break

I am having a few days off from painting at the moment. Need a bit of a break. I tend to work everyday without doing other things, so I am starting to need other things to interest me for a little while. I am doing a bit of sewing, making derby outfits. I got a vintage pattern for a dress that would be perfect for bouts. Also I found some orange drill that will be hard wearing and tough in case of rough treatment. I just hope I am in the orange team :-) If not I will give it to someone who is my size. I like sewing because if I can find a pattern I can make what I like, and nobody else will have the same outfit. I usually can't find things in shops. I really hate shopping these days, too many people.

Movie about women artists

There is a new movie out called 'Our city dreams'. It is about 5 women artists who live in New York: Swoon, Ghada Amer, Kiki Smith, Marina Abramovic and Nancy Spero. I hope it comes to Australia!!

Hopeful

Found this interesting article on the Gaurdian this morning

Less money to spend ... less second - rate art
Only bad artists and clueless, greedy collectors should fear the consequences of the economic meltdown. For the rest of us, it's an ideal time to bring some rationality back to the art world

Everyone has an opinion on what will come of the economic slow down. I don't want to kid myself... it will be harder for a lot of people, but I try to think positively about things like this. If I didn't, I may as well give up being hopeful now.

As I keep saying, 2009 is going to be a great year! It's not always about money.

First jobs

The Tracey Moffat talk at UQ on Wednesday night was great. Tracey mainly talked about first jobs and how they affect the way you work today. At first I didn't see a connection but she said that her first jobs instilled a sense of getting the job done and the acceptance/embracing of repetitive work in her arts practice.

The jobs she had were the dirty jobs and the boring jobs because you get the most money for doing them. She was trying to save to go to Europe at the time and that was the way she could save the fastest.

Tracey Moffat seems like a really down to earth person, someone you could invite to a bbq :-) Most of the talk she was asking people what they did for their first jobs. It was interesting to hear what people did at age 15 to earn some pocket money or to get by.

My very first job was picking beans and zucchinis on our farm to earn extra pocket money. At fifteen I worked part-time at Coles as a checkout chick.

Some of the artists in the Glass house exhibition

Lucy Williams
Enoc Perez
Dorit Margreiter
Luisa Lambri
Natasha Kissell
Angelina Gualdoni
Cyprien Gaillard
Christine Erhard
Alexander Apóstol
Daniel Arsham
Gordon Cheung
Angela Dufresne

Painting the Glass House

Susan Buret kindly sent me this link this morning:
Painting the Glass House: Artists Revisit Modern Architecture at Mills College Art Museum
This is pretty much what I paint about. Just add in the urban design and town planning slant as well :-)

Artist talk tonight

Working on some new paradise lost paintings. I am doing a diptych of this one, with the second painting reflecting the first. You can see a previous one I did on my website.

Tracey Moffat is doing an artist talk tonight at UQ. I am looking forward to it. I have always liked her work. I think the first time I saw some of her work was at the old MOCA in Brisbane when it was in the power sub-station at petrie terrace in the 1980's. If I remember correctly it was a photographic piece made up of a heap of polaroids. Can't remember much more than that :-)

my favourites are
doll birth
the series of Scared for life II
Being - Under the Sign of Scorpio

I really like her latest series First Jobs for a number of reasons. The photos she has appropriated appear to be taken in Brisbane and remind me of growing up in this area in the 1970's. The first jobs are all stereotypical jobs that an uneducated or working class female could aspire to at that time. This says a lot of things, but for me highlights what it was like not long ago in Queensland. But the main reason I like them is she is talking about being an Indigenous Australian Woman. In these photos she represents minorities that would have had a hard time in the 1970's in Brisbane to even get one of these jobs. Queensland was pretty racist when I was growing up and it still is really. Though not as bad now, hopefully.

Another thing i like about Tracey Moffat is that she is a female artist that is respected and admired around the world.

On another note, we are going to Uplate at GOMA again this friday. Ed Kuepper and the laughing clowns are playing and my husband likes them and hasn't seen optimism yet. So it's the best of both worlds.

Collecting stuff

They kept working day and night

22.5cm x 30cm
oil on fresco board

An interesting article on the guardian website.

The era of the true art collector has returned

Thanks to the recession, unintelligible works will no longer be sold for unintelligent prices

I recently did a swap with another artist, Simon Collins. He also paints suburban scenes but usually of cars or from cars. Can't wait to see it in the flesh so to speak. I have started collecting art. Only small pieces so far because I don't have much money and we don't have huge walls in our house to accommodate big paintings. I need to save up again so I might be able to afford something next time I go to an exhibition.

Mapping in public art controversy

EU temporary public art controversy

I quite like the concept behind this public art.

Paradise Found

Saw this article yesterday and thought how different it was to my experience at uni.

Everyone says you don't get anywhere until at least 5 -10 years after you finish your fine art degree. We were told on the first day of uni that only 4% of fine art students actually make a living being an artist. Maybe my expectations are low or different to theirs because i already feel like I am getting somewhere. Not in regards to money, but other things like subject matter and direction. The direction feels right now.

Last year was the worst and the best year. Having to go back to full time work at the start of 2007 nearly killed me. But I got so much done in the second half that it really made up for it. I am feeling so positive about 2009. I might be kidding myself, but I feel like good things are going to happen.

At the moment I am doing some more paradise lost paintings. These paintings are about the Gold Coast. I will let you work out what they mean or if they mean anything at all :-)

My mind is 'curated' by me - hopefully

A festival called All Tomorrow's Parties is on soon and I wouldn't mind going but just can't afford it at the moment. Seen all the bands I would want to see there anyway :-) but it's always fun to see them again. I just checked out the website and thought is was funny how the word 'curated' is being used on the flyers for New York and UK. I haven't ever seen the word used like this before. I suppose if these bands did decide who was in the line up they have 'curated' the show, but I think it's funny how this word is finding its way into popular culture.

good link

Arts journal

I'm spent

I got 6 paintings done in the last two weeks. They're all around the 80 x 60cm size so not too big, but when I finished them today I let out a huge sigh of relief. i have never had that sort of deadline before, that I put on myself, so I could have a few days space just in case anything went wrong (i got them done way before they were due). I am looking forward to see what Mariam at 19 Karen says about them.

I am going to have a couple of days off.
haven't done that for ages. Watch some videos and read some books.
then it's back to work! got lots of stuff I want to do before I go back to uni in March

Op shopping is fun

Only two paintings to go. I have done so much work in the last couple of weeks. A deadline is good for me. The only things I have to do are some mapping on top of some paintings of houses I have done.

I am really happy with the results.

We went op shopping yesterday and Tom found an original video of 'dogs in space'. I couldn't believe it. It was $2. The tape is in really great condition too. What a find!



Now I am listening to The Birthday Party and Iggy Pop a lot. I used to really love Nick Cave until he started trying to sing. I think that was around the boatman's call. I really liked Murder Ballads though. My first Nick Cave cd was 'your funeral my trial'. So good!

yay for 2009

I am loving it already.

I went to Australia up late at GOMA with a friend on Friday night and it was fun! We are going again to see Katie Noonan in February and Ed Kuepper in the next couple of weeks.
highly recommended :-)

you get to colour in Arlene Texta Queen drawings at the river cafe. heaps of fun! for all the family.

Still working on paintings for 19 Karen exhibition. it will be a little while longer till I finish those babies.