Vaune Mason

Old things - New things

2012-02-10T18:51:00.000-08:00

It's a busy time right now in Wellington - Jemposium is on, the Fringe Festival is on, and my work bench is full of commissions and my calendar full of classes.
I am experiementing with Mokume Gane - not in fusing the actual billets of metal together, as I don't have a kiln at the moment, but definately having fun working out textures and patterns.
The process (I love PROCESS!) is very intense, and messy sometimes, but I like the methodical grinding and twisting and rolling.
I am making a wedding band for a good friend of mine with the results.

Twisted pattern in brass and copper

Grinding and drilling and rolling.....

Jemposium is taking up a bit of attention as well for now, last night I listened to Marcel van Kan , who spoke for Atelier Ted Noten (NL); Manon van Kouswijk (NL/AUS); - who I loved! Fabrizio Tridenti (IT) was a little harder to listen to as his interpreter was speaking quietly, but so very sweet! and also Liesbeth den Besten (NL).
It was VERY intense, and I struggled to stay awake after a sleep deprived night, but it confirmed for me that my instinct to experiment, experiment experiment this year is a good one.
Tonight I will go to a local bar to the Jemposium pin swap... I have no idea what I will make for it, but I need to make a pin, then I can go and swap it for another jeweller's.
Exciting!

The talks last night were great but I wanted to hear more about the artist's inner process - why they feel, how they feel, what they see... rather than to simply look at pictures of work. Of course, when you try to fit a lot into a short time, this is always a pain!

on another note, it's always fun when you come across old exhibitions or events, referenced on the internet... like this one, a bit of a photo-montage of a show I did with a buddy of mine: Beauties and Beasties.

And speaking of Beasties... somehow I always end up looking after little beasties... this time a baby hedgehog that I found wandering around a dog park. Not the best place to take an evening stroll for such a wee thing - even if you are prickly!

New Year.

2012-01-14T15:21:00.000-08:00

The turn of the year has given me a lovely time to breathe and enjoy life.
I have been spending time in my garden, time with my dog, and time with my friends.

And... back to the studio with new plans, and good exciting ones too!

Currently I am working on a piece for the Retrospect exhibition as part of the International Jewellery Symposium: Jemposium.

This is the work in progress. It's about the size of a golf ball, made from copper and that is a small lens on top. The finish will actually be a coloured patina, rather than the pinkish copper.
It is a neckpiece, and will sit on a wooden mount.

It is a re-work of something I did in one of my first years at school, under Peter Deckers. Not a terribly serious piece - but lord knows I can't be serious all the time!

Next on the cards is a photoshoot for my commercial range "The Wild".
I produce this with my bestie Annie Collins - and we really need to get this shoot happening if we are to push the range properly this year.
We are working with photographer Nicole Freeman - who we have worked with several times over the years - and who always does a beautiful job of capturing the ideas we have!

This is a photo that Nicole took of Annie on our last shoot! It's taken down on Oriental Parade just after 6pm.

And these are the feather rings from the range The Wild. They are proving very popular - with men as well as women, which is unforseen, and fabulous!

That's all for now, but I hope I will be able to post images of the finished work for Retrospect soon!
Cheerio
Vaune

The Online Store....

2011-12-16T15:47:00.000-08:00

Part of the venture that I have been working on for the last couple of months is an online version of our pop up jewellery store... The Jewellery Apothecary.com

Yes - a slightly difficult to pronounce and elongated name, but one that nevertheless, describes what it is we are trying to acheive.

This is the logo I designed for the store.... can you tell I am a bit of a romantic ? (Or maybe I'd already given that one away!)

The if you want to visit, the store site is still under construction - so if a few links are a bit hijinxy they will be fixed up soon - we are just doing some testing at the moment.

Getting out there!

2011-12-10T16:47:00.000-08:00

The new work has been a bit of a hit! I am very pleased with the response. Mostly I am pleased with it myself, and particularly with these new jewelled pieces below.

The first of a limited edition of jewelled pieces in my new Bella Muerta range.

My focus for the next 12 months will be to refine my work, and to find more places to showcase work, and reach new clients.
The Jewellery Apothecary - the pop up store that I am doing with my co-jewellers Annie Collins and Amanda Howley - is going really well. Located at 28 Torrens Tce, a quirky back street just up from the top of Cuba St in Wellington - you could say it is on the fringes of the arts sector.

