In search of (iron) bark

We went "up the back" of our neighbour's place this morning in search of ironbark  - and found inspiration for the 2QAQ Challenge for our July meeting - lots of different bark. A perfect wintery morning with clear skies and sunshine - comfortable enough for piling the timber into the old farm ute we use for this kind of thing.

The heart of the matter

The heart of the matter - I stitched a heart as the focal point for this quilt - what an exquisite organ it is - the keeper of life.  

Sketches in June



ink with brush - a favourite cup



ink with thumb -  mug, cup and kettle



charcoal - vanity basin

State of the Art Quilt and Workshops @ Pine Rivers

You're all invited to the opening of State of the Art Quilt 12  followed by a retrospective of SotAQ artists who have been juried into SotAQ at least twice. It's a rare opportunity to see some of the best art quilts from the Queensland Quilters Art Quilt group  and it all starts on 11 July at the Pine Rivers Art Gallery at 199 Gympie Road, Strathpine (north of Brisbane). Gallery Hours: 10am - 4pm Monday to Saturday. We're sharing the Gallery space with our TAFTA friends and colleagues - their exhibition Baltic Miniatures runs alongside SotAQ and the retrospective. The Gallery is also hosting workshops during the exhibitions- so if you have ever wondered what it is that we do, come along  and try for yourself. I'll be presenting two sessions on mark-making on Saturday August 11 (10.30am – 12.30pm) Marks on Fabric I (mono printing and stamping) and (1:00pm - 3:00pm) Marks on Fabric II (rusting and resisting).  Contact Tracey at the Gallery on 3480 6941 for all bookings.

Other workshops presented by artists in the exhibitions include:

Thursday, July 12  (10.30 -12.00pm) -Simple rolled felt beads ($15)

Saturday, July 21 (10.30am – 12.30pm) - for 8 - 12 year olds -hand dyed silk treasure pouches ($20)

Saturday, July 21 (1.30 -3.30pm)  Hand dyed silk scarves  - 13 years - adult ($20)     

Saturday  July 28 (10.15am – 12.15pm) White on White - creating texture ($20)

Saturday  July 28 (1.15 -3.15pm) Felt a handbag ($20)

Thursday, August 2 (10.30am – 12.30pm) Jewellery workshop ($20)

Saturday,  August 4 (1.30 -3.30pm) Hooked rag rug from recycled clothes ($20)

Thursday August 9 (10.30am – 12.00pm) Driftwood brooch ($10)

Saturday August 11 (10.30am – 12.30pm) Marks on Fabric I (mono printing and stamping) and (1:00pm - 3:00pm) Marks on Fabric II (rusting and resisting) ($20 each session or $35 for both)

Saturday August 18 (10.30am – 12.30pm) Handmade felt - 10 years to adult ($20)

Saturday August 18 (1.00 -3.00pm) Hand felted beads - 10 years to adult ($20)

Loose Leaf Tee

This is the $3 tee I purchased on my first ever trip to Walmart in 2010. In nearly two years it hasn't matters what happens to this shirt - it always bounces back. I decided to try rusting with a twist of sorts - the tee was put through the iron mix and caustic soda dip and then placed halfway into the tannin tray - which was made up on a handful of loose leaf tea and a jug of boiling water. Once I was happy with the effect the tee was laid out on the grass to oxidise - complete with leaves. Will be fun to see how it turns out and if it is even wearable!

The very heart of it ...

Inspired is probably not the right word. Artistically, there is often a trigger or catalyst from which we launch ourselves. I find myself responding to the sale of my parents' property after forty years at "509". They, I might add, are full of the possibilities for the future at their new residence.  For now, I am staying in the trauma of upheaval and disruption. The first response has materialised in "The very heart of it ..." which developed at a recent  retreat. Text and textiles. I have tried to convey the emotional quality of moving day. In a literal context I have chosen the use of text. The heart (not shown in this pic) symbolises the emotional core of  being, and the gift of Dad having survived a trauma of a different kind ten years ago). The final element was the creation of the focal point - which goes to the very heart of it.

Coffee, cake and rust in Ipswich

I recently caught up with Anna Maria Mays Vermeer in the historic Ipswich district. Anna Maria was the guest speaker at the most recent 2QAQ meeting, sharing her love of textiles, felting and repurposing with the group. We visited a few of the many op shops and antique / collectibles places on our way to Cactus for coffee, chatting and delicious cake (no picture, we ate it too quickly). Anna Maria's rust piece from our 2QAQ demonstration is looking rather intense - it was surprising how much rusting occurred in such a short amount of time.

2QAQ Bark Challenge

Challenged to Bark has absolutely nothing to do with dogs! The Queensland Quilters Art Quilt Group challenge for our July meeting is ... bark. You are invited to "scrunch, scratch, slash, spray, sand, stipple, sew, stick, silk or any stuff  ..." and put these together in A3 finished size. Our 2QAQ challenge organiser, Rosemary McCall is herself a talented textile artist and we are in good hands with Rosemary at the challenge helm.  July will arrive all too quickly so I started experimenting on the materiality of "bark". Here I've bound rusted fabric to a piece of down pipe then scrunched it down as tightly as I could before squeezing tannin-rich tea bag juices over it. This will produce variations in the depth of colour and hopefully) a lovely, barky piece of fabric for use in the challenge. I have also been playing with dried mushroom skins which give a stunning barky texture but may prove too fragile for incorporating in the finished piece. Back to the down pipe ....

Update from The Rabbit Hole and Ali (ce)

It's like good old fashioned gambling houses. So many curtains and no clocks. You can't tell (unless you look at the computer or watch) what time it is. Down the Rabbit Hole continues to be a source of excitement for the 20 plus participants here in the Brisbane group. We're competing, so to type, with teams in Melbourne and Hobart and the online group. Brisbane team hit 33,916 words last evening, with Melbourne slightly ahead on 40 plus thousand ..... I feel cheap saying they have more attendees than the Brisbane group, but there you have it! We are nestled into the second floor of the State Library of Queensland at the Queensland Writer's Centre. There's a kitchen and the big room where we sit, side by side, pouring words out of our heads and through fingertips into machines. Hour after hour .... it's such fun! Just over 7,000 words written ... and 23,000 to go ... sigh

Down the Rabbit Hole

Tonight I'm going down the rabbit hole with Sue, Kate and many others in Australia and on the other side of the big pond. Queensland Writer's Centre has issued the challenge of thirty thousand words or "The End" by 8pm Sunday night ... it's all rather exciting!  Packing  the essentials of life sans the red wine, included some spare memory sticks, quite a few ideas and my favourite tea pot of course! See you all sometime after 8.00pm on Sunnday night (Brisbane time). I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date ....... 

Soy, salt and something else @ 2QAQ

Jan's soy wax resists

The Queensland Quilters Art Quilt group met again last Saturday and for our "play time" we explored soy wax resist on black fabric - and discharging with bleach.  We also played with rusting - those pieces are still under wraps. Jan McPike managed to create these beautiful pieces - using soy and a few implements that could be found in just about any kitchen drawer. Our guest speaker was Annamarie Mays Vermeer,a textile artist who hails from the Ipswich area and whose work can be seen at the Art Supply Store in Brisbane Street Ipswich. Our next challenge, thanks to Rosemary McCall is "Bark" - and I can't wait to see how that gets interpreted between now and our next meeting at the end of July. Please feel free to join us if you are in the area, or are looking for an artistic afternoon out! Details are on our 2QAQ blog. Thanks again Jan for your always inspirational efforts.