKDFM9n-yE5xood43CsKthpDwBmvDn8MFtii7f6rS7vAI_gUlFdQjbYiAGSmqG/s1600/Gough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_PN2UEBJX04hOcyLgLu7R0OBy8koMiAUHNMdjp0cVL15PkTIcE_qboTN93p-dOvJPYwWrhKVWAaCe0LwKDFM9n-yE5xood43CsKthpDwBmvDn8MFtii7f6rS7vAI_gUlFdQjbYiAGSmqG/s400/Gough.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Leander, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><b>The
Whitlams.</b></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"> Collage
and acrylic paint on book. $200</span></span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Light, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
imagery of orthodox saints has been appropriated to depict two giants
of Australian social and political history.</span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-30168304560542528562014-11-30T20:01:00.002-08:002014-11-30T20:05:55.032-08:00On the fourth day of Christmas - four little paintings!I am delighted to be included in the Small Works show at Bosz Gallery, 4/9 Doggett Street, Fortitude Valley, for the Christmas season. The show is full of works up to 50cm x 40cm, and up to about $400, so if you are looking for an artwork for your special gift, here's a good place to start!<br />
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Christmas is a time of storytelling, and I have chosen works from my series of paintings on books to resonate with the idea of a time to think, reflect and imagine. Each work is framed and ready to hang, and is $400.<br />
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Please join me at the gallery on Friday 12 December for their Christmas party. There will be drinks, nibbles and art from 6pm. If you can't make it then, the gallery is open 10 - 6, Wed to Sun.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt7bh-k7EeLfqBfLKoHuPvIvDHdUYPoUSSHNi0v0gYTNJh9fOg_de-_Rm8GUmwLKAkHtrHMKjzdF9-EI7zPZVGg8az30oRDMNgGXaGEoMwGD_sa8Mv8uLoCoKb__86iT5OxuMy8FHXJVoC/s1600/The-Merry-go-round-in-the-Sea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt7bh-k7EeLfqBfLKoHuPvIvDHdUYPoUSSHNi0v0gYTNJh9fOg_de-_Rm8GUmwLKAkHtrHMKjzdF9-EI7zPZVGg8az30oRDMNgGXaGEoMwGD_sa8Mv8uLoCoKb__86iT5OxuMy8FHXJVoC/s1600/The-Merry-go-round-in-the-Sea.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
<i><b>The Merry-go-round in the Sea</b></i><br />
<i>Acrylic and charcoal on book substrate, 2014.</i><br />
<i>Named after the book by Randolf Stow, this is a work about childhood memories.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjECaIZXfKdoIR8VkUTe_dWoIfhBiEIvxKiNXCT7mAjDXCpDuuS9n04nttOzg-oc7Uxf_ZWvvdmsT3XEEtp8bmLDU6PMp92_-UBQbaGaQC6bt2HlJjQ6dPuLT6ntpMtHL6VezLoGajyDYNa/s1600/The-Peace-Cranes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjECaIZXfKdoIR8VkUTe_dWoIfhBiEIvxKiNXCT7mAjDXCpDuuS9n04nttOzg-oc7Uxf_ZWvvdmsT3XEEtp8bmLDU6PMp92_-UBQbaGaQC6bt2HlJjQ6dPuLT6ntpMtHL6VezLoGajyDYNa/s1600/The-Peace-Cranes.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
<i><b>The Peace Cranes</b></i><br />
<i>Charcoal, sculpted paper and shellac on book substrate, 2014.</i><br />
<i>Drawings of nests are embedded between the pages, and a flock of origami cranes fly across their folded world, made from a legal tome on land law. They live within yet outside of the human world.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMjI7x3ORUddkmXAS8_erYjmQfVrPkbBcjyySFrVJ87rDAgoCteKRW9Wq9FRS42WmExeFal-smV8W_9v54FKzZhREQt4Xq1eE8bACRAbDzQ3EF_CHK2eFNfW9Mb7d0v7nvPUpqzKFAB2lL/s1600/Matthew-Brady's-Lookout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMjI7x3ORUddkmXAS8_erYjmQfVrPkbBcjyySFrVJ87rDAgoCteKRW9Wq9FRS42WmExeFal-smV8W_9v54FKzZhREQt4Xq1eE8bACRAbDzQ3EF_CHK2eFNfW9Mb7d0v7nvPUpqzKFAB2lL/s1600/Matthew-Brady's-Lookout.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><b>Matthew Brady's Lookout.</b></i><br />
<i>Acrylic and collage on book substrate, 2014.</i><br />
<i>Matthew Brady was a notorious bushranger-pirate in Tasmania. He excaped from the horrors of Sarah Island in 1824, and spent the next two years robbing coaches and ships, until he was betrayed and hanged in 1826. This is the view from his lookout, where he had a clear sightline to the road and the river. </i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndchgHJnv5BO7QsSzieKjoIkf3ye6qX3k_VWI2gcpuxw_gW3vVcXTdqb_abhi0uJi88maZqLmCb6Zm-eOIqbJRPlz8xKPwoHjz_M0eurZDW4NQ7stxCZXcY6ToNzlFPIqYqYlPE42ml1B/s1600/Toy-Theatre-for-Melba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndchgHJnv5BO7QsSzieKjoIkf3ye6qX3k_VWI2gcpuxw_gW3vVcXTdqb_abhi0uJi88maZqLmCb6Zm-eOIqbJRPlz8xKPwoHjz_M0eurZDW4NQ7stxCZXcY6ToNzlFPIqYqYlPE42ml1B/s1600/Toy-Theatre-for-Melba.jpg" height="233" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><b>A Toy Theatre for Melba</b></i><br />
<i>Mixed media on book substrate, 2014</i><br />
<i>Fascinated with the world of the imagination created in Victorian toy theatres, I made one within a book, with curtains and proscenium arch made from aluminium flashing, and Melba upon the stage.</i><br />
