I have had numerous requests lately for the instructions on how to make paper from Bunya. The parts I use are what Auntie Beverly Hand, Kabi Kabi elder and bunya advocate, calls the shuckings. The shuckings are the parts we peel off when we get the kernel out of a bunya cone. Now I’m going to explain that papermaking is […]
Read More
A few anecdotes, some advice and a word we need to know. Myth Number #1: Raw untreated Bunyas are poisonous It was the year 2011. I entered the staffroom early and placed a large Bunya cone smack bang in the middle of the staff room table where all the teachers came to eat their morning teas and lunches. Then I […]
Read More
I am part of a wonderful group of mutually supportive arts under the leadership of Heather Matthew (Art from your Heart). We really help each other overcome feelings of isolation during lockdowns, periods of self-isolation etc, with members from 5 different countries. I was lucky enough to win a free course called Marvellous Maps where Heather guides you through making […]
Read More
Apart from art-making, my other great passion is my organic garden. I trained as a permaculture designer when my daughter was small and I have never lost the love of growing my own food. As the seasons progressed I noticed that at times in the garden there are a lot of stalky prunings and trimmings. When the lemongrass plant dies […]
Read More
Buying a press I took a chance recently and decided that since I have a good supply of my handmade papers it would be interesting to try printing some of my designs onto them. My regular readers know that I like to do things from first principles, such as making my own paper, inks and twine. However in the case […]
Read More
Date: 2pm – 5pm Saturday November 27 2021 Venue: Alluvial Contemporary Art Space 3/39 Monkland Street Gympie Qld 4570 Cost: $55 per participant This workshop will combine creative paper-making with positive self-transformation! In the process of making their Duets installation, “Reclaiming Women’s Voices”, Lesa and Zela spent time comparing notes on the messages they received during their own upbringings, especially […]
Read More
Over recent months, a major project has been taking taking up a lot of space in my studio – the Duets project. This is a local partnership initiative which paired up artists with different practices to see what creative endeavours would unfold. This exciting project has seen me working every week with my Duets buddy and friend, Lesa Bell. Lesa […]
Read More
After the Award There has been a lot of interest in my mixed media sculpture, My Mother’s Treasures and this has been heightened after it became the winner of the Locals Award in the Hugo de Rietz art competition at Gympie Regional Gallery. On the night of the opening, before the prizes were awarded, quite a number of people came […]
Read More
I have been very lucky to have been able to attend 2 sessions of the Build your Arts Business course run by our local Creative Arts Gympie Region group in partnership with the Generator LEAP entrepreneurship centre. Apart from the fun of seeing our fellow artists and making new friends, the content has been really enlivened by our guest speakers […]
Read More
This year I was honoured to be one of a select group of artists invited to paint a plinth for the Mary Valley Arts Link. Painting this plinth for the Mary Valley group really took me back to a period that was a life-changing time in my life, starting at Easter 2006: that was when Premier Peter Beattie announced his […]
Read More
