Jumping high in July!

So I am kicking goals this month with plenty of LOVE coming from the ART Universe. I am super excited to have three businesses showcasing my work from now through to September and October. 

Firstly I am finally on display in my home land of Tamborine Mountain with 6 works available from a new shop on Yuulong Street North Tamborine 'Lil' Vintage & Handmade'. Affordable Vintage clothes and finds, records, accessories and local handmade wares. I was having a sticky at this cute little store with a friend last Friday and thought I would mention 'My friend can paint' to the store owner Leslie and the very next day I received a lovely phone call from her asking me to show my work for 8 weeks!

A month ago I sent an email to Cafe D'Bar after having many friends tell me that my work would look great in the Art Gallery here. To my surprise the Art Director Jo was familiar with my work, having seen me on Facebook and at Miami Marketta...always surprised by this. So she invited me down to meet her with a selection of my available work and we booked a time for July. A short trip down to Coolangatta was well worth it, as Jo took 4 of my paintings to showcase over 3 months. This gallery is amazing for so many reasons. Firstly the location is spectacular, directly across the street from the light house and overlooking the ocean and famous surf haven Duranbah...breath taking. Secondly they house a huge variety of artworks and wares by local Gold Coast artists and the surrounds. Thirdly the staff are so supportive, sincere and friendly! Three big ticks for me :)

Next weekend I will be delivering 8 artworks to Cafe Conte in the Brisbane suburb of Wilston, thanks to my Dad and Step Mother's bragging to Cafe owner Graham. Cafe Conte have won the hearts of many Brisbane diners with their creative menu...which I can also vouch for, having recently enjoyed a scrumptious breakfast of Sweet Corn Fritters served with smoked salmon, 2 poached eggs, rocket and avocado. Delicious! This opportunity came up suddenly so I am doing my best to get a cohesive collection of works together by Saturday. Thank God for school holidays...which are sadly coming to an end :(

Should you be in any of these areas, take the time to actually view my work in real life and let me know your thoughts.

Lil' Vintage & Handmade
2 Yuulong Street, North Tamborine
Open Wed-Sun 10-4

'Ice Queen Fro' Now available at Lil' Vintage

Cafe D'Bar Art Gallery

'With wide eyes watching'
New work now available at Cafe D'Bar

275 Boundary Street  Coolangatta QLD 4225

Cafe Conte

1/102 Kedron Brook Road  Wilston QLD 4051

'Blue Eyed Rabbit'
Will be available at Cafe Conte as of 14th July.

It comes from within and it can be shared.

I recently realised that I have given more paintings away this year than I have sold or even painted. I put this down to a few good reasons:

1. I had more paintings lying around than I had time to actually paint.
2. I get far more gratification from seeing my work enjoyed than I do from making money off of them.
3. I realise I have a gift and I believe it should be shared.

 My work deals with issues of Identity, Desire and Beauty but ultimately it is an expression of what makes me happy and what I enjoy. Painting or any other form of expression is a highly self-indulgent act and few do it for money. While it is a dream of mine to work as a full time artist (not that it would seem like work) I feel guilty about actually spending my time on something so selfish. It has taken sharing my work on a public forum such as Facebook to fully realise that my Art actually makes others happy. This certainly softens the feelings of guilt and pure indulgence but more than anything it instills a greater desire to give.

On reflection of my life and recent practice I have realised more about myself as a person than I ever had before. I have found a confidence to express myself without fear of judgment and I have found an outlet for my inner voice. In doing so I have gained new found friends and supporters, I have continued to feel supported by those who always have been there for me but unfortunately I have seen the dark side of personal success as well. There will always be someone out there wanting to take advantage of your generosity, make money off your efforts without putting in their own and those who envy your drive and believe you to be 'greedy' or 'lucky'. This infuriates me but I know that I am a person who draws strength from within, while these negative individuals steal from others to get theirs. There's no true way to please everyone...but for those who are worth it the return is inevitable and worthwhile.

 So while my time for painting has been limited this year, my ideas and self-realisation have doubled. I know that my happiness comes from within and I intend to keep sharing it through my art in the hope to make others happy. I also know the act of giving is rewarded a thousand times over and I choose not to lose sight of that. I hope to one day be remembered as 'driven by creativity, love and pure happiness' and never thought of as 'self-indulgent' or 'lucky'! I also realise this is my next insecurity to overcome, because I know it doesn't matter what others think anyway.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.

A little bit of exposure

It is always encouraging to get great feedback on your work and compliments certainly help feed my motivation. Seeing images of your work published in the media is even more exciting. These works featured in various publications this year alone.

Recent drawings

All of the animals

Showing a lot of love for the furry and feathered variety...

From my home to yours

I do so love visiting friends and family and seeing my work on display in their homes. Over the years I have painted and given away so many works that I often have forgotten about. So it was really nice to be invited to a home of some new friends and collectors of my work, to see my work on display in their amazing renovated home. Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure.

The need to draw!

Having returned to school after the holidays I have found it really hard to devote time to my painting. Which doe make me sad, but I do think it was a sign that I needed to slow down a bit too! So in between marking numerous art essays I have found a new for of procrastination, that was easy enough to squeeze in a few half hour sessions through the week. DRAWING! When I was a kid I used to draw on everything, from the TV guide and my maths books to the back of my parents phone bills. I would just sit and draw for hours on end. This was a past time that also got me through a lot of my high school years until of course I discovered my passion for painting in Year 12.
Here is a sketch in progress that I have been working on this week. So far it is receiving a lot of great feedback on FB.