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<i>The artworks have been framed in decorative box frames and are ready to hang.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TC20CTBGx9wTOmYk0GsCprOKXMWlPH4RTR9FEL5Fz2Dm9jgsHrgOxh3ORvtO1DE7W_892Zz44UjZE06a9b7_0MgwuHKceDnzu72dxUPZcFtEYLUG5V073TMOr2IrUCDKDzEhoI-82M5a/s1600/Toy-Theatre-for-Melba-framed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TC20CTBGx9wTOmYk0GsCprOKXMWlPH4RTR9FEL5Fz2Dm9jgsHrgOxh3ORvtO1DE7W_892Zz44UjZE06a9b7_0MgwuHKceDnzu72dxUPZcFtEYLUG5V073TMOr2IrUCDKDzEhoI-82M5a/s1600/Toy-Theatre-for-Melba-framed.jpg" height="148" width="200" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;"></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoVnP2LmSPbOqeZRQ3GFfEVb1nlhNvuLLXyIHonjyt4Fl8sz1t20Pe5gl7HYdCcTASJvmnl7nCi_Yjp0WOs0s6M3US7fAXOsj0Su9pgz17cfil7xIbinOMtH_kuUHuZNL4Acpxrn1Hlzi/s1600/Paper-Cranes-framed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoVnP2LmSPbOqeZRQ3GFfEVb1nlhNvuLLXyIHonjyt4Fl8sz1t20Pe5gl7HYdCcTASJvmnl7nCi_Yjp0WOs0s6M3US7fAXOsj0Su9pgz17cfil7xIbinOMtH_kuUHuZNL4Acpxrn1Hlzi/s1600/Paper-Cranes-framed.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGs7KRlUK96M_xznaklPGTrcG4Xmbb2UzlH_aywFrG2M-UVLA8r0LgO3qLZgGnRahbuNVw9DTUS1G4inJjuHKsinUUbVxHF0ut4O_3ui4aHowlZ4Ggn5mctanwbQqR7t7N0kCZIvF2qmz/s1600/Merrygoround-framed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGs7KRlUK96M_xznaklPGTrcG4Xmbb2UzlH_aywFrG2M-UVLA8r0LgO3qLZgGnRahbuNVw9DTUS1G4inJjuHKsinUUbVxHF0ut4O_3ui4aHowlZ4Ggn5mctanwbQqR7t7N0kCZIvF2qmz/s1600/Merrygoround-framed.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1yidClbNvLrWk-UPNwDvNNtIBMJbuJ6h7-KH8pOcP5mkeJ5TQLm1EspQdnmqybtIoYeA3r5oNMZ4eDmzSAp3TMuFuhnp9Ycs__MyPtVodC_hUsnMN4ERCY5apdHuW8mZ2xXuR_5EloucP/s1600/Matthew-Brady-framed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1yidClbNvLrWk-UPNwDvNNtIBMJbuJ6h7-KH8pOcP5mkeJ5TQLm1EspQdnmqybtIoYeA3r5oNMZ4eDmzSAp3TMuFuhnp9Ycs__MyPtVodC_hUsnMN4ERCY5apdHuW8mZ2xXuR_5EloucP/s1600/Matthew-Brady-framed.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a><br />
<i><br /></i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-41741771284952108792014-07-22T06:12:00.000-07:002014-07-22T06:12:11.203-07:00A New Studio and a New Collection of Work.With the launch of my Creative Art Services business this year, thanks to NEIS, I am combining my skills and providing music and art performances, tuition, fine art pieces and merch. My new workspace is in West End, a very stimulating part of Brisbane, and I'm developing an expressive collection of art pieces, working with books. Here is a series of images following the development of "Weird Fish", a piece based on a mediaeval illumination of the same name.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6D2tZ-0yTD8Z-E2DOD9_Fg9ODbPVNd0yoa7aIsP6uPW4Qtvw2hr2vAK5YdJBVwJONn7pdtSjy4K_TrbpP3QXjuPI_zRiUUDEln60ZsIyqYvnS_i2pJ6boVxEbR6rjw8Q3i23sgCFWPTu/s1600/Weird-Fish-early-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6D2tZ-0yTD8Z-E2DOD9_Fg9ODbPVNd0yoa7aIsP6uPW4Qtvw2hr2vAK5YdJBVwJONn7pdtSjy4K_TrbpP3QXjuPI_zRiUUDEln60ZsIyqYvnS_i2pJ6boVxEbR6rjw8Q3i23sgCFWPTu/s1600/Weird-Fish-early-1.jpg" height="250" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2sljDIR_7H3WPSZfseeFIvYD5bgjk72ttwzcuGGA2QG3lPGMHvGSjQcmA3n4LxIQpct3VOWFP8VK0bsDYjZyIrGUBhodSuKIiQdNmWCtUItHNjrNX7bAfe8kg9Y52Bfp6VtGWLcdDaS4N/s1600/Weird-Fish-early-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2sljDIR_7H3WPSZfseeFIvYD5bgjk72ttwzcuGGA2QG3lPGMHvGSjQcmA3n4LxIQpct3VOWFP8VK0bsDYjZyIrGUBhodSuKIiQdNmWCtUItHNjrNX7bAfe8kg9Y52Bfp6VtGWLcdDaS4N/s1600/Weird-Fish-early-2.jpg" height="257" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFsfhQq0E0Ce4xBFtIswz7VtpT9epOx2vCkNpg_54RRceYvts-VvhchyphenhyphenImIwRpU4JPb6uGMaDlZSkUf0oCVyDKxExDqnEFZRK-8LuQBkWF1L3Ix28szbb_9B0AxD9JKDtMVJbwfKllt2O/s1600/Weird+Fish+midway+sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFsfhQq0E0Ce4xBFtIswz7VtpT9epOx2vCkNpg_54RRceYvts-VvhchyphenhyphenImIwRpU4JPb6uGMaDlZSkUf0oCVyDKxExDqnEFZRK-8LuQBkWF1L3Ix28szbb_9B0AxD9JKDtMVJbwfKllt2O/s1600/Weird+Fish+midway+sm.jpg" height="250" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-61750487358749107462014-07-22T06:09:00.000-07:002014-07-22T06:09:04.484-07:00Fiddle Icons Show in Derry, 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie5W8VbpnTZcn3pQKEHW8eGIsbmg6ointvfYau73HyLOBxno-RLfBgOGIh8ssS1Dacwo98k5A7CiSuSze56Zzock8akjJ2n-SGlncAMlSm8qYGKchB12bYtc2ZgeKMnOSUVitApBOldrsp/s1600/Fiddle-Icons-banner-lscape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie5W8VbpnTZcn3pQKEHW8eGIsbmg6ointvfYau73HyLOBxno-RLfBgOGIh8ssS1Dacwo98k5A7CiSuSze56Zzock8akjJ2n-SGlncAMlSm8qYGKchB12bYtc2ZgeKMnOSUVitApBOldrsp/s1600/Fiddle-Icons-banner-lscape.jpg" height="202" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-45798668065470422962012-04-23T08:01:00.002-07:002012-05-07T08:35:56.325-07:00Fiddle Icons - latest news.Huge thanks to all the generous supporters who carried me to the target of $3000 to make my Fiddle Icons show in Northern Ireland possible. As you can see from the Pozible widget at the side of the blog, we went to 110%, a brilliant result.<br />
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The first use for the money is to pay for digital capture and reproduction of the images. The paintings are currently at Brisbane Digital Images, where the work is progressing apace. The meticulous Martin Barry is scanning the images and doing the colour corrections. As soon as they are ready, I will post the images on the blog, and email them to all my supporters so you can choose the image you would like as your reward. I will also have postcards made of them.<br />
