Hey TIM.G (NC) - Just for you....

This is what they look like when not covered by ones shadow when one is lying down in the grass to photograph them...

just to show they do not only exist in books!!! GRIN!

Painting on Location - the church toadstools

In the last two days the most beautiful toadstools have started to come up under the oaks at the church. Went a bit camera happy and took around a hundred snaps - mostly all usable which I am thrilled with. Darn the printer being broken!!!

Went over again at 8am this morning and sat down to paint on of the emerging ones on a canvas that I had done the background on back in January. I was interested to see how the colours would go with the red of the toadstool on the deep pink base. Really pleased with the result. Subject is painted in oils.

(Vermillion, yellow, titanium, black, browns and a touch of pthalo blue and green.)

A day is always better somehow when one is able to paint.

The other news is I have been approved to apply for a loan/funding for the first year of art school (foundation year (PT)of a diploma in art and creativity).

experiments with texture

Monday I watched a demo from a floral artist who had covered a fishing bouy with flax seed in order to use it as a container. It looked stunning so duely went out on a flax seed collection trip (across the road) and came back with a pitiful amount of the most georgous shiny black flax seeds. Not enough for a container so used then on the edges of a small canvas instead.

Reminiscent of the top edge of a Korowai.

Bim's Snapper

Today Bim collected me and we headed up North to take photos for the Orca painting and also to do a spot of fishing. Above photo is of the snapper he caught at a magical place where we stood on the wharf and watched as 3 BIG Kingfish herded a huge school of pipers and then went into a feeding frenzy. The biggest one hid in the shadows of the old wooden posts and would burst out on the unsuspecting fish as they swam past. Easily 3 ft long at the least. Bim was telling me about seeing the Orca herding stingrays up the harbour and hunting them in packs. New Zealand is the most amazing place!
Had to take a photo of the snapper because i want to paint it but if the innards are left in they will taint the flesh and have no energy to paint it tonight. Peter kindly held the dorsal fin (I think that is what it is called) upright for the photo so it looks like it is swimming. Yay for him and yay for photoshop! So snapper for tea tonight and good subject for painting in the morning. A thoroughly enjoyable day.

POST NOTE: 18 APRIL Have begun doing memory postcards of images i see that really stick in my mind and need to be painted out so the black Angus cattle on the lime green kaykouya grass (sp) and the schooling pipefish have been done over the last week. Still have not painted the snapper - my printer is playing up and refuses to print anything.

Anyway...here's the pipefish both underway and the completed image (I ended up doing 7 postcards of this altogether - one for myself, one for Bim, 1 to post and 4 to frame up and hopefully sell)(LOVE the movement and the patterning in the images)

and also the Angus series.

Kathy and her Mahi

One of my friends is a very talanted worker in glass and this evening was the powhiri and exhibition opening. I have watched her working on her panels that she sketches out then cuts and fired the hand made glass sheets before painting and etching them and refiring them and finally placing and leadlighting them. Her work is just amazing.She had four works in the current exhibition along with several other top Maori women artists from the region (weavers, sculpters and korowai makers).

Datura in Oils

Occasionally one has for no apparent reason more 'spoons' than other days (I will explain this some other time) today has been such a one. Wish I knew the 'key'. I dropped off my packing stuff to Sandy early this morning and noticed a rather large Datura tree in her garden with the most unusual coloured trumpets (kind of a cross between peach and salmon). So she kindly gave me some to bring home and paint. Thought they would be a watercolour as they were so delicate but have ended up using my last canvas and the new oil paints and am thrilled with the result. Had to work quite fast as the flowers drooped and wilted quickly. Am hoping that will get roots on the cutting and be able to plant in in the garden.

Photos show the stages of painting as well as the size of the actual flower (as big almost as Opal the cat). Quite spectacular!

Underpainted first in Seinna

then blocked in the negative spaces with Pthalo blue and green (have just learned about negative spaces).
I found the background 'not right' after completing the flower, so overpainted it with vermillion, sienna and pthalo blue.
The peach shadings are titanium white, vermillion and pthalo blue.There ended up being too much vermillion in the top half so toned it down a bit and now is drying a lovely deep reddish brownish colour. Will have to remove the flying insects another day!

Handmade paper experiments and disappointment

Hooray - yesterday did some work on the paua using some of the handmade paper from IHC - it's really weird to work with as it responds kind of a little like blotting paper and I had to weight it down afterwards as it was buckling but the results are very soft and pleasing.

