{ kass } an artistic journey

friday fried

that's how I'm feeling...completely fried! I am so tired but I gonna keep on keeping on. That's sometimes what you just have to do.

I've started experimenting with paint and fabric and so far it's so good. It's a lot of work but you know, I love it, and I think it's easier to work hard when you love it. I've also clarified today what I am going to work towards for my professional practice unit, which I can't tell you about yet (except that if it was to be accepted it would b an AWESOME project for Melbourne!), and I have started making connections in terms of securing my internship. So it's been a busy week. I have submitted my first assessment (yes in week 2...no mucking around here!) and I am working on another one right now. So there's no rest for the wicked either :)

Tomorrow I am working 10-5 and then I have Amy's 30th birthday party.

I think I need a holiday!

commitment

for me, the year ahead at Uni is going to require many things, including creative thinking, focus and hard work. But most of all, it is going to require commitment, because I have decided to take on a project which will extend into second semester.

Flowing on from my thoughts on colour and pattern, I started thinking about things I really love doing, and the things I really would love to try.

Thing I love: drawing and painting, making things with fabric, anything to do with colour, books, shopping, handbags, cheap clothes, vintage findings, mixing my media to create something new, one of a kind items.

Things I would love to try: costume design (there's nothing better than seeing exquisite costumes on the stage and screen), interior design/homewares (don't let me loose in IKEA or Freedom.... it's dangerous).

So I started researching... I looked at Gustav Klimt's incredible use of colour. The homewares/wallpapers designed by William Morris and the Australian artist, Florence Broadhurst. I looked online at places like Etsy.com and madeit.com.au. And I came to thinking - there is so much gorgeous, handmade stuff out there. There is no need for me to simply join that market and do what so many others do (and do WELL). But what DID strike me is that there isn't a lot of that type of one of a kind items - like handbags, even clothes - which are made from hand-painted fabric. I don't mean silk dyed, I mean actual one of a kind paintings on fabric, then turned into things - accessories, clothes, furnishings...

So this semester the focus is on the fabric - hand painted, one of a kind paintings. And the beginning of making items with them - absolute, one off things.

Then next semester I hope to keep producing these things, with a view to exhibiting them in a salon-like style at my graduating exhibition.

So the hard work begins now has begun. And I hope to share the process and the journey with you.

need inspiration?

is life getting you down? need some inspiration to feel good again?

read this blog: Kate Mason's Blog

Let me tell you, little Chelsea Mason is a little prize fighter, punching WELL above her weight and winning every round they throw at her. She is one tough cookie and reading what this tiny baby is enduring and beating is nothing short of inspirational and humbling.

Kate is a friend of mine and she in herself is such an inspiring woman and artist. It's obvious to me that Chelsea has her Mum's incredible determination and spirit. They are special women and they deserve all the GOOD things in life. Please keep the Mason's in your thoughts and prayers.

Phil and Cleo's Wedding

last night I was really honoured to be asked to be photographer at the wedding of Phil and Cleo. Phil is the father of my friend Amy, who I went to school with and have remained great friends with.

I haven't been through all the photos yet but here's a couple:

year three, week one

...and I am already buggered!

Uni started back this week and I am really starting to comprehend exactly how much work will be involved to make a success of the year. I knew it would be my busiest year yet but it really is going to be so much MORE than busy.

Part of the semester's work will be an internship of 108 in a professional practice. I haven't decided yet where I am going to apply to but I will start getting those preparations ready this week. Given the amount of time, I will have to do it in a 3 week block after the end of semester as, if I balance it out over the semester, it is minimum 10 hours a week. Where am I going to get 10 hours a week to work unpaid, on top of Dean's Art and my other Uni commitments? I just can't do it, and I am not going to try! I'd rather have the consistency of a three week block.

My other units are graphic design, professional practice (which is going to include a submission to a major art award YIKES!) and a self-directed unit. for that I am thinking of continuing with my pattern work I have been playing with recently, while focussing on photography for the professional practice unit.

Today I went to St Luke's Art in Fitzroy and bought a starter kit for making my own acrylic paint. My teacher wants to me to do this as part of the pattern work to give it a more experimental direction - almost $100 later I sure hope it's an experiment that pays off!!

sunday fun

Following on from the last post....... I don't know if anyone else would think this is fun, but for me it was both fun and a great way to get my Uni year started. I have a visual diary in which I have been putting samples of all my art materials, as well as tests of techniques.

Today I spent most of the day painting and drawing in colour samples.

This is not just a great reminder of what I have and what it can do, but an awesome resource to have at my fingertips when I am working and don't have time to test run things.

I am taking photos which I will add but here's a peak:

a little about how I choose colours

I got some ink pencils yesterday. Made by Derwent, the Inktense™ pencils are watersoluble and give an ink-like look when wet.

When dry, you can work over them and the ink is permanent.

I hope you can see what I have done - I've made a space for each colour (I still have some colours to collect) and then put water on half of the colour patch so as to show the difference with and without the water.

I've also shown how any Faber-Castell Watercolour pencils I have - mostly from the artist grade Albrecht-Durer range which are sensational.

As you can see what I do is colour into my visual diary each colour and the put water on the right half so I can see how the pencil will look in both forms. It also helps me to choose colours when I am drawing.

I do this with all my paints and inks too - it' an invaluable resource when I am needing to find a colour for something and also lets me play with products to test out what they can do. In this diary I also have tests of photo transfers, oil sticks and other experiments, and with those I write down what I did to achieve the result - even when I bugger something up, I write exactly what I did then try again and then write how I got it right, so I can learn from mistakes but also see what happy mistakes can happen. As it is only a cheapo visual diary, I sometimes experiment on watercolour paper and stick that into the diary so I get the best results.

how will I wait 4 months?

for this book?

The artist, Alisa Burke, was in Cloth Paper Scissors Issue 13 (Jul/Aug 07) and I am really looking forward to this book - but it's not due out til June! How will I manage?? You should also check out her blog. Good luck with this Alisa, you deserve it!

Valentine's Day

we don't really "do" Valentine's Day here in the Hall house, we kind of think it's nicer to be loved every day!! However, I was just a little bit excited when yesterday I received these:

Aren't they sweet?? Who from you ask? Well, that was the sweetest part of all...

This little bundle - my darling little Elvis - saved up all his pocket money to buy his Mummy Valentine's Day flowers!! Have you ever SEEN a more adorable Valentine? Isn't he sweet????? (ok maybe not so happy about Mummy's camera and flash in his face but you know what I mean!!)

playing rope

one of the things I love doing on my days off is playing with my Pugs. They are lots of fun and I think everyone knows I absolutely worship them both.

Last week I bought them a new rope to chew on/play with in Essendon colours (of course!). Since Elvis was a tiny puppy he has loved playing fetch and he had this tiny little red bone which he loved. So when we were playing fetch the bone today (which Sunny sometimes doesn't get the concept of) I got some "action" photos!