Day Five-100 days project

A quick post as it is really late. I started yoga tonight for the first time. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would... but did spend most of the two hours in a 'bemused' and confused state. Today's dress is a favourite. I love wearing this dress with red roman sandals and red hibiscus flowers from the garden. It is an easy throw on in the morning. I really like the bow that ties at the back.

Day Four-100 days project

Day Four and a bit of a set back! Went for a run and got back to find the camera awash in water from my drink bottle in my bag. It is now not working. Having to use a back up till I can sort it. I LOVED that camera. So the images today are a bit out of focus. This top has lovely little pockets on the hips. Great to wear with skirts and trousers. I use it as a quick 'fix' back up on mornings that getting dressed is all too much of a rush!

Auckland art gallery

Recently I was in Auckland to visit my daughter at Elam Art School. I had a chance to go to the 'remade' Auckland art gallery. Soooooo cool. Words escape me. It has been done so well. I love the giant flowers opening and closing in the foyer and the red blossom flowers in the water feature at the door. I used to live in Auckland and spent lots of time at the gallery in my teens and twenties...that makes it 20 years ago....jeeze where does the time go? It is just such a delight to see the gallery developed like this...and how they have opened it out visually to Albert Park. Nice.

Day three-100 days project

Hmm. I loathe photos of me. This 100 days project is starting to do my head in... (and it is only day 3!) It is pushing all my 'aging' buttons.  Today my 12 year old daughter took the photo.  The combination of colors in this dress has always been a favorite... BUT it was once very loose on me. (10 years ago)... I am trying not to be too precious about it. I think the dress was late 1960's but it has had a frill at the hem and bow added. It is a thick material and prickly fabric...possibly curtain fabric and not that comfy to wear.
Photo by Ella.

Day two-100 Days project

I am hating the new blogger interface. It is making this a nightmare to do. Guess it is a learning curve and I will get better. Today I am wearing a top that was a dress. The dress was sooooo bright and flowing that I had to reluctantly cut it down to a top... to even have a chance of wearing it out in public. The label says it was made in Hawaii. I like to wear it with hibiscus flowers in my hair to work. It is made of beautiful soft cottony fabric and has such lovely detailing in design around the neck.
Photo by Clyde.

Day One-100 days of design-Cataloguing the collection

Waa hoo! Tonight is the first night of the 100 project. Cataloguing the 'collection' starts. But tonight, of all nights, Blogger has changed stuff about how it works and I am struggling to work out how to load and work with new posts! Oh well, it may be a 'simple' post this first time. Got this dress for $5 a couple of weeks back on K'Road in Auckland. I am picking it is 1960's or early 70's?I used to live just off K'Road 20 years ago doing a Political Studies degree...a long way from where I am now, living on a farmlet on the side of Mount Taranaki and teaching 5 year olds. I love the zip front of this dress and the big functional pockets.  I hate pink, so wearing the dress is a problem for me...but it is functional and as a Capricorn I like that. I wore it today and Clyde took the photo. Each day for 100 days  a new retro outfit from the collection will be posted and a new person will be asked to take a photo of the detail they like.
Photo by Clyde

100 days project

The 100 days project is an online 'live' project that evolves over 100 days.  100 designers over 100 days and 100 projects. This year I am doing a project starting on 20 April.  For 100 days you must repeat a design operation of your choosing. The operation must be repeated in some form every day and it must be recorded for eventual presentation. The medium is open.  
More about the 100 days project and the 100 projects can be found at this link.
100daysproject.co.nz
My project is called 'Dress ups'. For 100 days I will 'catalogue' my retro clothes collection by dressing up in a different outfit. I will wear it to work and photograph it at some point during the day...sometimes the whole outfit..sometimes the detail...and record it on my blog. Recently the collection has got out of control. I have been thinking a photo of each outfit on the wardrobe door would make life alot easier trying to get ready for work each morning. I see dress as an expression of my creativity and have always been attracted to those photos of Tokyo youth dressing up in unusual ways. There is a name for it but I cannot remember what it is.  Also I like the Blyde dolls idea...dress ups and photos.
An interesting 'off-shoot' will be that I can't take my own photo so will have to hand the camera over to work mates to record the outfit.

Signs.

Dad was a sign writer and I think this is where I got the love of writing labels and categorizing stuff. I have just finished these signs for the swimming pool changing sheds at Woodleigh School. I would have liked to make the figures in 'quirky' togs but it didn't seem right for a primary school !

Broody bantam chooks.