We are very much a destination shop, and it is pleasing to see that many people are making the effort to find us, and tell others about the store.

Torrens Tce is a mix of industrial (think car yards and dusty old buildings) and new apartment complexes. It leads through to Arlington St, which has a large Council Housing complex on it, so the street traffic is a real mix. Young couples walking home from work - pleased to find something so delightful has taken up residence under their apartment, dodgy old men from the Council Housing complex, and lots of families from Asia, India, Africa and I am assuming many other places as well. The park at the end of the street is a community garden, and is well looked after and an uttlerly sun drenched lovely little patch to have your lunch in.

We are only open there until Christmas eve, but it would be lovely to think of staying there long term. Bringing the arts sector further out into the residential parts of the City, maybe encouraging other arts businesses into the area, where the slightly lower rents might be more achievable.

We have had some nice publicity about the store - including a neat little interview for a local Wellington Blog - Word on the Street.

That's it for now - more from me later!
Cheerio

Vaune

Coming into the close

2011-11-19T15:10:00.000-08:00

Coming into the close of 2011, I feel like my creative plans need some consolidation (is that a word?).

In the last month I have been very busy with commissions and making work for my Christmas season.
It's been amazing to be able to get back to the studio, and my bench.

The Grande Bracelet - with a hand forged silver band and cast solid brass marigold and sugar skull.

I have been focusing on creating a comprehensive range of cast work that is very wearable - and I am very pleased with the result.

The Grande Skull ring

The Marigold Ring

As I mentioned in my last post, I have shamelessly borrowed from the Mexican culture - giving in to my desire to create a body of work based on the Dia Los Muertos holiday.
In an ideal world, I would have been travelling around Mexico during that holiday season, absorbing the sights and sounds for myself. That was not to be, but I have still really enjoyed reading up on this fabulous celebration, and the roots of the tradition.

You might ask why Dia Los Muertos?

I guess because it is one of the most colourful celebrations of death and life. I often work with the leavings of life - bones, feathers, dried up bodies of bugs and birds. In this, I am looking at the ideas and feelings that surround the subject of death. Dia Los Muertos is one of the few publicly accepted celebrations where the death of a human is not hidden away - where the leavings of the life, and the place of burial are not seen as scary or sad, but rightly as an honourific, a memorial, a keep safe.

Out of the dust....

2011-09-24T16:37:00.000-07:00

The dust is settling, I have time finally to recollect my thoughts and get back to my desk and my long neglected jewellery projects.

Coming up on my calander is the Christmas jewellery project with my darling partners Annie Collins and Amanda Howley - The Jewellery Apothocary. This is a pop-up shop, where those in need of a little pick-me-up can find just what they need. We will be selling from November to December... and if you are very lucky, we might just leave a web-shop up for the Apothocary's special clients.

Sugar Skull Necklace in brass

Of course, this means I have to get my fingers dirty again, and I have several new themes to look at.
The first of these is the Dia Los Muertos - something that has fascinated me for many years. I am somewhat embarrassed to admit I have never been to Mexico, but it remains a dream of mine to one day be able to witness the day of the dead celebrations first hand!
it is the joyfulness of the relationship with death that I like - and the colourful and quirky decorations.

Bronze wings with silver-set black cz's

My apologies for the terrible photography here - you can't see the richness of the polished bronze on the wings. Those of you who have been following my work for some time will know that I have a long standing habit of using winged motifs. I love the ideas of transformation and trancendance that wings hold.
I have been having some fun with new ways to use the motif, and new and simple ways to include stones in my work.

If you are interested in owning any of my work shown on my blog, or would like to come to The Jewellery Apothecary, just flick me an email - vaunemason@gmail.com

In some other very exciting news, the Museum of Art and Design (NY) has approached me about putting some of my work in an exhibition in 2013.. so I have been running around getting shots taken for their catalogue. It is for an exhibition that focuses on jewellery & photography combined. So I will keep you posted about developments there.
Hopefully this will mean a trip to NY: for sure that's what Annie and Amanda are planning for already!

Until next time,

V.

The Monstrous Drive to Create!

2011-09-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

Modelling the Tui costume - photo by Stephen A'Court

In a few of my last posts (yes - very sporadic they have been!) I mentioned that one of my big projects was Monster Burlesque....

