3 Generations - Grandmother, Mother & Daughter

Three generations of creative style - Grandmother, Mother & Daughter.

Hard At Work

 

I have been busy, busy of late trying to get all my projects organised and finished.

I have finally finished the corporate photo job I've been working on - The photo on the left is a small example of what I've been working on. The photo on the right is of me on site, up in the cage!

I've also been hard at work on the publicity for The Gawler Community Gallery - Getting the Facebook site up to date, working on a new emailed publication 'What's On At The Gallery', publicising the latest exhibitions, and organising the new up-coming exhibitions.

Coming Soon: 3 Generations Exhibition in March, and a couple styling shoots I've been working on organising.

Currently Exhibiting...

 

On the right, is a photo I took today of the exhibition by Peacock Lane Photography at The Gawler Community Gallery, exhibiting from the January the 19th till February the 26th. (The photo on the left is of some Lisianthus in a our garden)

I'm very excited about the current exhibitions - I've been helping the artists to organise, and it's wonderful to see their end results.

Other artists exhibiting include Bianca Ottawa, Yvonne Juanay, Kimberley Hargrave and Carol Clue.

To get a sneak preview of the work exhibiting, all you need to do is 'like' the galleries Facebook site (Come on, do it now - It will only take a second. Just click on the link and press 'like'. You know you wanna...)

I'm now updating the Facebook site and will try to post information and photos regularly

Gawler Community Gallery Shop

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Yesterday my Mum and I went into The Gawler Community Gallery to drop off some pieces of work for the Members Exhibition and the Christmas Shop opening on the 10th of November.

I brought my trusty camera along so I could take some photos of the gallery shop to share here with you all.

If you are a regular visitor to my blog, you may have noticed I mention (shamelessly plug) The Gawler Community Gallery quite a lot in my posts. I love the gallery because it is a fantastic way to not only share local art with the community, but it also gives everyone a chance to exhibit their work (especially with the cheap room hire) - No matter the level of their artistic talent. My Nanna, Joanne Hughes, is one of the founding members of the gallery and it is run solely on volunteers (I've been a member since it was first opened and been volunteering for a couple years now). 

Their are 4 rooms in which to exhibit work (3 upstairs, 1 downstairs), but there is also a gallery shop, in which members (anyone can join) can display their work for sale.

Every year at Christmas, the shop is extended to the downstairs room, with a display of Christmas creations and gift ideas. This year I have made an effort to put in a few pieces.

So if you get the chance, please come and visit the gallery. Come and show your support for local artistic talent, and get back to the heart and spirit of Christmas with handmade gifts. If your creative yourself, why not become a member and have a go at selling some of your own creations.

1. The Gawler Community Gallery - Station Master's House, Gawler Railway Station, Twenty Third St, Gawler South - Opened 10am-4pm, Thursday through to Sunday. (The term 'Railway Station' is used rather loosely - It's more of a 'bus' station at the moment, as they're re-doing the tracks and there's not actually any trains running.)

2. Gorgeous hand painted Christmas cards by Ellen Steyn - Original art work, a bargain at $5.

3. Display case in the Gallery Shop. A range of jewellery, bags, paintings, textile hangings, even drums, by local artists.

4. Just an example of some the work, hanging in the entrance hall.

5. Large assortment of handmade gift cards for sale.

6. Gallery Shop paintings, jewellery, scarfes.

Lace & Pearls - Fabric Flower Arrangement

The above is a new piece I have created - An arrangement of fabric flowers I hand sewed, using a combination of new, recycled and vintage fabrics including satins, silks and lace, centered with pearls.

It will be exhibiting (and for sale) at the Gawler Community Gallery as part of the Members Exhibition, which is being held in conjunction with the Christmas Shop, opening on November the 10th.

Exhibition Announcement

I'd like to announce an upcoming exhibition I'm really excited about, featuring Joanne Hughes (My Nanna), Lee Eiffe (My Mum) and myself, to be held next year in March at The Gawler Community Gallery. 3 generations together, to exhibit new collections of work, based on the theme of Aquarius.

Official exhibition announcement still to come.


