Invitation to our Artist Talk

COMMON THREADS

Show runs til July 1st

Artist talk - Saturday June 3rd 2pm. Refreshments. Raffle. Free event

 

Gallery open Wed-Fri 9-5, Saturday 12-5

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“WHELKS” BY MARY OLIVER

Here are the perfect

fans of scallops,

quahogs, and weedy mussels

still holding their orange fruit -

and here are the whelks - 

whirlwinds,

each the size of a fist,

but always cracked and broken - 

clearly they have been travelling 

under the sky-blue waves

for a long time.

All my life

I have been restless -

I have felt there is something 

more wonderful than gloss -

than wholeness -

than staying at home.

I have not been sure what it is.

But every morning on the wide shore

I pass what is perfect and shining

to look for the whelks, whose edges

have rubbed so long against the world

they have snapped and crumbled - 

they have almost vanished,

with the last relinquishing

of their unrepeatable energy,

back into everything else.

When I find one

I hold it in my hand,

I look out over that shaking fire,

I shut my eyes. Not often,

but now and again there’s a moment

when the heart cries aloud: 

yes, I am willing to be

that wild darkness,

that long, blue body of light

Oliver, Mary, Wild Geese, Selected Poems, Bloodaxe Books Ltd, (2004)

Please join us this Saturday June 3rd at 2pm as we talk about about how our exhibition "Common Threads" came together and discuss our artwork: forms, techniques, and inspirations.

Jo Roszkowski and Juliet D Collins at the Opening of "Common Threads"

Jo Roszkowski and I worked together for several months from February to April this year

Jo at work in The Laundry Studio

We experimented together, sharing a wide variety of techniques ranging from freehand machine embroidery, to encaustics, printmaking and more

Juliet encaustic experiments in progress

Jo Printmaking

We explored the common threads in the things that inspire us both as artists....

Juliet - a collection of sketchbook pages and found objects

a shared love of special places...

Wilson's Promonotory, photo by Juliet

....different art forms and artists.

Detail of a sculpture by Bronwyn Oliver from recent exhibition The Sculpture of Bronwyn Oliver  at Tarrawarra Museum of Art. Photo by Juliet 

As we worked together, our own artwork evolved in new exciting directions

Juliet, work in progress (plaster, found wood, thread)

Jo Roszkowski, detail from one of her exquisite artist books

And we loved the challenge of creating our three large collaborative mixed media textile artworks together

Jo at work on one of our collaborative textile artworks

Juliet working on one of our large collaborative textile artworks

Bringing it all together in the beautiful gallery space at Kingston Arts G3 Artspace in Parkdale was amazing!

Jo and I would love you to join us this Saturday in the gallery as we chat about our artwork, share a glass of bubbles and answer your questions. And there's even going to be some free giveaways!

Sorrento Makers Market this Sunday!

I'll be bringing my stall to Sorrento this weekend.

The market runs Saturday and Sunday and I will be there on Sunday. Can't wait - it's going to be a good one! 

I'll have some of my Melbourne city sketches with me....hot off the sewing machine!

The City Sketch Collection

...and of course my usual range of beautiful, strong and joyful women thread sketch designs

The Thread Sketch Collection

See you there!

Opening Night for Common Threads

What a lovely evening and a great celebration for Jo and I after several months of hard (but extremely enjoyable!) work. So proud to see our artworks displayed together in the beautiful space of Kingston Arts G3 in Parkdale. 

The Gallery space looking very peaceful!

Juliet D Collins, "This Soft Curved Universe", mixed media drawing

Jo Roszkowski, detail from one of Jo's beautiful artist books

Detail from one of our collaborative pieces, "Prom Rocks", mixed media textile

Me and Jo

Thanks to everyone who was able to come along and celebrate with us on the night. If you missed it, don't worry - "Common Threads" runs til July 1st. Plenty time!

The gallery is open Wed-Friday 9-5 and Saturdays 12-5.

G3 Artspace, 64 Parkers Rd, Parkdale, VIC

9556 4440

Installing Common Threads

So much fun installing our show 'Common Threads' on Sunday!

Jo Roszkowski and I have worked closely together for the past 3 months to create this body of work. It's so amazing to see it come together so beautifully in the fabulous space of G3 Artspace, Parkdale.

As the late afternoon light cast in through the gallery's expansive windows the shadows were just beautiful.

All ready for the Opening this Thursday evening 6-8pm - can't wait!

Common Threads runs from 27th April - 3rd June

G3 Artspace, 64 Parkers Rd, Parkdale

Kingstonarts.com.au

(03) 9556 4440

Exhibition Opening this week!

I'm all packed and ready to deliver my works to No Vacancy Gallery tomorrow!