Today I've done a nice mixed waterbased 'sketch' of one of the felicia flowers from the garden. On this sheet you can clearly see the kauri sawdust that the IHC mix in with their paper pulp. I love the colours of the Felicia and the curvey stems - noticed my plant has heaps of blue butterfly eggs on it so they should be really pretty when they hatch. Seems very late in the season!

Disappointed I will not be able to make the trip down to pack up my art tommorrow. Not able to sit for the car ride down and back. Feel sorry for Snady who now is packing in down on her own!

Commission Work-experimenting with human hair

Have discovered an amazing thing. I needed some form of fine resist for the paua commissions and plastic would have left too heavy an indentation. I thought of using salt again but the last time I used salt after a year the residue started kinda 'growing' on the paper which wa not great. On the spur of the moment decided to try my own hair (it's falling out at the moment anyway) as a form of resist and I am SO pleased with the resulting fine tracery on the surface of the work. Thought it would be a good idea to note it down so I can remember to do it again.

Some M.E. Insite and Inspiration for the next 'project'

I amINSPIRED and so glad about that because it has given me something to focus on and take my mind off this crippling pain.

Something I just learned from the ME/CFS newsletter is that...

"RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT…
...
2. Suffering from ME/CFS is equal to late stage AIDS, patients undergoing chemotherapy and patients with multiple sclerosis. (http://cfids.org/sparkcfs/health-professionals.asp)"

At the moment I can quite believe that, as my body has packed a complete 'sad' BUT my brain is quite occupied with thoughts of my next projects now that the exhibition is 'up' in Whangerei and the art co-op has opened (it's opening today but I am not well enough to attend as am having only a few minutes up each time at the moment)

I have five projects currently simmering away in the mental pot. (eg thought process)
1. A painting project called 'Stories of the North' which will incorporate visual and written art around stories relating to this area and the people in it (I will be working on this one for a year at least)
2. A photographic expose on Tangata Whiora to open in conjunction with MH awareness week in October (putting in funding applications for this at the end of the week hopefully and have a gallery considering running the exhibition at present as part of their community mindedness ethos. Everyone I have spoken to so far are very interested in the project and keen to see it go ahead. It also will be quite a major affair logistically as will involve photo shoots on location. And facilitating framers and at the end of the exhibition I would like to be able gift the whaiora with their photographs so there is no money in it but it is a way of giving something back. Possibly also there might be a book and a calandar if the work is done right. That would help fund the materials for the next one I undertake.
3. I also want to do some work promoting local artists (incl me) and their work and in order to achieve this an opportunity has come up for free training in how to do this so I have just emailed my keeness to do this as I can see how it will help with not only this project but the other projects I have for in the future also. I like to do things 'right' and be comfortable and competent in my work, especially where it involves others so this training would be such an asset.
4.My friend has a batch at the beach she has said OK to going out and painting in- no water or electricity or loo but as a studio space on occasions it will be great. Going out there next week if I can get some time of wellness in which to do so.
5. I need to finish my self portrait and the next one is one of my Dad with Aoraki Mt Cook in the background as he loves this area so much and spends much time tramping and hiking up there.

Prob I should set some prioties for all this work!!!

Today I am hoping to be able to have some time to work on the commission piece again - it's been soaking in the bath for the last three days as I have been unable to lift the board to stretch the paper on - hopefully I will get an undestanding visitor today that I can cajole into stretching the paper for me. The down side of disability is sometimes you have to wait for someone to arrive to assist you.
Ooo - so excited because yesterday I found some handmade paper from years ago when I was tutoring literacy with IHC (they have a paper mill and taught me how to make it- I still have 6 of the sheets I made) and am really keen to see what it is like as a painting support. I've seen some nice work done on hand made paper so think it will be fun to have a 'play' and see how it responds to paint.

2008.03.09 -Man of Sorrows - Oil on Canvas

The New Art Co-op is officially opening Easter weekend so I am hoping this will be dry in time for that. I have decided to use Sundays as a 'play and experiment' day so yesterday after church I pulled out the oil paints that have been sitting in a box gathering dust and worked on 'Man of Sorrows' - The title came from Isaiah 53. There's a song in D that came t o me once the work was complete which uses the words from Isaiah 53 and goes...