I have been 'umming and erring' as to whether I should post the above picture - I want to show everyone what I've been working on, but I don't want to give too much away yet. Obviously, the photo won out, and above you can see some fabric flowers I've been working on, made from new, recycled and vintage - Beautiful silks, creamy satins, lace and pearls. You'll just have to wait and see what they're for...

Gerhard Ritter's Solo Exhibition

Last night I went along to the opening of Gerhard Ritter's first solo exhibition, being held at the Blacksmith's Inn at One Tree Hill.

Gerhard is well known locally for his amazing portraits and animal portraits. And although his oil portraits are absolutely stunning, such perfect replicas and so 'life like', I was personally more taken with his work in watercolour which seemed to hold more artistic character.

As mentioned in the opening speech - When working with oils, you have the opportunity to go over and over your mistakes until you are happy. But when working with watercolour, you really only have one chance to get it right - A true testament to his skill and talent.

Images from Gerhard Ritter's blog: http://ritterart.blogspot.com/

I was particularly taken with his watercolour piece portraying an aboriginal fella, titled Martu (above). I have since discovered that the painting has was also chosen as the Editors Choice in the prestigious United Kingdom art magazine The Artist.

The exhibition is running till the 4th of September, held in the dining area at the Blacksmith's Inn. Gerhard as an extensive range of his paintings on show, and is definitely worth a look. The pub also has great food, and is lovely in the cooler months as it has a fire place in the main bar.

My Love Affair With Fabric - Continued

 

 

On the way to the gallery Saturday afternoon we got a little lost, so we were a bit late (Me, late? Who'd ever have thought?!) and missed some of the opening speech. I also had a prior engagement later that afternoon, so unfortunately, I couldn't stay long either. I really wish I had more time to spend taking photos and maybe at least taken down the names of the other artists exhibiting.

The opening pulled quite a decent crowd, especially for Mt Barker. When we finally got there, we could barely fit in the room! The General Store Community Art Centre, is an old, small cottage turned gallery, with 4 rooms to display work and a kitchen/dining area. I most often prefer the small community galleries, over larger, private galleries, which can often feel somewhat stark. Plus, I'm a sucker for the little, quaint 'house turned shop/cafe/gallery' as I love all the little rooms, the history and the character.

Above are some of my favourite pieces from the other artists exhibiting. I have to mention, I felt that a lot of the work was severely under priced. I've seen crappy, mass produced prints at cheap shops that are more expensive! Even someone who is not art inclined cannot argue with the amount of time, effort and talent that goes into a piece, not to mention the fact that it's a one off!

If you or anyone else out there is looking to purchase some art, I highly recommend visiting your local community art gallery. There are some absolute bargains! Not only would you be supporting 'up and coming' artists and your local community talent, but you would be likely to pick up a piece at a very decent price - And you never know, the artist may make it big, and your art collection could one day be worth a small fortune!

I did have a bit of laugh at the opening - While taking photos, I was approached and asked if I was from the media! I would almost be inclined to think that it was a bad pick up line, except I was asked 5 times! Apparently, if you have an SLR, and are at a gallery, then you must be taking photos for the local paper! I might have to keep this information in mind, it may very well come in handy one day... (She said, as she stroked her cat and proceeded to laugh manically) Mind you, I did rather stick out, and looked some what out of place with the other visitors, being that I was the only person under the age of 50. (Not that I have anything against the 'young-challenged' of course!)

The last 2 photos are of some of the beautiful trees out the back of the gallery, that were the most wonderful shades of yellow! My photos do not do them justice! The Adelaide Hills are so beautiful this time of year. I've been meaning to go for a drive through the hills for a while now and spend a day taking photos of the autumn leaves - So watch this space!

My Love Affair With Fabric - Joanne Hughes

 

 

Art work by Joanne Hughes

Saturday I headed up to Mt Barker to the opening of a new exhibition, in which my Nanna, Joanne Hughes was the featuring artist. Held at the General Store Community Art Centre, her collection titled 'A Love Affair with Fabric' is a taster of her creative work with textiles from the past few years.

The collection shows off a broad range of her many talents, with varied techniques, fabric manipulation, embroidery - From wall hangings, to her more adventurous abstract designs.

