I has been a very busy year in terms of exhibitions and creating work. The sales however have been less than stellar and most of what I have sold is smaller work. It is lovely to sell but it is the bigger work that sustains. The smaller work does not create an exhibition of themselves, though they can be good fillers. That said I do seem to be making a lot of smaller works which is a bit determined by the space on my printing plate. My cold press laminator has decided it won't cooperate any more at present ( though it can be fixed with the right tools which I don't have) and I have to say the design for the wheel turning the rollers is not very satisfactory especially if you apply quite a bit of pressure.
I've also been making quite a few different inks, though I have to watch myself as the inks need to be stored somewhere, and really I can make more next year if I run out- it just seems so lovely to have lots of colors ,although in all reality I have a few favorites.
The Inkpot Alchemists are presently exhibiting at the Orbost Arts Centre and we also conducted some workshops there in November. One of the participants, Kim Pauly, took me out to Cape Conran, which is just the most fantastic place and I hope to go back when we pick up our work.
There are a lot of ideas bubbling away below the surface at present- and I know from previous experience that that usually generates something new- so I am a little impatient in working out what it will be. I have worked to prepare for two exhibitions coming up in March, one at Meeniyan Art Gallery here in Gippsland and one for Croisements des Arts in Chartres, where is shall also be teaching a master class.
I have also been playing around with printing on the mulberry paper as the inks behave in interesting ways on the mulberry paper I am using, I am toying with adding wording but have not quite worked out how, hopefully it will come to me sooner rather than later.
Some new works I made for the Inkpot Alchemist exhibition in Orbost. They are nature and linocut print combos, stitched by machine and hand.
This print is nature and linocut combo printed on mulberry paper and I am in the process of hand colouring it with natural inks.
I have also been dabbling with a bit of writing, but at present it is just playing, but it is also something that has been bubbling away in the background, but in a way i really want to combine writing with the work I have been doing for stitching is like a kind of writing for me. I still have my Bush Scribbling booklet for sale if anyone is interested just email me and of course I do have some printed fabrics available.
