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Everybody makes mistakes. I offer you some of my recent ones.
(1) Ah MAUDEVILLE, it was not to be. Here I am at the Lismore Art Gallery, despairing that I failed to notice the gallery closes at 2pm on a Saturday afternoon and I had lingered too long at lunch (aka a TAFTA Board meeting).
Seen at Lismore Art Gallery, l to r: Phillipa Rooke, Janet De Boer, Cathy Moon, Patricia Smithyman, Elvis. January birthdays for Janet, Patricia & Elvis.
(2) The true birthday of Elvis Presley is January 8th - NOT the 9th of January as I listed it in my December e-bulletin. Some editor I am...
Elvis would be 81 this year. I am 70. And Priscilla Presley will be 71 on May 24th. And LIsa Marie will never see 40 again.. I digress.
PLEASE NOTE: Ararat Regional Art Gallery (ARAG) in Victoria is hosting an Elvis exhibition in March (Elvis Immortal the photographs of Polixeni Papapetrouin) as part of the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival‘s Cultural Program Project Series 2016 and the 2016 Ararat Jailhouse Rock Festival!
Innocent Lismore Bystander introduced to Elvis memorabilia
I have been invited to host an Afternoon Tea With Elvis at Ararat Regional Art Gallery on Friday afternoon March 4th at 2pm. I will have extensive memorabilia with me and a free photo of Elvis for each person who attends! My own attire is a poorly kept secret....
Conveniently, Ararat is on the way from Melbourne to Halls Gap where I'll be assisting again at the very splendid Grampians Texture, March 5-10: www.grampianstexture.com.au
One last attempt to get to Maudeville... alas it was not to be. Is this a septuagenarian issue, I ask myself? The inability to research gallery opening hours? I shall have to comfort myself with Elvis in Ararat...
(3) BACK TO THE FUTURE and a SPECIAL LIMITED OFFER of unique proportions! In the previous bulletin I confirmed that I'll now be a regular contributor to Down Under Textiles magazine (Practical Publishing) starting with the April issue and a column titled Back to the Future. The preferred website for the biggest discount ever offered appears below. There's a 33% discount on the cover price for trying 4 issues of Down Under Textiles for a mere $34.95 in total.
When you subscribe to this 84-page colour magazine via the website www.downundertextiles.com.au you’ll need to quote the code DUT09 to qualify for the discounted price.
The offer lasts until the end of January 2016 so make this is one of your New Year's Resolutions. Hurry - January 31st is coming up fast.
Remember, the code you need to quote when subscribing online is DUT09. And you have until January 31st to get the great discount on a 4-issue subscription.
A REMINDER OF WHAT TAFTA STANDS FOR: TAFTA stands for The Australian Forum for Textile Arts Ltd.
Go to www.tafta.org.au for a PDF file of this bulletin and much more, including the continually updated News & Events around Australia. (_Updates take place, state by state, around the 1st of each month). PLEASE SEND ME YOUR NEWS so you can be included: _)
Above is a transformed 'megamendung motif' (rain cloud design) typical of the Cirebon area of Java, Indonesia. The shaded contours of the motifs are a characteristic feature – at times, 6-7 layers of wax and subsequent dyeing were necessary to obtain this result.
Two more reminders of events coming up soon:
CONTEXTART 2016 in the mid-Blue Mountains of NSW (Korowal School, Hazelbrook) offers 2-day and 4-day workshops from April 9-14. Contact Vanessa Taylor: www.contextart.com.au
And the GALLERY 159 season opens here in Brisbane (at 159 Payne Road) at 3pm on Sunday March 13th with a 3-week run of The Compulsive Collector (weaving, embroidery & batik from the collections of Iem Brown, Greg Pankhurst & Chris Reid). At left is a detail of a long batik fabric, a modern interpretation of a traditional design. Advisors on the batik component of The Compulsive Collector exhibition are Greg Roberts, Ian Reed and Dr Maria Wronska-Friend. Gallery 159 is open on weekends when an exhibition is in place (11am-4pm on Sat/Sun) and open weekdays by appointment. www.tafta.org.au/gallery-159-2/
See below:
Janet RECOMMENDS
Time to give Peter some attention while I pursue my Post-70 Passions. Svenja took the photo at left and that's her husband Matt in the background, pondering the wedding party we plan to throw them in June at Gallery 159. Again, I digress... (but who doesn't love a party?) Please join us - I can recommend it! - the Opening Party is June 5th at 3pm at 159 Payne Road The Gap, Brisbane.Travel can always be recommended: to Tasmania; then Hall's Gap (Grampians Texture) in March and Contextart 2016 (the Blue Mountains) in April plus there's a mid-year Return to Bali to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.
