juxtaposing, arranging and rearranging


My work is getting there. Today I can see how all the things I have been pursuing over the last month (well really over years and years of art making) are seeking a resolution. The idea that sparked today from simply arranging and re-arranging yesterdays prints onto the mini canvases (little abstracts) is to push these further by creating a large tree collograph to fill 9 mini canvases. So, there is never a dull moment. Nothing is ever finished. It's always on the move.
Next step - tree cutting.


My aim is for these pieces to be natural, organic, earthy, rustic, and textural.  I am working towards a sustainable approach to these pieces but I admit it's tricky and takes time to source, organise and combine everything. So the next step is to purchase soy based printmaking ink. It is definitely time to shed the oil based inks from my studio and inevitably work with solar etching plates as-well.


Crude printmaking. I love this. Life is crude. Why aim for perfection when it does not exist? But can it ever be achieved? Perhaps for a second. Perfection is fleeting, always moving and always changing. Is perfection a state of mind?
The sphere that was meticulously created by applying dots to a plate with a steady hand initially contemplates how we order the world but when printed in this crude way it is inevitably revealing its true self - showing the imperfection of ORDER.

Beetroot, seedpods, and ink


Today in the studio: my first time printing in 6 months, rediscovering the borrowed old friend - the rusty etching press, inking up some new collographs, realising some ideas that have been whirling around in my head for years, in a snippet of time while my baby is sleeping, dying paper with beetroots, some 'crude' printmaking - bush printmaking at its best; rough, unconstrained and messy. All the opposite things you are supposedly meant to do when you are printmaking.


Embossed dots, particles, static sun, the smaller things and the big things in life come to mind like all the things we cannot see. I am always fascinated by space, stars, the sun and moon and how it all works out there in deep space from a scientific viewpoint.


Sphere. Sun. Star. A cosmic structure. Expanding galaxies. Decay.


'Little paper tree' embossed trees -  test pieces.

 Detail, 'Little Abstract' - seed pod collograph on beetroot dyed paper.


Dark matter. Growth.


Laying out the beetroot dyed test pieces to print.


Inking up the seed pod collograph...


'Little paper tree' collograph - test piece. 


 I absolutely love the texture of the printed canvas. A very exciting discovery.


Seed pods.


Abstracted seed pods - squares rearranged.

Patterns in N A T U R E


The beautiful orange flowers I picked from the old vine covering the fence.


Pebbles, Bricks and stones......


Organic beetroot from the farmers market.


Greens growing in the garden.


A circle of coral.


Mossy brick.


Recycled plastic flower.


Rainforest tree.


Light shinning through the leaves of a stag horn.


Tree stump.


Bower birds frolicking in the trees.
 

Vase arrangement with orange trumpet flowers.

Vintage Garden - research for 'Little Abstracts'


L I T T L E  A B S T R A C T S - short descriptions of the natural environment.


While I was walking today I spotted a V I N T A G E  R O S E peaking through a white picket fence. I couldn't resist teaching my son about the importance of literally stopping to smell the flowers.


V I N TA G E  F R A N G I P A N I S 
Beauty is everywhere in the old garden preserved by those who are aware of the importance of history. 


N A S T U R T I U M S and dappled light line the back lane.


V I N E S weave and twist their way through the fence.


I just love gardens that surprise. This winter the fence blossomed with gorgeous trumpet shaped O R A N G E flowers.

 
An old S T A G - H O R N displays its proud foliage.


Another V I N TA G E  F R A N G I P A N I reaches up to the blue sky and soaks in the precious winter sunlight.


L E A V E S  and S H A D O W S line the garden path.

Ode to Instagram


Little Abstract - 'E G G' - a short description of the natural environment - tucked neatly on a ledge next to the wall. I love art in unusual places.


'S L O W  F O O D' - bush dyed tea towel - by my mama and 'B I R D' etching by Little Paper Tree.


Little Abstract - 'L U N A' - the surface of this piece is not dissimilar to an inked up collograph plate.  
*New 'Little Abstracts' will be available for sale on my shop soon. Stay tuned and be quick as every piece even though part of a series or edition is always unique due to the nature of my practice.

make hay while the sunshines

 

Sunshine filled morning
storm rolling in


shellacking the seed pod collograph


under the poinciana tree 
the seed pods 
collected


sealing the dots
the wind picks up
birds frenetic energy


view from the studio
magnificent orange flowers 
adorn the old vine

as the red birds watches

happy day of play

drawing and painting with my left-hand and my right brain
looking out of the window of my studio and not looking at the page
taking a new direction 
kicking the muse  
freeing myself
from the constraints of order
the brain just wants to order everything
obsessively, and compulsively

found objects
old pastels collected over the last sixteen years
what a discovery
smelled like art school as I lifted the lid 
the memories flooding in

 
dots
crazy about dots and circles
texture paint
for over a year
finally the idea
was realised today
however humble
printed - a collograph of dots
 an artwork takes time to manifest
years and years

 circle interlude
(an in between changing from one work to the next)
a wise woman once explained to me
keep working on as many or more then 20 pieces 
move from each with a fresh eye

 A total breakthrough for me today
I'm in love with this piece
its vibrant and
free

Studio Play

 Little yellow abstracts - embossed vintage doily - charcoal - paint

The world map is fractured around the sun. 
 humble little yellow canvas.