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The fiddle players to choose from are, from left to right: Emma Nixon, Nancy Kerr, Natalie Haas, Alasdair Fraser, Martin Hayes, Dougie Maclean and Ado Barker.<br />
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Although I am currently on tour with <a href="http://www.cloudstreet.org/" target="_blank">Cloudstreet</a> in the UK, I am attempting to finish some watercolours of other fiddlers I have interviewed, to show alongside the major works at NAFCo.<br />
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The show will run for the duration of the <b>North Atlantic Fiddle Convention</b> in Derry, from 27 June to 1 July.<br />
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More news as it comes to hand!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-40709217159422711062012-04-06T15:12:00.003-07:002012-04-06T15:22:05.482-07:00Nancy Kerr as the Madonna of the Fiddle<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMk5Se3X1h7MtbIt79YVWyX4RVv51qThurIIVYU4UudH45w4Wu3FUMhJQ7ohcjPl6UX5jRAa828ecNc85WqPj9BQXWiElR68A8k-wXZvQPo02vZgZUqQ6zJEq_OdgwdXjc33izrkgCkSq/s1600/Nancy.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMk5Se3X1h7MtbIt79YVWyX4RVv51qThurIIVYU4UudH45w4Wu3FUMhJQ7ohcjPl6UX5jRAa828ecNc85WqPj9BQXWiElR68A8k-wXZvQPo02vZgZUqQ6zJEq_OdgwdXjc33izrkgCkSq/s400/Nancy.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728415227181228546" /></a><br />Here she is, the iconic Nancy Kerr, with the Southern Cross in her dress and the babes at her feet. Sunrise and foliage ideas courtesy of Claude Lorrain, but Nancy's beatific look is all her own doing!<div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-55976425942725117212012-03-25T21:49:00.004-07:002012-03-25T21:59:14.651-07:00Dougie Maclean portrait completed!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2nz4lk3VtigaCsVF1xzCAbn9DWnAZfqlwbZkxv0EVB8CvoyCgMQ4bIrvDtjs4nVwMY24UnOQJx_bboEupyHXOyXeGjua79xOn-aiMAU7yrAkYeqmCNBbfTJO9ekbPH0GGYeDpjejybr_Q/s1600/Dougie+Maclean+web.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 330px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2nz4lk3VtigaCsVF1xzCAbn9DWnAZfqlwbZkxv0EVB8CvoyCgMQ4bIrvDtjs4nVwMY24UnOQJx_bboEupyHXOyXeGjua79xOn-aiMAU7yrAkYeqmCNBbfTJO9ekbPH0GGYeDpjejybr_Q/s400/Dougie+Maclean+web.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5724065493168368706" /></a><br />Very excited to have just finished Dougie Maclean's portrait, down to the last glaze, the ribbon of his OBE and the celtic knotwork in the background.<br /><br />Dougie has played fiddle since his youth, but is best known as a singer, songwriter and guitarist with an intimate manner that reaches the hearts of his audience. When I interviewed him, he didn't bring a fiddle, but as he talked about playing and writing music on the fiddle, his hands naturally described the shape of fiddle playing with long-accustomed grace. He said he plays fiddle the way he sings, playing the airs of songs, and filling his playing with emotion.<br /><br />I have painted him in a characteristically relaxed and casual pose, but surrounded him with the trappings of formality which also characterise his life. And he is truly an air-fiddler.<div><br /></div><div>dougiemaclean.com</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-37571354842252675062012-03-21T18:23:00.005-07:002012-03-21T18:52:23.425-07:00Fiddles are closer to Ireland already.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQXaJ1SfmRn8oSvmMiHpz2FX__mURw40eK3OMocCwEY1INfRK1CTXLGZptt5qR1RCCgla0AcQeXHZ3Yvq-gw2OPpurNEH-AKtxu3AX8sXj6wJICgxp5LYOgSf7RUvy8NLI1kv9WZg3QYOH/s1600/Emma+Nixon+web.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 323px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQXaJ1SfmRn8oSvmMiHpz2FX__mURw40eK3OMocCwEY1INfRK1CTXLGZptt5qR1RCCgla0AcQeXHZ3Yvq-gw2OPpurNEH-AKtxu3AX8sXj6wJICgxp5LYOgSf7RUvy8NLI1kv9WZg3QYOH/s400/Emma+Nixon+web.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5722528111396338882" /></a><br />Huge thanks to the brilliant supporters who have already, after only a day, pledged financial support for my "art on tour" project! I have put the Pozible progress widget on the side of the blog, so its easy to keep track of how its going. This is so exciting! You can also go straight to my Pozible <a href="http://www.pozible.com/index.php/archive/index/5395/description/0/0">link</a>.<div><br /><div>And I'm currently working on three paintings simultaneously, having finished the portrait of Scottish fiddle pin-up girl Emma Nixon.</div><div><br /></div><div>Emma is the driving force behind the mass playing of Scottish fiddle music in Brisbane, Australia, having started the Brisbane Celtic Fiddle Club (brisbanecelticfiddleclub.com), and leading celtic ensembles in schools and at the Young Conservatorium. She is the recipient, with Chris Stone, of the 2012 National Folk Fellowship and they have just this week completed a new album of Scottish fiddle music from the collection of the National Library of Australia, which they will launch at the National Folk Festival in two weeks. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-807934600228258792012-03-19T20:26:00.006-07:002012-03-19T20:29:10.570-07:00Fiddles to Ireland!I'm in the middle of all the paintings, and I've got two weeks to finish them. It will happen! But to get them to Northern Ireland and put on the show, I need to raise some funds, so I'm starting a Pozible Crowdfunding project. That will go live in the next day or so, and here's what I'm saying on it:<div><br /></div><div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 20.0px 0.0px; font: 24.0px Arial; color: #268a93"><b>Fiddles to Ireland!