Centre Place thread sketch, mixed media

"Meanderings in Visual Language" is a group exhibition curated by Exhibiting Artists Melbourne

Flinders Street Clocks, thread sketch, mixed media

I'll be exhibiting my thread sketches of Melbourne alongside my New York City thread works, like this one...

SoHo Brownstones (after xmas), NYC thread sketch, mixed media

....and a selection of my travel sketches from my recent overseas trip. I've had them framed and they're looking great!

UK: Cirencester, travel sketch, ink & aquarelle 

Other artists exhibiting include Jo Roszkowski, Sharon Monagle, Angus E Donald, Ryan Tews, Selva Veeriah, Tamar Dolev, Tom Conyers, Rosalindh Porter, Roslynne Winkler, Rissah Vox, 

It's really going to be a fabulous show! 

Please join us for the Opening Night celebrations!

Thursday April 13th 6-9pm

Artist's Talks are the following week

Thursday 20th April 6-9pm

No Vacancy Gallery, QV Building, 34-40 Jane Bell Lane, Melbourne CBD

April Dates for your Diary!

Exhibition Opening

Really looking forward to being part of this group exhibition! Great line up of artists in a fabulous gallery located in the heart of Melbourne CBD. 

I'll be showing a collection of my Melbourne City Sketches: scenes of Melbourne sketched on site in some of my favourite spots around the city, then turned into mixed media stitched and collaged creations. 

The City Sketch Collection

I will also be showing artworks produced from my sketchbooks produced on my recent travels overseas. Such as this one from NYC. 

If you can't make the opening on Thursday 13th April 6-9pm, then perhaps you can make it along the following Thursday (20th) to hear myself and other artists talk about their work. 

Hope to see you there!

Updates!

And about time too! can't believe my last post was November!!

 Although I do kind of have an excuse as I was overseas in the UK and the USA for the entire summer (December/January) were I did LOTS and LOTS of sketching

En route in the airport using my iPad app Paper 53 complete with funky Paper 53 stylus which my son later kindly lost for me so it was good old fashioned sketchbook from then on.

Gloucester Quays

Christmas shopping in Cirencester

I did not actually come across any Polar Bears whist on my travels but took to drawing them for a few days anyway.

In the pub over my favourite pint.

I even sketched my beloved New York despite the fact that at -9 degrees it was too cold to take my gloves off!

Snow on the Parapet of the Rockefeller Centre....not a sketch!

And in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This is Pennan, where they filmed "Local Hero". Such a beautiful part of the world. 

I've been loving working in ink again - an old love - I have this great brush pen with a black ink cartridge. I find it works to beautifully with my old favourite water soluble crayons. Most of my travel sketches were done using these two mediums together. I plan to turn my favourite sketches into mixed media, stitched works on paper similar to my Melbourne City Sketches. 

The City Sketch Collection

Since I returned from my overseas meanderings I have been a bit busy with lots of fabulous markets and preparing for 2 - yes TWO! - exhibitions opening in April. But thats a whole other post! 

Thanks Red Hill & Yarra Glen!

Another great weekend at the markets!

Red Hill was busy despite the wild windy conditions. Luckily I had a lovely spot indoors. 

My new works were well received. Pictured below - my new range of Ink Sketches. 

The bold new 'Ms Stripey Socks' was very popular, as was my new 'Cat Lover' who is available in an ever growing range of fancy PJs ;) 

Both are pictured again below with the new thread sketch of 'Dancing Queen'.

I tried out my new stall set up at Yarra Glen. It worked well I thought!

Out and About at the Markets!

Its been so great to be back at the markets after the winter break.

Much though I love to be ensconced in my studio absorbed in the making of my artwork, I also really love getting out and about around Melbourne and the Victorian countryside, meeting the lovely people and getting to chat to them about my creations....or anything else for that matter! 

It was my first time at Red Hill Market last month. What a fabulous market! Cant wait to get back there next Saturday, the first Sat in November.

I've also been a first timer at Yarra Glen. I managed to get a bit lost getting there but what a beautiful location to get lost in! I'll be back there next Sunday, the first Sunday in November.

Then there was fabulous Flemington Twilight where I tried out my great new hanging system to display my new range of larger artworks. Also known as garden trellis - simple but surprisingly effective!

I'll back at Flemington Twilight in November - 2nd Saturday (12th)

Then, last but by no means least....Lovely Lardner Park!

I know one shouldn't have favourites but I had an absolute ball at Lardner Park market this month! Beautiful location - the early morning drive out there as the sun rose over the countryside made my heart soar - lovely people, friendly atmosphere and just a great day! Cant wait to return on the 3rd Sunday of November (20th)

In November I will also be bringing my goodies to Mornington Market (Sunday 13th),  Hanging Rock market (Saturday 19th) and Mornington Twilight (Saturday 26th)

For all regular updates please check in here or to my Facebook page. 

