I found these gorgeous gorgeous painted plates on Etsy last night by Slovakian artist Petra Hilbert - I really really want one - (I'm developing a painted/drawn plate fetish I think)! Petra graduated from the Department of Puppet Stage Design of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava - what amazing experience I imagine that would be, as puppetry has a remarkable history in Eastern Europe. Her drawings are pretty wonderful too - there's certainly a strong 'heart organ' iconography running through the works - at times just ever so sinister. She doesn't have a website link on Etsy, so I had to pull on my investigator's hat and conduct a little searching with the o-so-handy google website translating option (LOVE this!). You can find some extra links below to learn more about her.
> Etsy shop, website, Slovak Illustrators Association profile/portfolio, nice long profile on Citarny - choose your language when you get there!
I'm not at all proud of myself... I had an exhibition some time ago and I was so amazed and grateful that a school friend and her family turned up. They bought this little drawing and once I pulled the exhibition down I subsequently misplaced it. Terrible!! I've finally found it (it was safe n sound amongst a stack of paper) so it's time to head to the Dandenongs - she lives on the edge of Sherbrooke Forest which is just divine - well known for its Mountain Ash/Stringy Gum trees, glorious ferns and the extraordinary lyrebird. I think I need to take yummy treats and wine as well...
With an addiction for the skies, this remarkable aviation pioneer made the (natural!!) progression from ballooning to become the first woman to hold a pilot's license in 1910. Sensational stuff.
Oh my... Takashi Iwasaki. Where do I start... how I chose these three from his vast folio of embroideries (which these are), paintings, drawings and collage is a mystery! All I knew is that I needed to post something bright, playful and outstanding!... coz it's been a biiig week. I'm back on the 8.30am-4.30pm office wheel, which unfortunately does awful things to my psyche, I've said goodbye to my partner for another six week period and I updated the Blogger editing interface which is giving me more than a headache. These works introduce a little light and equilibrium!
My sister bought the book 'Natural Fashion: Tribal Decoration from Africa' by Hans Silvester, which is a stunning photographic portrayal of the Surma and Mursi tribes who live in the lower valley of the Omo, at the borders of Ethiopia, Kenya and Sudan. The youths in particular, extravagantly adorn themselves with body paint, vegetation, horns and other found matter, and their sense of colour and form is truly exquisite. While visiting her one day a couple of months ago, I made these funny little drawings after flicking through the book - nothing at all like the real thing, but kinda fun!
With a skip in my step, I headed to Melbourne's The Finders Keepers market today at Shed 4 at Docklands (behind the good folk at Open Channel). With funky live music, there was a great vibe and so much delectable work it hurt. I was thrilled to come across the store of 'benconservato' aka Emma Kidd. Her shop was one of the first I discovered at Etsy, and immediately I fell in love with her enigmatic monsters and characters. The main thing that struck me today, was how different her original works were in the flesh. Emma often uses gold ink, which photos just don't pay justice to. Her works literally shimmered in the light, which gave them an added depth and beauty that made me want to take home several immediately! Her colouring book, prints, softies and cards were also a delight, perfect for anyone wishing to get in touch with their inner monster. It was definitely my favourite stop, so I suggest all you Melburnians head down in the glorious weather they're predicting tomorrow!
> Emma's website, blog, Etsy shop, Flickr, Redbubble shop, The Finders Keepers market
I'm discovering the amazing world of contemporary stitch/needlework, and the artists who incorporate it into their body of work, or who perdominantly play in this medium. And the talent out there has blown me away. I'm a complete convert, and would love to at some stage dabble myself. I remember mum's gorgeous needlepoint work when my first nephew was born. She didn't think she was being 'creative' because she was working from a pattern, but it was all truly truly lovely. For the moment, I'm just going to focus on two artists for this post because they seem so well suited to each another. Plenty of time for the others!
I profiled Ana Botezatu's work recently, but as I try not to clutter each post with too many images, I just included a selection of her drawings. She's such a talented gal, who seemingly works effortlessly with different materials, and her little cross stitch works are just superb. If you head here, she'll acquaint you with her textile work, but I recommend scrolling through from the beginning, because all her work is wonderful.
Renilde Depeuter's gorgeous blog is 'at swim-two-birds'. Her incredible works have been covered quite a bit across the blogosphere - as they should! There's a wonderful abstraction to her Worm Hole series which are also quite rustic (an interesting mix), while the Metropolis series are more pictorial like Ana's.
> Ana's blog, website, Book By Its Cover sketchbook feature
> Renilde's worm hole series on flickr, her blog, nice interview I found on Fine Little day blog
I was recently in Sydney for a few days, and managed for the first time to see Primavera, an annual curated exhibition at the MCA (Museum for Contemporary Art), for artists in the early stages of their careers. Since it was launched about 18 years ago, I've had a couple of friends and known quite a few artists included in the line-up - which was a sensational experience for them - but overall I'm somewhat critical of this type of showcase. I can be a grumpy ol soul sometimes! All that said, I was intrigued to see who curator Katie Dyer had chosen to highlight. So off I went, and as I entered the first room I was immediately struck by Alasdair McLuckie's work 'The Highest Mountain Peaks Right Before Dawn'. This mural style drawing made up of individual panels that effortlessly interrelated, occupied most of the wall - the photo really doesn't do justice. I initially thought that he had burnt the images and text into the wood, but on closer inspection discovered that he had drawn directly onto the plywood with black biro pen. Crazy! The graphic style and apocalyptic narrative (I do find myself kinda partial to artists who explore a darker theme!) carried throughout is really amazing, making it a brilliantly considered epic piece. He says in his artist talk that making this body of work literally exhausted him (& kinda sent him a bit insane!), so he turned to working with craft techniques (beading) throughout the following year! Listen to his artist talk by clicking here and find his name on the right hand side. Hopefully this link will remain as it is! Emma White's meticulously handmade polymer clay models of everyday objects (mainly office stationery and art supplies) installed on the next level were also pretty special.
> Alasdair McLuckie's website, MCA Sydney