I can definitely recommend Wrapt in Rocky from 26 June - 2 July in Rockhampton Qld: www.wraptinrocky.com.au
And of course there's the Geelong Fibre Forum 2016 later on in the year, managed by Tafta Inc (Larissa Murdock and Bronni Packwood) - dates of Sept 25 - Oct 1: www.taftainc.com.au Travel with a bonus - all those wonderful workshops and much fun to be had. See you there.
SAILS by Susan Holmes of New Zealand - Louis Vuitton building in Paris by Frank O. Gehry. Shade plastic, polyester, silk organza. Entered in the Creative Excellence ARCHITECTURE section of WOW 2015.
And we'll visit New Zealand this year - keep November in mind if you can get to Auckland - I'll be opening a long awaited tribute to Susan Holmes - her Master of Craft exhibition staged by Objectspace Gallery in Auckland with the official opening on November 11th. It would be splendid if many of you could join us there and I do highly recommend it!
At right you can see Susan Holmes' entry in the 2015 World of WearableArt (WOW) Award in Wellington. This only begins to hint at the scope of her creations and her masterly contribution to the language of the textile arts.
TAFTA was pleased to work with Orange Art Gallery NSW in 2009 to mount a Retrospective for Susan Holmes; what her home country will do as a tribute will be magnificent.
A few more Reading Recommendations (more details to come in a future e-bulletin):
1) The FIBRES WEST calendar for 2016 - hurry to get one; the images are terrific and it's in a good cause. And not THAT much of 2016 has gone yet... Contact to receive all the details regarding payment. The cost is $15 per calendar, or $20 with postage anywhere within Australia (inquire for multiple orders and overseas rates).
2) Kim Schoenberger's self published EXPRESSIONS OF LOVE - not only is this a rewarding book to own, it's an excellent example of pure professionalism in presenting yourself and your work. Check it out: www.kimschoenberger.com/product/expressions-of-love/
3) Sign up for free with TextileArtist.org: "A place for textile and fiber artists to be inspired, learn from the best, promote their work & communicate with like-minded creatives." The scope of what this website provides is phenomenal and they feature some truly outstanding artists. www.textileartist.org/
4) I strongly recommend the print publication TEXTILES ASIA, a wonderful and very well priced journal published 3 times a year by Bonnie Corwin that includes excellent and fully comprehensible writing and large images of some glorious textiles. You'll turn to it again and again - and you will learn from every issue. www.textilesasia.com
The Australian Basketry (online) journal is easy to recommend - Juanita Carrington does a terrific job with it and even if you are not a basketry addict, you'll be impressed by the images, the textural and sculptural sensibilities and the dynamic qualities of the works shown. Plus you can keep up to date on the next 'Gathering' scheduled for Nerang Qld from 26th April to 1st May 2017. These Basketry Gatherings have international fame, are extremely affordable and help overcome the tyranny of distance for so many.
Check out the free online journal at:
www.australianbasketry.com/uploads/2/1/3/1/21314122/australianbasketry-ed2.pdf
Above, 'Red ripple' by Caroine Baum; 3.2 x 2 metres. Photo: Tim Robinson
For this section, I once again highly recommend GARLAND, a new online magazine that is free - although subscribers can download an e-book version as wanted. Garland magazine offers an overview of what's being created in the Asia Pacific and beyond.www.garlandmag.com The editorial board for 'Garland' is sourced from the broader Asia Pacific region and in association with World Crafts Council - Australia. Each issue features an online exhibition based around a special theme. The online exhibition for Garland #1 featured 23 artists from across the Asia Pacific and had the theme of Intimate Immensities. Enter Caroline Baum (see image above).