 Today as the sky shifted from bursts of yellow light to blue then to grey clouds - the happy place of yesterday's yellow turned to the burnt umber of today's entropy. Covered, the sphere, the world of dislocated maps was lost for a split second under the layer of thick grimy, burnt umber paint. Reminiscent of the decay of the perfection aesthetic.
Looking for things to reclaim from old artists books (circa 2004). Otherwise they waste away in storage tubs.
 My table.

Little yellow studio

It is difficult not to be inspired by yellow in my yellow house and studio.


 Ripped maps
Works in progress - 'Little Abstracts'

I am making a new series of paper trees and old maps on canvas. These should be ready in the next few weeks.

New in progress in the studio are 'Little Abstracts' - available for purchase on my big cartel shop very soon. The idea is that 'small pieces of art' are part of simple and 'slow-living' and therefore easy to pack down if you move house a lot (like me!), affordable and can be arranged and rearranged in different ways. Small pieces can also create a larger piece of work by stacking.

The 1961 Readers Digest book found at a school fete. The maps are visually beautiful with mat paper and gorgeous colours.

 'Little abstracts'

Little Abstracts - Work in progress

Circles & Maps


Nature is a circle
That can be observed 
From a distance
Or up close.

Life ebbs and flows
As night turns into day
And the cycles of the seasons
Create a circle.

The beginning 
The same as the end.  


Around we go, expanding like the universe
Always changing and moving but somehow still.


The maps we once used to navigate
are now torn and lost in our concept of time.


Our idea of the self has changed.


Lusciousness within and surrounding the NEST.

Life is beautiful when there is a blood orange sunset changing to shades of violet in the backyard, a thunderstorm on the horizon, cool breeze, sleeping baby, clean floors, garden flowers arranged in a favourite vase, sweet aroma's wafting through the kitchen, rain on the tin roof, fresh herbs, magnificent trees shading the house and the list goes on when you live in and around the 'NEST'.




























 

A few of my favourite things

The last month has been pure chaos! From good creative chaos to randomness that has made my heart sing to complete exhaustion kind of chaos where you feel as if you just can't keep up with the demands of life. 

I'd like to share some random images from the last month or two that have tickled my heart amidst the chaos.


A peacock at the Wagga Wagga Botanic Garden zoo.


Lying on my back looking up at the trees.


The sign at Woodford Folk Festival.


The large choir of adults and kids who performed, 'from little things big things grow,' at the 2011 Woodford folk festival.


The luscious street performers at Woodford Folk Festival.


Hanging out the washing to this view every day in summer at my house.


My baby crawling to the Christmas tree within minutes of arriving at Poppa's house.


Lazy picnics at the park.







A few of my favourite things - Real Art Works Multi-Media Exhibition at the Lismore Regional Art Gallery, December 2011

 'We often don't see things as they are, we see them as we are.' Anais Nin

It's not very often you walk into an exhibition and find yourself totally taken back by the visual experience. Wow! What a fabulous show THIS IS NOT WHAT IT APPEARS by RealArtWorks is! This is the best exhibition I've seen this year! Brilliant like a sparkling diamond. It exemplifies the collaboration of many talented people.  

This diversely skilled group created a vision so cutting edge you feel as if you've walked into a gallery in New York! The hand cut shapes come alive as the projections are 'masked' to only fill the area of the uniquely designed screens.  

The installation is whimsically set out within the gallery space as the hand cut screens hang from the ceiling and some are presented on the wall as if they are luminous painted canvases cut in various shapes, circles, crosses, people, ghosts and letters.  

This is a funky exhibition don't miss out - go and check it out and tell me what you think. Post your comment here at Little Paper Tree.


 On NOW at The Lismore Regional Art Gallery, Molesworth Street.

 Opening night speeches.




Little Paper Tree now available at CRAFTED COLLECTABLES in Lismore.

Crafted Collectables is a 'new and fantastic interactive walk-thru mall/ gallery/ gift-store displaying the talents of ARTISTS, CREATORS and SUPPLIERS with their unique and engaging works of art, trinkets and curios for those in search of DIVERSE, INTRIGUING and HANDMADE TREASURES for ourselves, friends and loved ones.' (Kerri Porter - Owner and Director of Crafted Collectables)

Little Paper Tree is pleased to be a part of this new and exciting venture in Lismore. It's great because the artist can rent a space within the shop and the owner does not take commission. So essentially we can offer you affordable prices without the gallery commission included in our price.

We were so excited to hang our work in the recently renovated shop. Kerri has invested a lot of time and money into the new shop-fittings. She has numerous lockable glass cube cabinets, wooden shelves, clothes racks, card racks, a professional hanging system for the artwork and two tables for participating artisans to rent out and host workshops.



 'Dapple light' Intaglio and mixed media, 2011


Our little wall space, to the left of the handmade wooden chopping boards and the hand-carved ceramic pots and cacti.


'Little Paper Tree', Intaglio and mixed media, 2011

Sneak Peak - Crafted Collectables Little Paper Tree work on exhibit!! Opening tomorrow!

Well we have worked really hard to achieve this at such a busy time of the year, with baby in tow. We would love you to come on down and check out the new shop opening by Kerri Porter called CRAFTED COLLECTABLES - tomorrow in Lismore, 63 Woodlark street, at 6pm.

Little Paper Tree will be exhibiting intaglio and mixed media works on paper, all one - offs at affordable prices.
SNEAK PEAK
*laying out work ready to hang.