Man of Sorrows - by Nicky 2008

He had no beauty or majesty

Nothing in the way He looked

that we should desire Him

Despised, rejected

a Man of Sorrows

And we esteemed Him not

Yet He took our infirmities

and carried our suffering

Pierced for our transgressions

Crushed for our iniquities

Opressed and afflicted

He gave His life for us

Yet we esteemed Him not

Also did a small oil pastel with an area that had a varnish mask just to see what would happen with that which was kinda fun. I love the flexibility of oils in that you can move them around the canvas for a long time as they take so much longer than acrylic paints to dry. Just the odour is not that great for the nose (of the turps) in an enclosed space.

Exhibition of Selected Works - March 7-April 2

Three hours drive, 6 hours to hang (THANKS to APT for their asistance and guidence and Daniel (?) who banged in all the concrete nails for us (including a few wacks on the thumb), and three hours to get home again. A long but successful day!

Funny thing was I had one painting of a cat that was called 'untitled' because I couldn't think of a title and a woman who came up for a looksee called out to me suggesting I call it 'Ngeru' (Maori word for cat) which fitted wonderfully well so now have a title for the painting. What fun.

It has ended up being quite an expensive venture- I will put the figures on here once i have broken it all down as it is something I need to take into account in the future.

Sandy and I were both thrilled with the overall look. It was a much bigger space than I had remembered.

Exhibition Preparations - 2 days to go!

Hooray - APT have confirmed that is OK for us to go and set up on Friday Morning so today is finishing of labels, printing out and packaging greeting cards to sell and designing a 2009 photographic calendar of my work that people can pre-order at the exhibition. Tomorrow I have hydrotherapy at 10 then all the paintings need to be wrapped snugly and everything boxed up and loaded into Sandy's car ready for the next morning when we leave at 7am! At present the studio/lounge looks chaotic but is is semi organised chaos so that's fine.

Thankfully Peter is arriving this afternoon so maybe he will help with packaging the cards as that is something I find incredibally difficult to do as my hands get the shakes.{Post Note - did not get done as for some reason no yellow ink is coming through my pinter!}

Also spent some time at the new building for the Art-co-op with the clean up crew - There's a great website called FLYLADY.COM which talks you through getting your house sorted so I used her tips and used car cleaner to make the sink and benches sparkle (they look beautiful). Still a bit to go before the premesis is ready but there's another working bee down there today then a meeting on Saturday so it is looking promising. The one person who was causing a bit of dissention has opted to not be a part of it and says we will fail. YAY for us! Now only like minded people in the co-op who are fired up and keen as mustard! I think he just had a different vision than it being a place to support and provide opportunities for artists and promote their work. He saw it more of a commercial venture which it is not really although that will be a part of it.

The bonus is Sandy and I came home with carpet underlay to pack between our paintings as we lifted out the old carpet so YAY for us!!!!!

OK - Pic time - rolling up the old carpet (I've got brushes in my hair because was going to be painting the door frames where the white paint had chipped but I didn't last that long so hoping to be well enough to go down today and do it.)

Exhibition Preparations

Hooray - have completed that last of the paintings (bar 1) that are going to Exhibition on the 6th March-2nd April. Today Sandy and I have met with Mark and organised to meet up down there and set up together on Friday Morning which will be nice and we've worked out how to pack the work so the canvas does not get damaged in transit (bubblewrap was just too expensive) (a three hour drive). My next task is to print out pricing labels and contact the gallery to let then know arrival times. Sandy's organising promotional flyers and we've decided that we will not have an official 'opening' this time (my purse strings will not stretch that far). I am so thrilled everything is coming together so quickly and delighted that it has provided the much needed motivation to get some of the unfinished work completed. I'll post pics of the work going down once I get them loaded on.
The initial financial outlay on any venture like this is a stretch and I was quite stressed on Friday as realised that things were pretty tight but the interesting thing - it is working out OK as even food seems to be being taken care of this week - a friend dropped off a big Kahawai yesterday which had so much meat on it that it's provided for me and the cats from yesterday and today also. Deliciously fresh and tender as roasted it in tin foil in the oven. I am looking forward to seeing what else falls into place closer to exhibition time.