</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 20.0px 0.0px; font: 24.0px Arial; color: #268a93"><b>by Nicole Murray</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">Pledge your support to take Australian paintings on tour to Northern Ireland.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 20.0px 0.0px; font: 24.0px Arial; color: #268a93"><b>Project Description</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">The Fiddle Icons Project.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I'm an Australian painter, raising funds to take my portraits of fiddle players to the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention in Derry, Northern Ireland. The show is called "Fiddle Icons" and the portraits are of influential fiddle players I have interviewed and painted. The subjects include Alasdair Fraser, Natalie Haas, Nancy Kerr, Martin Hayes, Emma Nixon, Dougie Maclean and Ado Barker.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I decided to dream big and apply to have an international exhibition, and now they've said yes, I need to make it happen!</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I've been accepted to show them at the convention, I'm presenting a talk on my intriguing process of working from video interviews to create paintings, finished with gold leaf. I have a ticket to the UK.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">Now I need a budget to get the paintings there, insure them, stay in Northern Ireland for the conference week. </p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">You can help to put on this international exhibition in Derry by pledging your support through Pozible. I'm focussed on raising $3300 to cover packaging and shipping the paintings, insuring them, and covering my accommodation and living expenses while I'm in Ireland for a week.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I'm planning a major exhibition of these works along with more from the same series here in Australia, so I'll bring them back to Australia.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 20.0px 0.0px; font: 24.0px Arial; color: #268a93"><b>About the Artist</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I have been a painter all my life, and my work has often focussed on portraits of musicians. My first solo exhibition was called "The People of the Music" and showed drawings and paintings of folk musicians from around Australia. I completed my art training in Melbourne and my paintings are in collections around Australia and in the UK.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">For the past twelve years I have worked in the acclaimed folk duo, "Cloudstreet", touring Australia and internationally. We have just completed our seventh album, "The Land of Bright Gold", and we embark on our seventh tour of the UK in mid-April. The Fiddle Icons paintings will be shipped to meet me in Northern Ireland at the end of the Cloudstreet tour, when I will be attending the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention, as a painter (but I'll take a fiddle!).</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>More information.</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>You can buy the reward as a gift.</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">After you have paid, please email me at nicole@cloudstreet.org and let me know the name and email of the person you would like to receive the reward.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>When and where is the show?</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">Dates: 27 June - 1 July </p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">Where: At NAFCo, the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention, Derry, Northern Ireland. (www.nafco2012.com). I'll update the info on my blog and website as soon as the venue is confirmed. (nicolemurrayartblog.blogspot.com, www.cloudstreet.org)</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>How will I get my reward?</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I will contact everyone about their reward, once project has closed and payment has been received. </p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>Need further information?</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">I would love to hear from you to discuss any of your queries. You can email me at nicole@cloudstreet.org.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>Yes, we can exceed the goal!</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'">$3,300 is the absolute minimum to make the exhibition happen in Derry. I am already investing a lot of resources and funds into the production of the works and the staging of the exhibition. Every extra dollar raised above the goal will go towards making this exhibition the best it can possibly be, with better promotion and high quality presentation.