They really are a law unto themselves! Moody and aggressive.  They go 'broody' for no apparent reason, even if there are no eggs! Both these girls sat on eggs. Out of 15 eggs we got ONE live off-spring. The girl at the back 'lost the plot' after 20 or so days on the nest. The hens kept arguing over the eggs and rolling them back and forth to try and be the 'queen' chook with all the eggs. It goes without saying that quite a few didn't survive that level of fussing about. Then the chook at the back kept thinking her hatched babies were eggs. She ended up smothering them to death. The front girl turned out to be a great mother BUT she didn't know the eggs we put under her were Orpington eggs from another hen! Orpington hens are massive...so at 6 weeks this 'chicken' is now bigger than 'mummy' bantam and is bullying the mother.I will have to separate them soon. Oh what tangled webs we weave when at first we try to deceive!

The busy little men!

When we were in Raglan over summer I discovered the most amazing place. The community recycling center. Now, you would think that being into recycling/'upcycling' that I would have discovered this sometime before now, in my 20 or so years of going to Raglan for summer....well no.  I happened upon the place when passing on my way to Summer school at Susan Flight's place on Mount Karori. It is AMAZING.  All community rubbish is collected and sorted and labelled. (My family can tell you how much I am into labels on stuff.) The shop had an amazing collection of useful stuff! My car was already filled to the max with camping paraphernalia. But I managed to squeeze other treasures in. Like a World War 2, canvas camp stretcher. Man, I bet that could tell some stories. That sort of sums up why I collect stuff. I love speculating about the stories that objects carry. Anyway I got two garden gnomes..they had no paint on anymore and looked completely worn out and 'over' being garden gnomes! It has been fun to repaint them and bring them back to their 'glory' days.  Now on the doorstep, I look at them and they bring me joy.

Trays

Not a lot to say about these. The pictures say it all. I have been having a bit of fun with old trays from the hospice shop. The top tray has a collage of enlarged photocopies of old stamps. The bottom tray has a collage of circles cut out of Retro wall papers I found down in the studio.   

 

A cute picture I found

Found this when researching oxides and clay. Posted for no reason other than I really like the image and the mask!

Stalking dogs!

You know you are in a bad way when you start 'stalking' dogs you see on the streets and in cars to get photos of them to make them in clay later! This one spotted in a car outside four square in Raglan. Millie got grumpy when I took the photo as she thought it was an invasion of the dogs privacy! This did lead to an interesting discussion about the rights of the photographer and the subject in our new digital world.

Nasty fairy

We are back in Raglan taking Millie up to Elam art school. It is with mixed emotions. She has been very sick over the last month. We have had all manner of tests and scans. She got sick coming home from camping in Raglan. I am sad my first born is leaving the nest BUT so relieved we will get there. It was touch and go if she would be well enough.  She is still very sick but wants to give it a go. As I sit here in the camp kitchen I decided it is time to post a few things I have been making. Over the summer I went to a clay art summer school in Raglan. I found it to be an extreme challenge! We had a live model who posed undressed....but that was not the challenge! The difficulty was making an anatomically correct form based on the model and then 'dressing' her using texture. My sculpture turned out to be a guardian fairy for my kiln. (If she lasts the first firing!) I will keep her in the kiln room during firings and she can help the whole thing along.  Oddly enough I have also found that I have started talking to her when I am working in the studio. I look forward to firing her and then being able to add decoration with oxides and glazes. She is also one of the largest things I have made.

I don't like fairies unless they are the wicked kind like Tinkerbell. But, by golly, she better not make too much mischief!

Odd photo

This photo is posted for no other reason than it is a quirky accident. It reminds me that beauty can be found in the unexpected. I was taking photos on the farm of reflections. I took this one looking into the trough with the slime at the bottom. But it wasn't till I looked at the photos later on the computer, that I saw the ballcock that looked like a sun. Although it must have been obvious at the time I took the photo. Just shows...you often only see what you expect to see.

Recycled deck-chairs@twist

There has been a lack of blogging lately due to 'dodgy' Internet connections. Rural living has its pitfalls. Although I would have to say I have been pushed to the limit waiting for things to load ...it has reminded me how much of an instant gratification world we have become and how patience, the ability to observe and empathise are becoming a lost art. ANYWAY... I have been buying old deckchairs from the hospice and other junk shops and using test pots to vent my feelings on things. This chair is very comfy and is called the 'I AM so over you chair'. (Inspired by 'discussions' with my teenage daughter). All the chairs start with the 'I AM' statement. If you are not from New Zealand you may not get the reference to Colin McCahon's 'I AM' paintings. Do google his work. It is very cool. I have a series of these chairs on the go...for no other purpose than a bit of fun! (and to send 'snaky' messages.)

Very blessed

I feel very blessed to live up in the ranges on the edge of the national park. It is peaceful and the bird life is amazing. Something interesting is always happening in nature. Down the road is a great beach that the dog loves walking on, the kids can have adventures and make constructions, skim rocks....and when I get the courage I will take my horse down for a ride! I am so blessed to live in such a beautiful place.

Creatures

This is one of a series of creatures I have been experimenting with..fish,dogs, rats, cats. They are appearing on posts all around the farm...hiding in gardens. Silently watching the farm comings and goings. Like little guardians. The heads are like a bowl so a small tea light candle can go inside at night. I have started experimenting more with combining glazes and wiping glazes back and layering.