A Significant event - formation of an Art Co-op

Today I feel has been quite significant in my artistic journey as a group of like minded people (for the most part) met in a building that is up for rent and has the potential to be a cute boutique gallery and working space and discussed the formation of an 'art co-op' - something I have been discussing of late with other artist friends also as there is nothing like that up here yet. How GREAT to be joining in with other like minded artists in the community to have a space where we exhibit and hold workshops encourage one another and others. It's quite a cute building inside with 1 main area and 3 off rooms as well as kitchen, toilet, bathroom and small outside area. It was good today was not a sunny day as we got to see what the natural lighting was like inside (very important with wet winters here). The Local arts council have given a grant for the first months rental of the premisis which is great because then we can just focus on getting it up and running. I think we need to have some clear vision and guidelines and systems in place for people to follow otherwise it could be fraught with problems down the track and the 'vision' of the place may get lost but the core group of people all seem very similar in thought so quite excited about the possibilities.

For Ash and Me and Others - The painting of the Maori Anglican Church where the Bishop Of Jerusalem Spoke this week

This is one of last years watercolours ( About A4 in size) and also happens to be the same church where the Bishop of Jerusalem spoke to a small congregation and delivered communion earlier this week. It was both an honour and a joy to meet him and his wife. He spoke in English and prayed in Arabic - very cool! He spoke on reconciliation and love for all mankind irrespective of religious beliefs. He spoke of Christian, Muslum and Jew working together as humanitarians over and above religious differences to aid and assist those in suffering and in need. He spoke with us as you would speak to a brother or a sister, not as some great spiritual 'big wig'. I was impressed by his apparent humility and genuineness.
A privilidge and a joy to be able to give him a thank you card with the image on the on the front as a reminder of his whanau in the North.

Countdown to Exhibition - 1 week to go

Well, the PLAN is down for what needs to be done in order to be ready to exhibit within the week, and I have confirmed by email and phone that the intent is to go ahead with the new dates, although have not heard back as yet. Another couple of artists are going in with me which always adds another dimension.
Today I learned, however, that CFS is NO respector of plans, even if they are written down in big bold letters and sometimes your body completely fails to do what it is required to.Hopefully will be able to get back on track in the morning.

A Day Of Visitors

Thank God for Beautiful Fruits and Veg. This morning had a surprise visit from a German friend who came bearing the most beautiful auberguine I had seen in a long time and spend two hours helping me restake the sweetcorn that was trashed in the storm and try and salvage the tomatoes AND he even decided he wanted to wash some dishes!

The Auberguine was SO handsome with it's tinkerbell like top and dark glossy skin that it needed to be painted but the dilemma I faced is I really did not want to be painting more 'real' things for a while so instead I made it into a nice watercolour card which I will package up to sell. I have found that mixing ultramarine blue and az. crimson gives you the greatest auberguine purple for the skin tones.

More visits in the afternoon with my artist neighbour inviting me for fennel tea in unusual pottery tea cups in exchange for looking at her TV tuning and then later on had a visit from another new friend who is a stained glass artist from London which was very nice.

Today I need to make some decisions as i got the months wrong for the upcoming exhibition - apparently i am supposed to be starting in a week and running for March (I had thought it was April). Would be great to have the work up as that would mean i was exhibiting over Easter which would be ideal, it would also mean all of the work prior to the Black and White painting would be elsewhere so I could have a month free to focus on developing in that area and not being distracted by all my other work.

I also need to be getting a portfolio ready to send to The Learning Connection in April and looking for how to fund that -

Mmm. so much to do and organise!!!

The' Black and Whites' - Painting out the Pain

Went through a period where felt 'lost' and was unable to paint because all I seem to be doing is producing more and more work that will end up needing to be stored somehow HOWEVER what I REALLY wanted to do is just go 'hard-out' and paint, I mean REALLY paint - not technical exercises or actual things necessarily but to look upon a blank or textured background canvas and wait for the canvas to show me what needs to be drawn out of it.

So YAHOO! Back on track again and SO much happier with the results.

This one's called 'painting out the pain' and is, I guess looking on it now, an expression of self - in that it is about how I view Life with CFS and how it affects me in some ways. I love the cleanness of it - just used the raw canvas with titanium white and paynes grey.

I've found a way to paint that is not too painful - if I set the easle up at a low level on the outside porch then sit on a couch cushion so I don't have to raise my arms higher than waist height then the pain is dramatically reduced and bearable (have torn the tendons in both shoulders now and nerve inflammation and muscle pain is pretty synonomous with CFS). SO thrilled to have found a way to paint again at an upright easle.