Joanne Hughes (left)

As far back as I can remember, my Nanna has always been super talented when it comes to sewing and fabric. Growing up, she would make me clothes, hand make all my dolls clothes. She always made my costumes for occasions such as Book Week, dancing performances, school plays and concerts. I remember she even made the costumes for the Rotary Show that used to be held at the Shedley Theatre every year.

Older now, and not so in need of costumes, her talents will still never go unappreciated by me, as I'm lucky enough to have a Nanna who is always happy to fix, mend and take in my clothes!

For 5 years, beginning in 2001, she studied textile art and other art subjects at Para West Adult Campus. She has attended numerous classes and workshops, and has been involved with a range of artists groups. Combining her sewing skills, her broad knowledge of textiles, and her creative flair, she has gone on to exhibit pieces in many exhibitions and even win awards for her textile art! She is part of the committee that pushed for and founded The Gawler Community Gallery and is still the residing Publicity Officer. She was even President of the Gawler Quilting Circle and co-ordinated eleven local art and textile groups to present the Biennial Textile Art Weekend in both 2007 and 2009!

This is just a quick overview of her artistic background. I haven't even mentioned her other volunteer work with numerous charities, her work with the Baha'i Faith, traveling and performing with the folk band Gallimaufry, 30 years at a community radio station - She even wrote and published a book! Anyone who knows Joanne Hughes, would be aware of not only her talent, but her motivation, hard work and dedication, in which she has put into so many art, textile, community and charity groups. She is an amazing woman and I am very proud and honored to be her grand-daughter.

The exhibition will be running for the rest of the month of June, so please, if you get the chance, or just happen to be passing through Mt Barker for some reason, I highly recommend stopping by the General Store Community Art Space, off Albert St, to view some of my very talented Nanna's work.

My Nanna's Up-Coming Exhibition

My extremely talented Nanna is having an exhibition during June at the Mt Barker Gallery, which you should all come and see if you get the chance!

'Joanne Hughes studied Textile Art, together with other Art subjects at Para West Adult Campus for five years, from 2001. 

For four years, Joanne was President of the Gawler Quilting Circle and co-ordinated eleven local art and textile groups to present the Bi-ennial Textile Arts Weekend in 2007 and 2009...

Currently, she is involved with the Gawler Textile Artists who meet monthly to share ideas and techniques, and takes part in many “challenge” projects with given themes.

 She has also exhibited at the Gawler Community Gallery, the Kapunda Community Gallery, Itch and Stitch, Gladstone, and has work on the walls in the wards of the Gawler Health Service.

Joanne has attended many workshops and classes in various fields of Textile Art, including the Melrose Fibre School weekends for the past two years, completing classes in “Fabric Manipulation” and “Embroidered Seascapes”.

When entering the  Bi-ennial Gawler Art Award, Joanne  had success with “Touch of the Nile” which  was winner of the Textile Category at the Gawler Art Award in 2006, and “Bush Camp at Dawn”which won the Textile Category at Gawler Art Award in 2008.

This piece was sold at an auction for a charity event in April this year.

 Recently, Joanne has ventured into using  more adventurous colours, ‘found objects’ and design to create some abstract and stylized forms of fabric art.'

A Collection - My First Solo Exhibition

The above is from my first solo exhibition which was held during March at the Gawler Community Gallery, at which I am a member and volunteer.

The photo was taken by my friend Kate (Thanks Kate! - Check out her awesome blogs Frangipani & Clove and Something By Kate) as my photo's all came out blurry! The exhibition advertisement was designed by my friend Jess Walkden (Thank you too, Jess!). I'm so lucky to have been blessed with such good friends. (Otherwise I would have no pictures for my post!)

The exhibition wasn't exactly up to the standard as I would have liked it to have been, probably due to my organisation skills, but it was definitely a great learning experience. I now know what to expect when putting on an exhibition, what to do and what not to do. I was fortunate enough to sell 2 pieces that I was exhibiting though.

'What a stunningly elegant first solo exhibition. Elise oozes talent, with her drawing, painting,
photography and floral arrangements.' Gawler Community Gallery Newsletter