You can check out what is Monster Burlesque at that blog...

But essentially I deviated from my usual creative path of jewellery and objects to fulfil a childhood dream of creating and costuming a fantastical stage show.

It has been a huge push - and definately worth the effort - and has left me with a wealth of experiences, images, ideas and things never-to-do-again!

Here is a wee interview on the local Good Morning show - breakfast TV - which due to the mainstream nature of the audience, took the most "traditional" element of the show, the Tui dance.

The Avian Belle and Hugo Monster

If it had been my choice, I would have given them the monsters, my favourite costumes, and certainly the hardest to make!

Hugo, the giant blue headed monster from all the publicity shots, was the first of the monsters. He was a challenge for me, as much as I love carving, the huge jump in scale took me a bit to get a hold of.

Usually I am carving with an eye for detail and in millimeters.... this was all about broad brush strokes, and getting the size right in proportion to the human body.

There are also three other monsters, which I hope to post images of soon - when my computer stops hiding things from me!

Til then...

Inspiration, food for thought... the next page?

2011-05-20T20:06:00.000-07:00

I am fascinated by the decorative elements of such traditions as Dia Los Muertos... yes, the subject matter is also of interest. You will have seen themes of this in my last body of work, and I am continuing to look into this kind of imagery. These images are all ones that I have found that pique my interest.

It is something to do with the texture, the shape, and the sentimentality.

Colour... texture... layering... preciousness... sentiment... a touch of macabre. More on this later.

Diving into another project.

2011-04-25T05:07:00.000-07:00

My work has arrived back from Auckland, and I must say that the pieces (those that are not on display at Masterworks) look VERY lovely in my home!
I might get creative and post some pics later, as I seem to be building a collection of memento mori works in my room, which some may find a little odd, but I find quite peaceful.

In all, its a nice closing to the solo project (for now) and I am free to focus on my next big project: Monster Burlesque.
MB (as I term it - because typing Monster Burlesque is rather a lot to tap out all the time) is the culmination of a childhood dream of mine...
To create another world, a stage show full of beauty and drama and of course.... FABULOUS costumes and masks.

One of the most exciting things about this project is that I get to work under Cathy Tree Harris, designing and creating the costumes for the show.
Tree is mentoring me through the design and construction process, and as our sensibilities mesh really well I am really really looking forward to what we produce together.
Also Tree is the magical costume lady, so I am very very lucky to have her mentoring me in this way!

Already we have been working on one monster costume, for the big blue monster "Hugo". Tree has been designing and making my costume for the burlesque character of mine: The Avian Belle, which is a character that lives in MB world.
Currently I am working on bird masks.... LOTS of bird masks.
So far I have 7 on the go, mostly in green, blue and black. I am going to get them finished in the next couple of days, but here are a couple of images of them so far.

They are pictured with my fabric "Tui" neckpiece, (lower left) and I am hoping to get a few more of these made.

It is interesting working on this scale, and with this freedom of materials... the price of silver and gold and the moment makes size in jewellery really difficult, so it is really good to be able to make larger things.

This is one of the plainer black masks that might be used in the Tui dance for MB, and you can see that it is quite asymmetrical. This is because I am hoping for some rather exciting hair up's to go with the masks, and make them almost like hats, or hair pieces rather than just a classic mask.

If you are keen to keep up with MB we have a blog going, and there is bound to be Facebook activity as well.

Cheerio for now <3

Images from the Auckland show...

2011-04-14T02:39:00.000-07:00

In the flurry of all my other activity... and there is a fair bit going on at the moment... I have finally managed to get some images of the work from the Auckland show at Objectspace gallery.

And again...

2011-03-07T23:17:00.000-08:00

My last post had a glitch where it would not let me post up more than two images, so here are the pics of the set lens and image in the prayer bead necklace!

Obviously the lens is not set in yet, but this gives you the idea!

Enjoy :)

More work in progress...

2011-03-07T22:53:00.000-08:00

As promised, here are some more work in progress shots from my Structure:Life show currently on at Objectspace.

The base of the prayer bead necklace - carved out of kauri
the beads are antique mother of pearl, and the setting is stg silver

A close up of the setting that goes with the jade beads showing
the seat for the lens and the swivel at the top.