The wee chap below I have put on especially for my NC friends who get chills about spiders - he was right next to me on the lemon tree yesterday and kept me company whilst painting. Had caught a beautiful metallic fly for his lunch clever chap!

Native Parrot Fish - using a limited pallette

An artists life is full of opportunities and unusual events if one keeps ones eyes wide open...

Yesterday was a day off so went costal for the morning. Caught nothing I was allowed to keep and so decided to have a final fish and a bit of a dip in the rivermouth at Taipa. Unbeknownst to me there was a HUGE fishing competition on based at the same place so I arrive in my very casual attire and wade out with my rod and cast into the current where the river hits the sea (sometimes when the kahawai are running you can pull in a few nice fish). Well - not a sausage! and the sun was beating down so decided to head for home.

Waded into shore and there right in front of me just floating along was the most perfectly positioned black fish - rigormotous had set in so it was positioned to look like it was swimming. So I scooped it up - someone had thoughtfully scaled it already - must have been one of the competition catches. Even though it was fresh I was a bit too chicken to eat it so instead saved it for today to use as a subject study. These fish though are beautiful eating if gutted and stuffed with a little salt and lemon and olive oil, wrapped in tin foil and baked in the oven, YUM!

1. Background was already done last year waiting for the appropriate subject matter. Laying in the outlines and position using chalk - want the eye to be in the middle of the first third line...

2. The stomach was very bloated this morning and the flies began to gather after a few minutes of the fish being out even there was no real smell of offness. It was an interesting painting experience because the fish grew whiter and the eyes dulled as the painting progressed so I had to keep in mind what it looked like when I initially scooped it out of the water. The eyes surprised me as I thought fish eyes were round but these were not totally. I'm using mussel shells instead of a palette board at the moment.

3. After 2 hours of painting. Palette used: Lemon yellow, titanium white, phthalo blue and burnt seinna

2 hours work yesterday inbetween funerals and other such events. In the morning worked on two backgrounds after being inspired by Craigie Aitchison's works and his bold usage of colour.

In the evening I set my alarm to work for an hour on the portrait - taking the hair back a bit, altering the skin tones and lengthening the neck.

Exhibition - January - and working on the portrait

I find that exhibitions are always a bit of a 'high' - especially being around like minded people and just being there as an artist and nothing else. It is a wonderful feeling. Oddly for some reason all of us on 'duty' yesterday took out portraiture work to do - very interesting looking at the difference in our styles. All in all a wonderful day of chatting with the public coming through, setting up future painting 'exploits' with other artists (Sandy and I are off to visit someone new we met at the exhibition as she has a lovely church in her area she thought we might like to paint so that will be a nice day trip on Monday to an area I have not explored yet at all. A teacher from Te Hapua has also invited us up there for a painting/ photography shoot (that might have to be an overnighter I think).

The self portrait is really beginning to come together. At the 'eye stage' now and will then have to go back and rework the skin tones a litle as she looks a bit lifeless for some reason.

Sandy playing at the start of yesterday - chalking in where she would place the features (on my request of course).

Exhibition Set Up - January 2008

My first exhibition for the year is always part of a fundraiser that local artists hang work for and a percentage of anything sold goes towards one of the local schools which is FABULOUS!!! The organisers are just lovely and they couldn't have been more helpful today - it was SO hot and humid it would have been very easy to be stressed and crabby but they were charming to everyone and really helpful.

It's the second year I have been part of this fundraiser and as a result I was able to be so much more organised and more relaxed and not so stressed as I know they do a good job of looking after everything. The location is just beautiful - right on a beach usually full of tourists at this time of the year - so afterwards my friend insisted we go for a walk in the ocean and it was just perfect. Beautiful overcast day and shell strewn beach with lovely warm semitropical water and not too many people. Couldn't ask for more than that.

I LOVE group exhibitions up here - nice to catch up with art mates to say 'happy new year' and the atmosphere is so friendly and sociable. A huge variety of artists from potters to painters to photographers to framers to tapersters. And everyone keen to help everyone else with the hanging of the work. I used my old fishing line to hang the framed photos - good and strong and invisible on the walling. I was also given a display stand that a local pharmacy were throwing out that I repainted up and with a few toast racks it has made the perfect user friendly card stand. I am so thrilled with it.

Janet's display...