A blast from the past!

I was having a tidy up in the studio and found this painting I did about eight years ago. I used to be into painting groups of people 'out and about'....like riding London buses, walking in the park, at cafes, walking the foreshore etc. It was fun doing the people...each time I was out I would watch one person closely and then bring them home (in my head) to put in the painting that night.  

Proximate Accessit!

I am so proud of Millie. She so deserves it! And it is nice to see recognition for a student doing all 'art' subjects.  She had her last exam today. She has been doing scholarship.  I am filled with sadness too. It is the end of an era.  My first born baby is about to leave home. I will miss her but am excited to hear about her adventures on the next stage of her life.  

More considering spaces

Here is another shot considering spaces. This time it is the hall way before we moved in and now. And over time I am sure it will 'morph' and change again. It is fascinating how we as humans use the space we live in...and how function is often not the most over riding factor.

Jess and the hose.

Wa hoo!  Millie got into Elam!  I don't care if she changes her mind and doesn't want to go... it is the getting in that counts!  I love this photo she took of our dog Jess.  Millie is very clever with her photography. I love how she can capture the essence of the subject.

The 'project' and thinking about spaces.

Lately I have been considering the spaces we live in and how we use them.  Here are four photos.  Each are part of a pair. (Before and after). Before we moved in and now we are here in this place.  I tried to take them from the same angle as the first photo. Both these are of the dining room.  It is interesting to consider how we as humans use the space we live in. Also how spaces change over time and with fashion.  These photos of the same room are taken 18 months apart. There are many changes to make still.  The initial changes on the house have been cosmetic... recycling and upcycling where possible.

New Rats or are they 'Foxies'?

This rat is in 'Kina'. (A craft and design store in town).  It hasn't sold yet.  Sonja who works there rang and said people don't like the idea of rats....and suggested I change the name to 'foxies'.  I resisted because these rats came about in memory to the rat that died in our ceiling. (See an older post). When I have more work to drop in I will pick him up and bring him home. He can keep me company in the studio.

Aunty's row boat.

My Aunty has always had a thing for row boats. I have done chalk drawings for her of them and a few years ago made this row boat.  It was one of the first things I made in clay.  The wood tech teacher where I worked helped me fashion the oars.  I like it now. I like it's imperfections.

Caravans for fun!

As my dilemmas continue about the caravan 'do-up'.....I found another couple of pictures that tickled my fancy.  Have you ever heard of the saying 'Trailer Trash'? It is a saying that has always made me giggle!   ANYWAY....I have decided to leave the Elk baby pretty original.  Easy to change my mind later but not so easy to go back if I have painted etc.  We are going away in the new year for a week in her.  That should help us resolve what to do. I have sewn new curtains out of some 1970's tea towels.

Moving stuff on!

Sometimes it is good to clear out stuff and move it on !? Make room for the new. Due to way too little time to create lately and the need to put work in a local exhibition I have had to look again at work I have up around the house that could be used. I have got so used to some of the work that I don't really notice them anymore. I have had to step back and try to see them in a more critical light.  Up to now I have tried to keep one work from each stage I have gone through.  The exhibition is timed to be on during world cup games and is called 'The Blue Line'. I like this title.  It is called this due the the blue line our local council has painted along the footpath to led visitors for the world cup from the centre of town to the stadium. A distance of about three kilometres. Quirky little idea!

More snow Photos!

Worth putting here for the family record! A once in a life time event. SOOOO 'cool' and wet and cold...

The Big snow.

A few weeks back we had the once in 50 years snow fall. AMAZING. It suddenly started about 6.30 a.m and we were guttered to have to head off to work around 7.30 a.m. We all desperately hoped it would still be snowing when we got home late afternoon.....but it wasn't. In the morning it just covered the fields for miles and miles around.  The bit I liked the most was the eiree silence that accompanied it. And it was so pretty.
A few weeks on, I am cursing how it has killed all my plants that had just started getting their spring growth. The Taro, Canna lillies and Puka trees have been especially hard hit.
On, what shall now be forever called the 'snow morning', I did curse and hiss alot. It was bitterly cold in the early morning trying to get covers on the horses with the snow being driven in horizontally in the dark...trying to do the cattle etc, get to school/work and get my class of new entrants on a trip to the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery by 9.00 a.m AND then discovering me and my daughter had head lice as we left home (for the 20 minute drive into town)! Oh the perils of teaching!

Caravans

I am about to get the caravan out and spruce it up.  Do I leave it as it is... or do I fancy it up?  Such a dilemma. Last year I took these photos of caravans.  The top image I took in Arrow town and the bottom one in Wellington. Our Caravan is a 1976 Elk/Sprite.  It has yellow upholstery and cream vinyl.  The exterior is baby blue.  I love the caravan.