2024, the year in review

 This time of year is good for so many things - slowing down, forgetting what day it is, as well as looking back and looking forward.

Each year I reflect on what I made in the course of the year, and consider the pieces I like the most; or those of which I am most proud. Sometimes they are real works; at other times they are simply little pieces that gave me great pleasure.

This year I have a real blend of things, as it was a busy year exhibition-wise and I experimented with different things.

In alphabetical order only, no listing of favourites by ranking, here are the ten pieces I made this year which I like the most.

1. All That Was Lost

The feature piece of my exhibition Hame, these five scrolls cascaded beautifully into their rusty tins, with the hand stitched words depicting such rich and full lives and homes. My heart still feels warm when I look at this piece and I'm thrilled it has a new home at the Strathnaver Museum.

2. Bundled and Burnt

Another piece for my exhibition Hame, this piece is so simple, so elegant and so poignant. It too now resides with the Strathnaver Museum and whilst I will miss it, I hope to visit it there again one day. The background story can be found here.

3. Grief is a Stone book-ets and cards

The three poems here, pondering grief at different points along the way; hand illustrated, embossed and stitched; are quiet and gentle acknowledgements of grief.

4. Hame exhibition activity

Alongside the exhibition Hame this activity brought me so much joy! Visitors participated by writing their responses to four questions over the four weeks and I hand stitched each week's responses into a book. I loved to read people's thoughts and was impressed by the time and consideration they gave to them. Such a lovely record of what home means to folk.

5. I Hit a Wall

This one kind of came out of the blue towards the end of the year, when I was just taken by the notion that this work, incomplete as it appeared, was in fact complete. I tacked the pages together and it was done. Telling the story of the pandemic in 2021 and how weary we were all were; how many things we had to deal with; how many decisions were made daily and how we were transfixed by press conferences, updates and data.

6. Pebble Jewellery

The Pebbles exhibition offered me the opportunity to expand my work into all sorts of mediums - laser jet cut steel words into stone sculptures; and hand formed-silver jewellery in the form of pebbles. I discovered I loved making pebble jewellery! And folk also seem to appreciate it. I now have an exclusive arrangement with a shop to sell it for me - who knew?!?!

7. The Emigrants

This unbound book was another new direction for me with the overlaying of photographs onto lightweight papers as illustration and image. Although the postcard size, Letraset and hand stitching meant it didn't venture toooo far away from me. Another piece for my Hame exhibition.

8. The Shape of Things 6

Although this piece was not my favourite amongst all of the books for The Shape of Things, it does make me happy as it reminds me what a lovely collaborative exchange it was with Annwyn Dean. It was also the only piece completed this year as all the others were made in 2023.

9. Together

Sometimes its a large exhibition or collection-worthy piece; sometimes its a small gift or offering that heads out and around... These together cards are the latter; and they just remind me of how important it is to stand alongside folk and remind ourselves we are not alone.

10. Travelling Home

Last, but definitely not least. This piece has been in the making for years. More than five, as ideas about pegs and threads and two homes percolated about in my brain. Hame offered me the place to put it together with notions of here and there, of travelling and of reminders of home. I quite simply love this piece and it is the only piece of my own work I have ever put up on our wall.

Thanks for coming along on the wander back through the works of 2024. On reflection having so many exhibitions to participate in meant I really did create some work! For once I was spoiled for choice for selection rather than rummaging through and trying to find the small things... It also looks a lot like my palette - the soft muted tones and a surprising amount of blue.

I focussed on the notion of home a lot, and the impacts of displacement on women; pebbles also featured in different ways, as did grief. Community, collaboration and care are there; along with my new found passion for silversmithing. Life is good and it was a very fortunate year.

Here's to more making.

Exciting News

 I received an email the other afternoon, which thrilled and excited me no end.  It was from the Museum and they advised that they wished to purchase two pieces from the exhibition: All That Was Lost; and Bundled and Burnt.

I sat there with tears in my eyes as I read it, to think that these two beautiful pieces had found a home in the place they were meant for. It was so moving, and so special.

I admire the Museum so much for the way in which they have become such a force for contemporary understandings of historical matters. Not only do they honour and value the artefacts they are custodians of; they tell the stories in interesting and visually and aurally stimulating ways. The volunteers are all knowledgeable and helpful and the building and displays are just beautiful.

Their commitment to promoting contemporary art which tells stories is to be admired. The fact that they hold exhibitions with contemporary artistic interpretations of local historical issues is wonderful. That they understand how art offers viewers and visitors another way in to understand nature of history in this area is worthy of applause.

That they then add to their collection of historical artefacts, contemporary artwork is just marvellous. The works will eventually be on show in the cafe near the Museum. As I understand it, the plan is for a renovated and refreshed cafe experience, and within the building the artwork collection will be showcased, which may of course,  encourage folk to go across and visit the Museum as well.

So I have diligently packaged up and labeled the works.

I also provided more information and images of the works for the record.

I included the 4 books I had stitched throughout the exhibition as they were being gifted to the Museum and you also need paperwork for donations!