Dust.

2011-03-07T00:36:00.000-08:00

Back from steamy Auckland... and I mean steamy in the rain and wet asphalt way...

This is my wreckage of a desk - still littered with discarded tools and rimu dust!
I of course forgot to take my camera up to Auckland so I do not have pictures of my show yet, but here are some work in progress shots....

Ok... so I will try to make this sort of ordered...

I was working with ideas of memory and value.
Sounds very esoteric, but really I am just fascinated by things that we
leave behind. I mean, we look at photos like this one on the right, and there is a sense of history, of a life that this woman had. Who did she
become? Was she famous ? was she loved and did she have a full life or did she die early and unremarked?

We make shrines to our loved ones, our famous icons, our religious or historic figures. We often use photos, mementos, and sometimes even hair, bones or the ashes as a reliquary.

As some of you will know, I like to use the left overs of insects and animals in my work. I wondered what lives these small creatures had.
Were they famous? Who saw them live their small passionate lives?
What daily happenings did they influence?
I began to play with the idea of value = the value of their insignificant lives.

People often give me things that they find, that they know I will find a use for. These birds were found in a friend's roof - deceased, dried and mummified - having been trapped in said roof for possibly years.

Things like this, and small fragments of butterflies, crabs and bugs have been accumulating as treasures in my studio. Gathering dust and stories.

Taking a selection of these "treasures" onto my work desk, I played with mixing up the parts, and began to find new creatures in their combinations.
I wanted to suggest a precious or important find - but without the masculine hunting trophy or the scientific specimen feel.
I dreamt up boxes to house these treasures, set with giant lenses (from old projectors) to distort and soften the viewing of the bones.

The feminine image behind the bones came almost at the last moment. I had been struggling and puzzling over how to feminise and, I suppose sentimentalise, the bones. I really wanted to avoid a "horror" specimen. I was aiming more for memento mori.... and I felt that the old victorian style image may remind people of this.

Luckily, a friend Alistair McAra, was having a pinhole photography exhibition at this time, and I asked him if he could take my portrait to mimic the feel of such a shot....

This is one of the shots, with a construction of a butterfly crab in place

This was the shot I found that I wanted to mimic.

And another of the shots of me, with a partly finished construction... this one really shows the grainy film we used!

I had another friend of mine make the boxes for me... and they came up just right....
They are laminated ply, bent and steamed into shape - and Bruce, thank you so much for seeing my vison so clearly and turning it into reality!
The lenses look just perfect. Each one distorts the image underneath. These are all functioning jewellery boxes - the constructions are set into the thick lid, which lifts off to show the compartment for a matching bronze brooch.

And if you are wondering what I did with all those bird mummies ? I made them a beautiful box..... (well, Bruce and I made the box... I carved the feet!)

That's all for now... more soon !

Auckland...

2011-03-03T03:31:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow the Structure:Life installation will open...
Its up.
I am quietly anxious about it.
Now that it is up, and "done" I start to think about all the things I could have done better, and about all the things I want to do next!

I got to have a rare visit to my Dad's studio today and he has given me a pair of wings from a parakeet that his cat caught...
My studio now has a shelf of things like this.
The Structure:Life show is made up from parts that people have given me in this way... lenses, bones, wood...

I am waiting in Auckland for the opening of the show, and all I can think about is getting back to my studio to start making new work!

Hope to see you at the opening!

Vaune

This is what happens just before a show...

2011-02-07T01:32:00.000-08:00

Just a bit of a note... very very busy with exhibition preparations. Some sneak peaks here of work that is on the workbench currently.

This piece is a Memory Box and is called "Your flight was"

it holds a construction of bones from a thrush, a cat, and a mummified baby bird ... a mynah I think.

If you are keen to see the finished work, check out Object Space in Auckland, (Ponsonby Rd)

after the 6th of March.

The show is of jewellery and objects and is called Structure:Life.

Interesting launch into 2011

2011-01-03T19:07:00.000-08:00

Into the new year I dive... certainly it's been a quiet sedate dive, but nevertheless, there are large projects on the go.
Those of you who saw my embroidered work in Thought & Memory in 2009 might look forward to seeing the new body of work I am creating for my solo show at Object Space in Auckland, to be held in March this year. It will include large embroidered pieces, work with constructions from found animal bones and debris, lenses and other assorted paraphernalia. I am currently embroidering at least 6hrs a day, but am interspersing it with other activities so I avoid straining my eyes (like I did last time!)

