Joy of Dance- a preview

a preview of drawing in progress

I have always enjoyed Picasso's work... his overlaying of textures like newspaper to stand in for the act of reading, the texture of the tablecloth or perhaps the wallpaper.  When I saw his etchings and a couple of very small paintings in the NSW Art gallery, I felt a resonance with his work Two women running on the beach, 1922.  He captured that joy of the body and movement that I am trying to explore in my work.  So I started another drawing, here is its beginning..... I am going to leave open spaces in this work.  The oval drawings are a series that have a more baroque looking glass feel. 

Etching and Aquatint

A new aquatint box!! does that delicious rich velvety blacks that are such an intrinsic part of etching..... and made by eldest highly talented son Victor... of Volpe's Cabinetmaking... Cromer.



Laundry has become my extended studio!

I've got the rose plate back to speed.... the darks in the aquatint had a breaking down issue.... gave me a chance to get the box going with rich dark results...



1min 50sec bite with good boost of rosin for rich covering.

 

Domestic detruitus put to work

Two very inspired and inspiring women have given me a lovely reminder of my residency here with a bag made by Bharti and printed by Bharti and Kavitha. 

It is a collagraph block that Bharti made in one of the workshops.  It has a stencil that blocked out areas of the collagraph to form the image of a butterfly.  She is a daub hand at sewing too. 

Below we are standing in front of a display of some women's work that they made whilst in my workshops. 


Bharti at International Women's Day Ashfield



Collagraphs and etchings by International Womens Day female workshop artists

She's Dancing House

How can 2 months of this residency have passed already... so much more to do.  I need my quiet time- and drawing with pencil and paper- does it for me.  Still a work in progress, this drawing is coming along quite nicely.  Dorothea Tanning's soft scultpure work in particular the Hôtel du Pavot, Chambre 202   which I saw at the Pompidou Centre, several years ago, has never left my imagination.  Right now my female protagonist cant quite get out of the domestic.... so she is dancing house instead!

She's Dancing House