</p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'; min-height: 15.0px"><b></b><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>Thank you for taking the time to read my page! Please support my project by making a pledge, no matter how small the amount. Every bit helps. I would also really appreciate you letting your friends know about the project. I'll be blogging and facebooking updates so you know how its all going.</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>Cheers,</b></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Lucida Grande'"><b>Nicole</b></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-2837375741124348102011-11-01T19:22:00.000-07:002011-11-01T19:49:04.640-07:00Fiddle Icons<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmMSftF4tDMDUOuaiVrmxGHv4jmqvzO3SuaCHqTXNye6PfMCn7VmVIYZq10GsBjmPJOCIGftlTDTnmO71CmQPRQNNImR9tHbFRAu9ecQKPYVI2m-K2BLWHcYgJBSKphki5g3Zm6h7kimr/s1600/St-Alasdair.gif" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 323px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmMSftF4tDMDUOuaiVrmxGHv4jmqvzO3SuaCHqTXNye6PfMCn7VmVIYZq10GsBjmPJOCIGftlTDTnmO71CmQPRQNNImR9tHbFRAu9ecQKPYVI2m-K2BLWHcYgJBSKphki5g3Zm6h7kimr/s400/St-Alasdair.gif" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670223914572195938" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>In the middle of working on a new morris dancing painting, I went to New Zealand to attend Boxwood, a week-long workshop studying flute and fiddle, with three acclaimed teachers, Chris Norman, Alasdair Fraser, and Natalie Haas.</div><div><br /></div><div>A concept for a show which had been simmering in my mind suddenly achieved clarity, and I have started a body of work called "Fiddle Icons". The works I am planning will be portraits of influential fiddle players and their instruments, borrowing some of the iconography of traditional Byzantine icon painting, which is mostly used for religious images. It has the advantage of being a beautiful form, features gold leaf, and conveys a sense of the subject being revered.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Fiddle Icons series has been gestating for a long time. Its seven years since I met Peter Murphy, who paints icons in egg tempera and gold leaf. I fortuitously met him in Broadstairs, Kent, and got to spend time in his studio. The ideas in his work made such a strong impact on me, I have been keeping a little flame alive all that time, wanting to borrow some of the techniques. You can see his beautiful work here: www.petermurphyicons.co.uk</div><div><br /></div><div>In that seven years I have also started to play the fiddle, and I wanted to revisit an older body of work when I was painting portraits of folk musicians.</div><div><br /></div><div>At Boxwood, the concept and the process all gelled. In order to make an expressive portrait, I am interviewing my subject on video. I ask them two questions. "What gives you joy in your music?" and "Tell me about your instrument." I have conducted four interviews so far, and the emerging theme is that people become poetic and philosophical in a fascinating way when finding an answer to these questions. And it shows in their expressions.</div><div><br /></div><div>I then parse through the video and select individual frames which seem to express my subject's personality. I'm seeking the essence of who they are as a musician, rather than a candid image.</div><div><br /></div><div>From there, I create a portrait. So far I have done a small work of Alasdair Fraser, my first interview subject, in gouache on paper. It is a study. The final portrait will be in oils, I think at the moment, on board, with gold leaf. I may experiment with egg tempera, as the results look spectacular, but I would have to learn a lot about the medium.</div><div><br /></div><div>The second part of the project is to paint the instrument. It may be a full painting of my subject's instrument, or it may be a detail of the part they talk about or favour in their interview. The instrument will be on a separate panel, hinged to the portrait.</div><div><br /></div><div>The third part of the project will be to transcribe the interview, and select quotes which inform the viewer about the musician's philosophy.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(0, 153, 51); line-height: 15px; font-family:arial, sans-serif;font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:14px;"><br /></span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-89896211940215422912011-11-01T19:14:00.000-07:002011-11-01T19:21:48.623-07:00A Year Without PaintingIts been a year of huge events. I spent much of the time for six months going back and forward to Townsville, spending time with my mother in the last days of her life. It was a profound goodbye, full of grace and beauty, longing and grief.<div><br /></div><div>In that year without painting, I also toured with cloudstreet to the UK and New Zealand, as well as several Australian tours, and we moved house from Maleny to Brisbane.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now the seismic changes are settling, and I'm in my new studio, about to start on an exciting new project.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-88770818739960559802010-08-13T11:53:00.000-07:002010-08-13T12:01:50.231-07:00Finished! The Schonell Fig.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY9fgs19v5tg-Z6ne1V8eUsnCbzQWLlltrBHrYwEhqggWWINLKqRxswDHn1_sI99qsTz5rC2T4BFgvbH4T1QqtuAk4KneQgulBVMbG4XAJ5q-q6oqIsD9f0Q8v7nzectwhCICOb1_XOIi_/s1600/TheSchonellFigweb.