More general information about the markets (location, dates, other stallholders etc) can be found on the Craft Markets Australia website

New! Thread Drawing Collection

Its been a year since I first launched my collection of thread sketch designs and I have been overwhelmed by their popularity.

I have found that several designs have been particular favourites and so - especially for this market season - I have produced a range of "Favourites" in my new larger size 30 x 40cm.

All artworks are individually handmade by me, developed from my original drawings, come fully framed and can be made to order.

Of course all designs are still available in the smaller (13 x 18m) thread sketch size too!

Check out my new collection of Thread Drawings here

Thread Sketches

Spring Markets

Can't wait to get back to my market stall this weekend!

Red Hill Market will be my first market of the spring and I am so excited to be also going there (as a stallholder) for the first time.

Please come by and say hi! I'll be in the pavilion with my thread sketches, including some new designs and by popular demand some new larger sizes of some old favourites.

See you there!

Red Hill Community Market, Saturday 3rd September 8am-1pm 

Beach Girls in the City

Lovely to have these four "Beach Girls" out together again!

They are currently on display alongside lots of other fabulous art at

Scugnizzo Restaurant, 558 Little Bourke St., Melbourne

Red Cozzie, thread & fabric on linen

Shellpicker, thread & fabric on linen

After the Dip, thread & fabric on linen

Flapper, thread & fabric on linen

Belligerent Commitment

“With whom is the artist belligerent? With herself. She knows all about her own disinclination to work, all about the possibilities of failure that confront her, all about the doubts that could assail her. She is belligerent in her refusal to allow these real obstacles to prevent her from working”

— Eric Maisel, Fearless Creating

I have found this concept of belligerent commitment to be absolutely essential to me in my creative endeavours.
Without belligerent commitment the busyness of life would regularly encroach on precious creating time and it would be whittled away to nothing. Dishes would be washed, laundry would be done, the garden would be weeded and productive, repairs around the house would be mended and friends birthdays would be remembered on time. But there would be no art.
Without belligerent commitment the doubts that invariably creep in would became paralysing fears and there would be no art.
Without belligerent commitment a lack of sufficient income for a great deal of hard work would be a signal to do something else instead and there would be no art.
Without belligerent commitment every single day there would be no art.

The work is rarely easy, it is not always pleasurable and it doesn't always go well but that is ok because I am committed to go back to my work the next day, regardless of what happened the day before and regardless of the multitude of supposedly more important tasks that are crowding in and demanding my attention.

As Eric Maisel says:

"The belligerent commitment the artist wants is at once a commitment to start, a commitment to start with energy, and a commitment to continue with energy...If you want to work without such commitment, do less important work than creative work"

Creating Space - connecting creativity

This winter I am offering the gift of SPACE!

"Creating Space"

A regular time and place for individuals who yearn to engage more with their creative selves to come together, connect, play, explore, reconnect with their artist within and simply CREATE!

Beautiful Wilsons Prom - my favourite space in Victoria

Space....whether it be the time, the physical space, or a sense of expansion within us...is the one thing that no-one seems to have enough of. I know I certainly don't!

In our hectic busy lives it can be hard to make the time for our creative pursuits, especially if they are not our means to a living or part of our regular routine. Yet creativity has been shown to have a massive positive impact on our overall health and happiness: improving our body's immunity, reducing stress, anxiety and depression, improving our ability to live in the moment and increasing our capacity to express emotion. 

We are creative beings. I firmly believe that everyone has creative potential and the cost of not allowing our artistic expression to have form can be great. 

 

This Winter I will be running a series of workshops. There are a few different options to choose from so hopefully you can find one to suit you.

We'll be kicking off in Beach Lane's beautiful Studio space with a blissfully luxurious whole day devoted to our own creative journey. As a group we will explore important aspects of creativity such as play, inspiration, flow and commitment, all through engaging in practical creative activities. Lunch, morning and afternoon tea will all be provided and I hope that by the end of the day you will feel nourished, nurtured and very inspired!

This workshop is running on Sunday July 24th at Beach Lane, Carrum and there are still places!

Then in August in Beach lane's cosy library I will be offering warm tea, comfy armchairs and the opportunity to come together for 5 sessions of "Creating Space". There I will be sharing lessons that I have learned along my own creative journey, wisdom gleaned from mentors, books and insights that have helped me. I will be guiding you through a unique combination of practical creative activities, creative self exploration tasks and facilitated group discussion, all designed to empower you to break through your creative blocks and engage more deeply with your creative process. 

It doesn't matter what stage of your creative journey you are at - no artistic experience is necessary, just a desire to create a little space to connect with your creativity!

Please get in touch if you would like more info or if you are interested but not quite ready to book.

Join me at Beach Lane Winter Festival!