My friend sent me the link I have here of embroidered portraits - an interesting take on the medium.
I've been reading up on 18th century (and the surrounding centuries) embroidery techniques, and I have to say I love the fact that little in the technique of this craft has altered over time.
It is still a simple, methodical process, yes, with large amounts of tedium! But the layering of colour and texture are so rich and rewarding that the time and effort involved adds to the experience.

Also I think its something that I work with often, this idea of the value of the hand made.
Surrounded by things that are instant, I revel in the investment of time, and repetition.

I don't want to post images yet of the work I am creating, it's still in that flux state... but hopefully I can post a few things soon.

Another friend sent me a link to TBI and a wee overview of interesting connections with interesting people... I was flattered that they included my comment, and am still giggling a bit over the image. This image was from a wonderful shoot by Cathy Tree Harris and Steve Unwin, an amazing photographer. Tree created the mask and collar I am wearing and styled the shoot... yummo!

Incidentally, Tree is currently creating the next Avian Belle costume for a performance on January 14th. It will be a marvellous concoction of pink sequins and lace and feathers! Also in the mix is the burlesque extravaganza MONSTER BURLESQUE... this is a wonderful project instigated by myself and Maria Dabrowska, that has actually secured its major funding (THANKS Lotteries Fund and WCC!) and with the help of my marvelous producer and fellow monster-maker, Mary Laine, we will be working on securing the rest of the funding needed for the show, taking place in Wellington in early September this year.

At this moment, I am working on the photoshoot, planning costumes and monster outfits with Tree... the costumier goddess!

The Christmas tingle...

2010-12-14T04:24:00.000-08:00

I woke this morning, and went to my kitchen to make my ritual morning cup of tea. The weather was misty and warm, which, oddly enough, I absolutely love!
My rather large back yard (such luxury in Wellington) had overnight transformed into a galaxy of dandelions... my whole yard was studded in perfectly formed, gently waving star bursts of yellow.
I am of course, a total sucker for wildflowers, and I really hope I get to keep them for a few days before the lawn mower man comes to tame my tiny wilderness.

Speaking of wilderness, there's been a lovely sequence of events lately....
three weeks ago my rascally young cat Captain Jack brought in a shrieking baby bird, very late one evening.
I was lucky and was able to get the bird off him within a matter of seconds, quickly popped it in a box, and stuck it in my large canary cage in the sun-room.
In the morning, I found a just fledging baby blackbird who was very keen for breakfast!
Since then I have been feeding Chopchop (for so he named himself with insistent repetition of the sound) cat-food - somewhat ironic that may be, but also a good substitute for worms!
He has turned from a grumpy looking ball of fluff, to a sleek and beautiful young bird, who is used to speeding about the floor of my work on quiet weekend days, and loves sitting on the computer keyboard.

He has been very patient with me, sitting next to my bench for hours, being fed catfood every half an hour... and growing up faster that I realised!

Thankfully my studio mats have been very understanding... as where there goes Chopchop, there also goes bird droppings!

He has been super cute, and when he was quite little, really liked to get very close to me... which was a wee bit alarming at times, considering the dropping issue!

It has been an amazing opportunity to observe a wild bird at close quarters, and I shall miss him when he flies off to the wild blue yonder! these are all images of him when he was little, I will try to upload some of him as a teenager soon!

Jewels for Christmas

2010-11-19T18:55:00.000-08:00

Here is it my sweets! Jewels for Christmas...
I hope you are planning on coming along - it's going to be pretty darn cool. I have been checking out some of the other work that is going to be for sale, and let me say now, I am saving my pocket money!
Also, Ale and Michelle, two extraordinary musicians, will be playing their ethereal and just sublimely delicious music for us. Ale is a percussionist, who plays all sorts of instruments, but for this show he'll be playing the Hang - I will see if I can find a video so you have a reference for it.
Michelle is a well known flautist, and I have seen these two play together before... it's beautiful!

We are also putting together live installation to launch The Wild jewellery range - with beautifully costumed ladies, a crazy tea party and gorgeous jewellery.

Its always fun, and I really love to watch the public and see their responses to the jewellery =- and the jewellers responses to the public!
See you there?