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 158px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY9fgs19v5tg-Z6ne1V8eUsnCbzQWLlltrBHrYwEhqggWWINLKqRxswDHn1_sI99qsTz5rC2T4BFgvbH4T1QqtuAk4KneQgulBVMbG4XAJ5q-q6oqIsD9f0Q8v7nzectwhCICOb1_XOIi_/s320/TheSchonellFigweb.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504970566664573826" /></a><br />Sculpted, muscular, complex and graceful, all descriptions of my newly finished painting, now safely with its new owners. "The Schonell Fig" is named for the bridge it stands beside, on the banks of the Brisbane River. And with that commission happily completed, I have gone to England to be a touring musician for three months. I wonder if I can get any small paintings done while we're on the road?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-81976506735964887892010-07-22T20:51:00.000-07:002010-07-22T21:11:58.040-07:00A temporary studio and a big painting.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif4RAn0GjE418-Opb0eJ_yB53LVt-RoaCxUnAzIGdNovCXLw0vbhysc0sz_8Wx3YWiGXS02uoUYyWcpOO6eFOkjmgv6uNmzp9ghOluC_ESkZdTCY5DZcZoXeh83cindXfqI0TW91QsSfSf/s1600/Mark's+fig+sepia+web.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif4RAn0GjE418-Opb0eJ_yB53LVt-RoaCxUnAzIGdNovCXLw0vbhysc0sz_8Wx3YWiGXS02uoUYyWcpOO6eFOkjmgv6uNmzp9ghOluC_ESkZdTCY5DZcZoXeh83cindXfqI0TW91QsSfSf/s320/Mark's+fig+sepia+web.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496949194366671826" /></a><br />Its been a challenging year for painting. My studio in Maleny was sold (along with the building it was hiding behind) and when I finally got there after a tour to clear out my gear, I discovered everything, especially my paintings, had gone mouldy. <div><br /></div><div>This month there have been some heartening developments. First, my friend Peter lent me part of his garage in which to work, and it has great light. Then, I decided to do a 3-night portrait class with Brett Lethbridge in Brisbane. Its always inspiring to work with an accomplished painter and learn about their techniques. The technique Brett taught involved a tone painting in sepia to work out all the compositional and tonal issues. I would call it a grisaille, but Wikipedia says its more properly a brunaille, as it started in acrylic Burnt Sienna. Once all the lights and darks had reached their full value, we worked it over again using Burnt Umber. And a third time using Payne's Grey. By this stage the blacks looked truly black and the subtlety was there. Then, as we were working on Arches paper, we washed it liberally with watercolours, then worked the lights back in delicately with acrylic white.</div><div><br /></div><div>The technique was disciplined and involved good observation as well as graphics techniques. I liked it and it freed up my thinking to tackle a large commission I've had on the list for a long time, and about which I've been very blocked.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm delighted to say its going very well, the technique translates beautifully to acrylic on canvas in a slightly more painterly style, and here is a picture of the tone painting after 13 hours of work. There is still a bit of work left to finish the Burnt Sienna layer, but its moving fast. The canvas is slightly more than a metre wide.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-581754065867051172009-12-07T19:14:00.001-08:002009-12-07T19:31:02.646-08:00Back on the Painting Trail<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXkfrNtTl8fKq2Mt8cm1Sk8hWxWOPtegexqzRy5Y6o05XAmhKQEYnngF_KdcDoE3rE68w7yiBTFu4FkS4iMf7_2FeTMfCPVsDoBd7b4sjKhf0sqLMe4YKedpLbMphQiDT-bhfFTQUfTpAq/s1600-h/Summer+Visitor+sml.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 317px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXkfrNtTl8fKq2Mt8cm1Sk8hWxWOPtegexqzRy5Y6o05XAmhKQEYnngF_KdcDoE3rE68w7yiBTFu4FkS4iMf7_2FeTMfCPVsDoBd7b4sjKhf0sqLMe4YKedpLbMphQiDT-bhfFTQUfTpAq/s320/Summer+Visitor+sml.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412699790011484866" /></a><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238);"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span">In the midst of painting two commissions, which is taking up most of my studio time, the final Collaboration of Maleny Artists (yup, COMA) show for the year suddenly appeared on the radar.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline; "><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Organiser and gallery owner Ken Munsie devised a fascinating theme for this show. Each artist has been allotted a square of the ordnance map around the Maleny area, and asked to create a square artwork based on the little piece of geography. I picked a square adjoining the main road from Landsborough into town, and went to the site for an afternoon of sketching the layout, checking out the landscape and vegetation, and taking copious reference photos. Back in the studio, I created "The Summer Visitor" from all the collected information, working quickly in acrylics, overlaying areas of glazed and layered colours. When the image had come together, I varnished it with a high gloss combination of stand oil, damar varnish and Liquin. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span">The show can be seen from Wednesday 9 December at Maleny Artworks, 50 Maple Street, Maleny, and there is an official opening there on Saturday afternoon.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-6367353691997743412009-10-08T18:36:00.000-07:002009-10-08T19:07:06.125-07:00Publicity, Photos and Markets!My work on the traffic signal box at Maroochydore is featured this weekend in Sunshine Coast magazine "The Weekender". For everyone who doesn't live on the coast (sigh), the article can be found at http://www.theweekender.com.au/features_det.php?id=337, but only those who can get a hard copy can see the picture! There's an image of the box in the June entry on this blog.<div><br /></div><div>This week I asked professional photographer Colin Beard to take photos of some of my paintings, and now there are some very high resolution images on my Redbubble page. Redbubble is an Australian site where you can order prints, cards and canvasses of artists' work, and you can see mine at www.redbubble.com/people/nicolemurray. If you do get a print done on Redbubble, I'm happy to sign it if we can find a way to be in real time and space together, not just in the virtual world.</div><div><br /></div><div>AND... this weekend I am starting a market stall, where I am selling cards of my paintings. I'm starting small, to test out the market, and looking forward to having a chat to people about art. Or anything! The stall will be at the Maleny Craft Markets, in the Community Centre in Maleny's main street, on Sunday 11 October from 8-2. See you there.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-88699766893130176122009-09-28T05:41:00.000-07:002009-09-28T05:49:13.773-07:00Sold!I'm delighted to report that "The Quiet Heart" sold before the exhibition opened! The show at Maleny Artworks closes on Wednesday 1 October, and "To the Island", pictured in the previous post below, is still available.<div><br /></div><div>Reinvigorated by being in a show and selling a painting, I am now working on a commission for a fig painting in oils, and planning my next body of work. As well as continuing with paintings of banyan figs, and probably expanding to mangroves so I can incorporate more water in the images, I plan to revisit my studies of movement and reflection in water (started in 2007), and begin a whole new series based on circus, burlesque and acrobatic performers. I have preparatory drawings for this series dating back to 1987! I'm longing to paint luscious fabrics and lithe, sexy movement, and looking forward to using the figure again. I plan to start with a series of drawings to explore composition for larger paintings, and develop the drawings into a collection of handcoloured prints. Watch this space!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-19248965458219353362009-08-26T18:17:00.000-07:002009-08-26T18:47:28.929-07:00New Works on Show!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Zym3bv43pMsPZhFQ4_ma6VdM5Xws5z35czKeYKC29G7weuz0vSuGwNoY_SHPiXs0s-ddk2j1Y9zr_-KujGitBbxth9Pcflo1vVKeuXQdTfo2wsKBzLUSBhQu4Tm7S2D5RMrSXW1ouwtl/s1600-h/To+The+Island.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 317px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Zym3bv43pMsPZhFQ4_ma6VdM5Xws5z35czKeYKC29G7weuz0vSuGwNoY_SHPiXs0s-ddk2j1Y9zr_-KujGitBbxth9Pcflo1vVKeuXQdTfo2wsKBzLUSBhQu4Tm7S2D5RMrSXW1ouwtl/s320/To+The+Island.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374449438006850178" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">To the Island (The Strand)</span>, 2009, acrylic on canvas, 90cm x 90cm, $1100<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_oVCWjJDZIWHP7uILcKbiRzYEpcwJF9pY8eWkMm6y4-JkUilTBouJDA1_JvQvRV5Tnhc2mFXptJN7Gew2RyYhgahpRk7EsZNecvLyBp2hQc6BWvbK-dzxpHV4eruuh9ZJdeULNm8Q7XDA/s1600-h/The+Quiet+Heart.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 317px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_oVCWjJDZIWHP7uILcKbiRzYEpcwJF9pY8eWkMm6y4-JkUilTBouJDA1_JvQvRV5Tnhc2mFXptJN7Gew2RyYhgahpRk7EsZNecvLyBp2hQc6BWvbK-dzxpHV4eruuh9ZJdeULNm8Q7XDA/s320/The+Quiet+Heart.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374449427515829906" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">The Quiet Heart (The Strand),</span> 2009, acrylic on canvas, 90cm x 90cm, $1100.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><div style="text-align: left;">I have been invited to be part of a show at Maleny Artworks, which opens this Saturday. The theme of the show is Trees, Trees, Trees. I've painted two large new works for the show, based on images from the Strand in Townsville. They are more complete workings of the images I used on my traffic signal box. I've been particularly interested in the fall and reflection of light on the sculptural trees to model their shape, and the contrast between the power, strength and complexity of the tree with the serenity of the sea and island in the distance.<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I've had some of this series of paintings on the wall at home for periods of time, and I find them utterly meditative; my eye travels around the tree constantly, and into the distance, mentally climbing in amongst the branches and roots and out of everyday life.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I'm beginning to look at ways to license my tree images for reproduction, and I have created a series of cards of them, some of which will be available at Maleny Artworks. I've also stocked them at the Maple Street Co-op, in Maleny.