Theres no better time to be down by the beach in my opinion. I'm really not a huge fan of beach visiting in the summer but I just love it in the winter! My new favourite spot is the beautiful stretch of Bay at Beach lane in Carrum. If you haven't checked it out yet it's definitely worth a visit and this weekend there's heaps to see and do there to compliment your wintery beach stroll. Check out the Beach Lane Winter Festival Program for more info. I think there are a few spots left in some of the fabulous free workshops. I'll be hosting my "Creating Space" taster session in the cosy library and look forward to sampling some other great classes. See you there!

Super School Holiday Art!

Lots of art workshops to choose from over the July School Holidays!

Superhero Drawing and Superhero Sculpture

Where: Kingston Arts Creative Lounge, Shirley Burke Theatre, Parkdale

When: Wednesday 29th June

Who: age 5 and up

I am back again in the amazing Foyer space of the Shirley Burke Theatre in Parkdale to offer two 2 hour workshops giving kids the opportunity for either a drawing experience or a sculpture experience...or both! 

The Foyer is bright, comfy and spacious with plenty room for letting our creativity flow without worrying about the mess! 

I'll be using fun games and skill building activities to inspire kids to create their own unique artworks. In the morning session we will be focusing on dynamic action figure drawing using our love of Superheroes for inspiration. We'll learn how practising observing people can help us create dynamic action figures on the page! In the afternoon I will be guiding the kids through techniques for working in wire to create uniquely designed Superhero action sculptures! 

Dynamic Drawing!

Fun Games and activities to promote drawing skills and inspire creativity

When: Monday 27th June & Friday 1st July

Where: Beach Lane, Nepean Highway, Carrum

Who: Morning sessions for younger kids (5+) and their grown ups. Afternoons for 8 years and up. 

Super Dynamic Action Hero Art! 

When: Tuesday 5th July 

Where: Beach Lane 

Who: age 5 and up

In the beautiful setting of Beach Lane's Studio, this 2.5 hour morning workshop will offer your little creative ones the opportunity to learn dynamic figure drawing skills enabling them to bring their own unique Superhero creations to life on the page. We will then get crafty with wire and conjure them into Dynamic Action Hero 3D sculptures to take home! Everyone will take home drawings, inspired ideas and a unique sculpture!

Let your friends know! The more the merrier! ;)

Please get in touch for more info

Get in Touch

 

Cheeky Tuesday Creative Kids

Cant believe term 1 of my Cheeky Tuesdays After School Art Club is already half way through!

We have been having so much fun creating multi media artworks in two and three dimensions each week!

I am very passionate about inspiring and nurturing children's own natural creativity. The happily engaged 6 year olds pictured above were given a simple set of instructions in the form of a game to get them started and by the time I paused to take this photo they were completely engaged in working together to produce their giant galaxy frieze. 

Each week we focus on a particular skill, technique, medium or often all three. I like to provide Inspiration through fun games and activities that produce their own ideas, fire up their fertile imaginations and produce their own unique artistic outcomes. I usually teach the kids how to manipulate a particular material or combination of materials such as plaster of paris, wire & paint (seen below) then let their own creativity take over (thats happening this week - I'll post the exciting results!)

 I have no preconceived ideas about what the end result might look like - yes! it can be scary but its also incredibly humbling and inspiring to me as an artist to witness the amazing discoveries and unique self expression that the children reach when they are given creative freedom (within loose guidelines and a framework). I don't know about these Cheeky Tuesday kids but I'm learning heaps! 

and I do have it on good authority that they cant wait to get here each week!

Opening night tomorrow!

Exhibiting Artists Melbourne

at Scugnizzo Restaurant

558 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne

6.00pm til 8.00pm

Artists: Juliet Collins, Selva Veeriah, Jo Roszkowski & Caelen D'Arcy

Please pop in for a drink and a look at the artwork. We'd love to see you!

Exciting New Melbourne Exhibition Venue Opening!

Please join me and the other fabulous exhibiting artists for the launch of this inaugural art exhibition in Melbourne's newest city centre art venue, Scugnizzo Ristorante.

Scugnizzo is already a well established laneway restaurant, loved by locals who work nearby and frequented by regulars who delight in the authentic quality Italian cuisine. Now this elegant restaurant is opening its doors to Melbourne's community of artists and art lovers which makes me very happy as I am privileged to be amongst the first group of artists to place their work on its walls!

I will be exhibiting a selection of works from three of my recent collections: 

My latest Melbourne City Sketches - mixed media collage and thread drawings developed from my urban sketches of Melbourne's unique and vibrant spaces

Recent Thread Sketches - miniature framed textile artworks developed from my original life drawings, exploring a woman's sense of herself and her connection to her environment. 

Selected works from my Veritas exhibition - inspired by my passion for the human form and anatomy, textile pieces that convey my fascination with stripping away the layers to uncover the fragility and strength that exists at our core.

Why not join us for opening drinks on Monday 23rd May?