The pattern for the 'Red ripple rug shown above, made from wool and silk, originated with a photo of snail patterns show in Wombarra NSW; the rug interpretation was woven in Nepal. Caroline Baum says about this work: The rug is a hand-knotted interpretation of my image of the patterns created by sea snails on a rockshelf, The red is the true colour created by the presence of iron in the rock. I love the way the world of these tiny creatures, a map of songlines across the sandy watery terrain of tessellated stone, becomes a bigger abstract landscape. www.carolinebaum.com.au www.designerrugs.com.au
Above, work by Nalda Searles: 'Another way of seeing', eyeglasses, aged mallee wood fragment found and collected from the West Australian Goldfields, 120mm x 60mm x 12mm. This object encourages multi-directional viewing, each is compatible and yet vastly different.
The work shown above was submitted for the Intimate Immensities online exhibition through Garland which is currently calling for works for its next online exhibition, Second Home. For details go to www.garlandmag.com/issue/exhibition/second-home-exhibition/?mc_cid=51a9415834&mc_eid=f3f2132745 Anyone is welcome to enter and the deadline is February 15th.
For the first issue of Garland the emphasis was on South Korea; South Australia is the next focus with a special issue coming up based around Adelaide's vibrant workshop culture and the Magic Object themed Adelaide Biennial being held from 27 February - 15 May 2016. (Magic Object will unfold across an unprecedented number of venues in Adelaide, including the Art Gallery, Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art at UniSA, JamFactory, Carrick Hill and the Santos Museum of Economic Botany in the Adelaide Botanic Garden.)
BURSARY WINNERS & WORKS
Lizzie Hackney took part in a Textile residency with Abduljabbar Khatri in Bhuj, Gujarat, India in 2015; and was included in the Cultural Textiles exhibition in Mumbai 2015.BURSARY WINNERS & WORKS
Lizzie Hackney, seen at left is the 2016 Janet De Boer/TAFTA Bursary winner provided to a graduating student in the UNSW Art & Design course.
Lizzie Hackney graduated with a Bachelor of Design at UNSW Art and Design with majors in textiles and ceramics. She was a finalist in the Kudos Award 2014 and Royal Doulton x UNSW Art and Design Award 2014.
Details from the award winning Seasense range by Lizzie Hackney are shown above: a collection of three textural rug designs that are intended to stimulate the user's senses. This range was inspired by the bleaching of coral as a result of ocean warming. The works are made from a series of layers of hard and soft natural materials, reflecting the changing state of coral reefs. This work straddles the line between conceptual and commercial design. The detail with feet features natural white wooden beads and silk chiffon overlay.
Weaving by Blake Griffiths appears above, and is also seen below. Through TAFTA he was awarded an Anne Field Bursary to study weaving with Kay Faulkner at Contextart 2016. Liz Williamson, Associate Professor, Design : Textile Convenor at UNSWArt & Design describes him thus: Blake is a keen weaver in his final year of a Bdesign / Art Education. he is self taught but went on exchange to India and learnt weaving there from masters weavers; he also completed his professional experience in India working with weavers in West Bengal.
More of BLAKE’S weaving appears below including the view from above - looking down on the loom at a work in progress.
Above left, Blake Griffiths who commented on what an honour it was to receive the award and that he was really excited to do the weaving course. This opportunity is so refreshing to be available to young weavers!
At right above, Jenny Newman who was also awarded one of TAFTA's Anne Field Bursaries to work with Kay Faulkner at Contextart 2016 in April. Liz Williamson describes Jenny Newman thus:Jenny has just completed her final year of a Bachelor of Design degree. For her final major project she dyed wool with natural dyes, designed and wove a very beautiful range of wool furnishing fabrics.
Two examples of Jenny's work appear below.