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Now the major work for the exhibition is done, I'm already starting my next commission.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Trees, Trees, Trees</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"> at Maleny Artworks, 50 Maple Street, Maleny, Q, 4552. Gallery is upstairs, open Wed - Sun, 10 -4. 07 5429 6566, or 0488 364 476. www.malenyartworks.com and http://malenyart.blogspot.com</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-70523740117608376192009-08-03T05:34:00.000-07:002009-08-03T05:51:57.769-07:00Painting in Townsville.Townsville has so much visual interest, I could paint full time here. I've been here since Saturday, and so far have done two sketches, one small canvas in acrylics and one small triptych on canvas paper. Chris and I have been cruising round looking for good things to paint, and we drew one of the big banyan figs on the Strand, then moved down to Anzac Park, where I painted a scene involving trees and the band rotunda, while he did another beautiful pen drawing of part of a banyan.<br /><br />This morning I was out by 7am, knowing the early light would be good. I didn't take best advantage of the light, as I think it takes a few days to line up subjects that want the light, and I haven't. But I have been fascinated by the panoramic view of Mt Stuart from Bowen Bridge Road for some time, and drove down there. I set up three sheets of canvas paper on the bike path, put some water in my bucket and paint on my palette, and painted for about an hour or a little more, getting a good colour sketch of the anatomy of the mountain with mangroves in the foreground.<br /><br />Tomorrow we are going to Magnetic Island, and I hope for sunshine, as I want to sketch and photograph the banyans on the beach at Horseshoe Bay, for a new commission. My client particularly wants the amazingly light reflections from the sand, which give the tree a luminous quality.<br /><br />I forgot to bring togs, so if its warm enough, which it probably will be unless the wind picks up, I will have to swim in my sarong. Looking forward to relaxing and drawing.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-7251643184195809452009-07-24T03:31:00.000-07:002009-07-24T03:35:19.990-07:00Art TeachingIn the last nine days I have done no painting of my own, but assisted many people in years 9, 10 and 11 at Maroochydore High to finish their paintings.<br /><br />They were using ordinary Chromacryl paints but I was twitching to get my brushes into them, they looked like so much fun.<br /><br />They have no idea what a clean sink should look like.<br /><br />Today I ran three lessons on the theory of Cubism, and having a good look at applied theory again really inspired me. Art is such a pursuit of the intellect twined with the heart, it saddens me that so many kids regard it as a "bludge subject", because all their other subjects require them to live only in their heads.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-21834392760568225402009-06-28T04:13:00.000-07:002009-06-28T04:28:10.263-07:00Traffic Signal Box and New Figs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs093.snc1/5131_1162023565304_1069261973_488256_644552_n.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 453px; height: 604px;" src="http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs093.snc1/5131_1162023565304_1069261973_488256_644552_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs087.snc1/4913_97652178769_557053769_1956148_4297958_n.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 567px; height: 425px;" src="http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs087.snc1/4913_97652178769_557053769_1956148_4297958_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Here are some images of the new traffic signal box which I painted at the corner of Duporth Avenue and Beach Road, Maroochydore.<div><br /></div><div>And the new canvasses I'm working on in the studio.</div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3132297127045473053.post-68513650540622265962009-06-25T18:07:00.001-07:002009-06-25T18:13:05.924-07:00New PaintingsAt last I'm back in the studio and working fast with a technique I've developed, which requires me to concentrate on not being too precious or fiddly.<br /><br />I painted my Traffic Signal Box at Maroochydore last week, and it helps to hone this sort of speedy brushwork when you're out in the weather with the running commentary of the passing motorists. I had quite a few encouraging remarks, and a few lewd suggestions about what to paint.<br /><br />Bringing this technique back into the studio I realized how very easy it is to procrastinate when I'm in a quiet space with no passing traffic. And i've been fighting that urge and working fast.<br /><br />Saw Tom Roberts' war artist paintings at Easter in the War Memorial in Canberra, and was very taken by his broad brush layout of the scene, then working up ever-finer detail of the part he wants you to look at. Applying that to these new paintings as much as I can.<br /><img src="webkit-fake-url://1A4A5A45-6061-4ABA-AA21-DFE5B1D68E9D/image.pict" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com