We are beginning to turn towards returning to Maleny. As ever, the leaving will be bittersweet; but I go with a slight spring in my step knowing that these precious pieces have found the perfect home.

Finishing off

 Well, our Scottish adventure begins in earnest tomorrow as we head off to our home in the Highlands.

We have been working right up until we go, but have also taken moments to enjoy magic and beauty.

This first shot was of my shadow after I arrived at exercises one morning - it was 3 degrees outside and I had taken a lovely shot of the sunrise; and then glanced down and loved the texture and mystery here on the concrete.

But back to finishing the work... I was wanting to hang my burnt bundle in a Perspex frame. Barry very kindly made me an extra long brass rod needle for threading my very fine nylon thread through the envelope so we could tie it on. Here it is on our high tech work bench (kitchen bench) with a hand towel as protector.

We did some measuring and then began drilling the holes. The first hole was a dream. The second hole not so much. The drill bit warmed up so much it began to melt the Perspex, and then when it had, that meant that the drill bit kind of got glued into the hole in the Perspex.

An interesting dilemma.

But lots of patience and ingenuity working out to encourage the drill bit out of the hole were brought into play and after a wee while we had successfully removed it.

We then tested threading the nylon thread through the envelope and through the holes and tying them off and I think it will work.

Our work station.

And as a complete and utter absurd aside - how is this? On Saturday we were alerted to three stags (with excellent antlers) wandering around below us here in sub-tropical Maleny in winter!

I wonder if we will see any when we actually get to Scotland???

And for more moments of beauty, I took this photo of a ceramic heart that hangs off a sculpture near our front door. 

Burning the bundle

After our few days away I had a day where could I lock myself in the studio and get a proper run at things; which hasn't happened in over  month. 

It felt so good.

One of my goals was to have some quiet and focussed time to work on the burning of the bundle. I had had intermittent moments here and there to practise with this and that; but I knew I would need steadiness to get the burning right for the final piece. 

Because it matters.

As part of my exploration of home for my exhibition in Scotland, I am preparing works around the dramatic Clearnces of people from their homes along the Strathnaver River near where our cottage is.

This piece is based on the testimony of one of the folk who were cleared from the Strathnaver back in about 1817. Aged 89 in 1883, Angus Mackay from Ceann-na-coille stated:

"My friends, and several of the townspeople endeavoured to obey this cruel summons, and carried their effects down to the river's side. Here they formed a kind of raft, whereon was placed all their furniture, farm implements, clothes, etc., in fact all their worldly possessions, except their cattle. Then they took shelter, and anxiously awaited the rising of the river to enable them to float the raft down the stream towards their new home.

Soon, however, the furious burners came, and in spite of the poor people's entreaties and promises, the raft was easily set on fire, and before the party left the ground it was all in ashes along the banks of the river".

The cruelty was monumental.

And so I began.

I started with a bunch of hand made envelopes.

I lit a candle and began dipping the papers in and out, and over the flame...

I wondered how many to do.

And when there seemed to be enough, I tied them with the string I had singed and smoked before.

And then I added some more bits. I think it is done now.

For part of the display I want to include some scattered charred and burnt bits, and a small pile has begun.

So I hope I am honouring the experience of some of these folk in this small way.

Bundles before burning

 I mentioned here about my plans, thoughts, experiments around burning bundles for a piece of artwork for the Scottish exhibition.

I received some excellent advice around perhaps dampening down the cord before putting it through the flame, which I did this time around and which gave me much more control. I got quite a good length of cord slightly singed and smoked.

And then onto the bundles before...

The autumn/winter light in the studio is lovely. I particularly enjoy how the sun moves through the foliage to the north of the studio and produces little dancing moments on the concrete floor.

 Into this dappled light I placed my bundles to photograph.

They are truly beautiful and part of me looks on anxiously as I consider singeing them, hoping not to burn them too much...

Perhaps that is why I chose to photograph them before! This way I will always have a reminder of how beautiful they were.

Especially in that dappled, dancing light.

I spent some time singeing things that may become parts of the bundles, and smoking them. The look and feel is definitely coming together.

Bits and pieces, and burning

Another busy week and some great days at the Studio showing the exhibition to wonderful people who enjoyed the show, and looking around the studio space with all its lovely bits and pieces.

Here are some compilations of Susan's, Tory's and Steph's work which I was using to promote the show.

In between times I managed a few creative things, bits of this and that, and started to pursue  an idea about a piece for Scotland. It involved burning, so unfortunately the studio did smell a bit of incense on one day so I stopped doing it whilst folk might be coming in.

First up I wanted to see if I could singe a piece of cord/thread. I did pretty well, but it did burn through in a few places, so here it is knotted together.

A selection of burnt papers follows - it's always good to work out which ones will go whoosh! and which ones are more of a slow burn...

And this maybe is a video of me first testing how to burn the thread/cord - a bit of an unplanned and spontaneous idea which had the odd moment or two...

And if that didn't work; then here is link to the YouTube version...

Whilst this final image pretty well sums up the weather again this week - wet, wet, wet.