What makes it tick?

2010-11-19T18:33:00.000-08:00

Little monster with heart - from the MONSTERS show

Time is so precious to me! I feel it slipping through my fingers, and I worry that I am not "getting enough done." I fill my days, nights and weekends with busy-ness (yes, I know that's not how to spell it) making work, thinking about work, looking at other people's work and so on and so on.

Every now and then I feel lost in the morass of it all, but then I find a point where I can look back over it all and take stock of things. I realise that this year, as it comes to a close, has been a very very full year.

A friend asked me to send some "highlights" of my year to her for an alumi thing at my old haunt Whitireia... the list of highlights was something to giggle over.

January was curating, setting and installing The Gallery of Oddities for Fuse Circus and the World Buskers Festival in Christchurch... transporting over 70 artworks and collectors items down for display in an interactive side show museum (based in a truck).

February was frantic, with building, curating and making work for the Fringe show Alter + EGO, also based in the same truck. Alter + EGO showcased the work of 21 different artists over six days and three different locations in Wellington.

Then March was madness, curating the third edition of The Gallery of Oddities, for the Wellington Circus Festival, our best yet I think, complete with a mini burlesque performance for late night adventurers, a bearded lady (the exquisite Miss Marvella) and lovely lion tamer (Miss Cheeta Von Zeeta), never before seen marvels of the natural and unnatural world, and more...
It was with this version of the Gallery that I began to really experiment with combining my performance and storytelling with some of the scultpural work I have made.
Those of you who have a history with me will know of the thirteen years spent as a Fairy, telling children tall tales and adults dark ones. I think this is an obvious link in some of the more doll like of the works that I make now.

Lambi monster with heart - also from the MONSTERS show

August I exhibited the goldilocks bear with the Toi Poneke group show Head On, September was Dr Sketchy and then October was MONSTERS - a hugely successful group show at MyGalaxi Gallery with the Runamok collective.

November is running along like a freight train, preparing the release of my new range which is created in collaboration with my dear friend Annie: The Wild. The Wild will be released as part of Jewels for Christmas the jewellery sale at the Paramount, this organised through Workspace Studios, the studio I run with Annie, (and where I teach lots of enthusiastic creative people the techniques and tricks of jewellery making) and of course, stocking my galleries.

Working stuff out with Tracy on the soldering bench

Jewels for Christmas is going to be truely wicked - I am making some new yummies, using a lot of stones this year... I think I am obssessed with colour and light at the moment.

I am also really working some cool things out, that play with storytelling and child hood icons.

maybe too much Beatrix Potter as a kid? No.... never too much!

I am very excited by this years event, we have always dressed up the Paramount, and this time we are creating an enchanted garden for our stage!

I have it on good authority that the Mayor is coming to our launch, and lots of other cool and snazzy people as well, so inbetween being excited I am pretty freaked out... so much to do.... so little time.

Yes, time is very precious.

Feathers and fru fru

2010-09-18T20:21:00.000-07:00

Ok - images of the bird costume - thanks to Dr Sketchy Wellington branch!
These pictures were taken by Alistair for the Dr Sketchy records. I need to get some more descriptive images of the actual costume itself, but this will give you a sense of it.

The overall look of the costume is sort of Gypsy Victorian, and I have a lot more embellishing that I want to do to it.
I am very happy with the bird mask, it's really light and easy to wear, and you get very good visibility. Also it doesnt get in the way so much.
I now need to make more of them! And I am also going to be investigating how to make a wolf mask in a similar way.

The coat has a nice beaded trim on it that I found at Pete's Emporium in Porirua (yay for emporiums!) and has wing sleeves, currently they have charcoal sequins on the insides, running down the seams, but I want to line the insides of the sleeves with velvet and oil slick colour feather shapes - in a similar style to the neckpiece I made for this costume.
The overskirt has feather-forms stitched into the waistband - this has the added benefit of keeping the waistline nice and firm as well as looking pretty.
I think I want to trim the sleeves with lace or sequins too.

Over-creative?

2010-09-11T15:52:00.000-07:00

It comes to me that I may well be, like a kid with an "overactive imagination".... "over-creative".
I always seem to be overloading my time with creative projects, and they are all very very cool, interesting projects. I just cant seem to turn down opportunities to do fun stuff!
Lets see what's on the agenda for the moment...
Last night was my first performance at the Wellington Dr Sketchy, and the end of an EPIC three weeks of frantic juggling - moving house (packing sucks), working the two day jobs, making my costume and rehearsing, and working on funding proposals.
Performing for Dr Sketchy was a very fine experience. As a long time life model, with a frustration that all my life drawing classes only want totally naked poses, and want to avoid the horror of drapery at all costs, it was very satisfying to pose in mask, winged jacket and giant bustle.
I will try to post some images of the costume as soon as I can... essentially, think semi victorian bird lady....
I can safely say that I have a bit of an obsession with feathers, their form, feel and colour give you so many options to play with!
I realised last night, as I lay on the couch, that I had that delicious sense of relief, of reaching a point of completion. Tick! one thing off the list... now onto the next!
Yes... funding proposals....that fine torture of presenting your fragile, exciting idea to a panel of powers that be. Hoping against hope that you manage to actually come across as articulate, imaginative, groundbreaking and competent all at once.
The proposal is for a show I am developing with my friend Maria Dabrowska. It's called Monster Burlesque, and in case that confuses you, think of a combination of the Rocky Horror Picture show and The Muppets.... yes.... you get it now don't you?

This is an image I found on the net while researching monstery things... sorry to whoever owns this image, as I lost the URL for it! Doh... but I dooooo love it!
Along side this, I am making new work for the Monsters exhibition - run by the same uber talented group that put on the Robots show at Thistle Hall last year...This time the Monsters show will be at the My Galaxy gallery on Dixon St... down below the footpath... sounds like a good place for monsters to lurk eh?
So.... monsters... currently thinking of using scraps of fur and leather, feathers and fluff... monsters that look slightly self-created....I can see some very late sewing sessions coming up!

This pic is of my latest work, for the Head On exhibition at Toi Poneke... it's called What Really Happened to Goldilocks and is made from antique mink coat, silk, brass, copper, box-wood, doll parts and an antique lense. The dismembered cupie doll in his tummy is actually a wee necklace you can take out and wear.
You can ask me why I made him if you like... it's not as gruesome as you might think.. more a metaphorical bit of imagery.
He's sitting on some leaves, debris from my old garden... and hidden amongst the leaves are tiny birdbones, some set with tiny gems, an strung on chains...
The idea being that you will notices them only if you look for detail in unusual places. My little reward for your overactive imagination!

Building a fabbo website for the circus!

2008-11-28T13:56:00.000-08:00

Being a creative in Wellington, New Zealand is a pretty good life.
Cold and windy though it may be for some of the time, the last few days have been pearlers! Dolphins hanging out the harbour adds to the charm...

I hope to use this blog to track some of the projects I am working on.
In this "current financial climate" (what a catch phrase - uttered with a sense of impending doom by the artists in the community around me) I really feel a need to focus on the positives of my life style, which, though it may not include a lot of cash, is culturally rich and incredibly satisfying and interesting.

So - to the world at large, I am very proud of this website that I put together for my partner's circus company Fuse Circus.
Check it out, it's real pretty! www.fusecircus.co.nz

If you don't know me, you need to know that I am not a carnie - a circus performer... I am jeweller.
It's been an interesting journey building a website. My personal skills are very detail focussed, so the code and the little things have been fine.

Currently I am working half and half on my own jewellery projects, and on the Fuse circus marketing... it's a balancing act in itself (that's not meant to be a pun) trying to keep a reasonable level of energy in both areas. The Circus stuff is like a never ending deadline of things to do, funding and sponsorship applications to make and media releases to put out.

My jewellery studio - Workspace Studios - is based in the Wellington Arts Centre. Its a great little comunity of artists, our studio has 7 people based in it currently, which makes for a busy place at times.

The circus is definately an inspiration for my own work, as I enjoy making work that is not your average jewellery... its more sculpture, or playful objects...

I am making work for Christmas sales at the moment, and planning a body of work for 2009 which is more sculpture and diorama-based. I hope to put up some images soon as I take them.

This one is a sculpture - called Reynard Rabbit -
he is made from antique fox fur and has little wooden arms... he is posed with "Magnetic Memory" - a necklace with magnetic iron sand, magnets and a magnifying lens.

Good fun!