The Exhibition...

1. Degreaves Street, Melbourne, 2. Exhibition set up, 3. Exhibition set up, 4. Exhibition set up, 5. Red Wine Label (from lino cut), 6. Sculpture, 7. Exhibition - Jessie's Sold Print, 8. Exhibition, 9. Cathedral Arcade

As you all know, my Arts course finished last week, with the final exhibition opening on Thursday night.

It was held in The Pigment Gallery which is in the iconic Nicholas Building in the Flinders Lane arts precinct of Melbourne. It's a pretty small gallery and while this meant a restricted amount of work could be hung, it also meant the space was intimate and not too overbearing. It was a great night with lots of friends and family coming to look at the gallery and a selection of our work. We had red and white wine which was labelled with 2 lino prints from class (one mine and one from Meredith) which looked great.

The exhibition was open for another 2 days, giving us all the opportunity to sit in the space and greet visitors.

It was an interesting exercise and a good chance to get ideas for future possibilities. Three items sold, including Jessie's print which is pictured above. Micahel also sold his Tasmanian Tiger lino print to Jessie's uncle who had a tattoo which was (funnily enough) also of a Tazzie Tiger. Incredible coincidence. Congratulations also to Simone for selling one of her prints.

Thanks to everyone who came by and said hello.


Unfortunately not all works were pictured above. You can go and look at a few more images of the exhibition and my art at my FLICKR page.

The roller coaster life of the budding artist...

Do you believe I am nearing the end of my Arts course? I have barely posted about it, but I must tell you it has been amazing. I feel like a new person. As hoped, it has been an intense introduction to fine arts and given me a chance to immerse myself into creativity. I have been so lucky and feel so privileged to be a part of such an amazing group. It has been a great taster, but as with many entrees it has left me wanting more... looking forward to the next course.

I am already stressing about leaving the group, about keeping myself motivated, about whether I can continue my studies (if work will allow it and if I can afford it) and about returning to full time work in the meantime.

I have learned a lot and grown a lot, and I have loved the course - a lot. I have been challenged continually. Most of all, I have been surprised to find that the course has been as much about the mental journey as the development of skills.

My inner critic has become my constant companion.

I’m good, I’m bad. I’m committed, I should be committed. I have progressed, I have regressed. I am competent, I am incompetent. I have talent, I have no talent. I have high expectations, I have low expectations. I am overwhelmed, I am underwhelmed. I am confident, I lack confidence. I’m positive, I’m negative. I have ideas, too many ideas or too few ideas. I lack time and then when I have time, I waste time.

And while I know I shouldn’t, and I try not to, I see the quality and quantity of other people’s work and I can’t help but compare their work to my own and I feel overwhelmed. What am I doing? Who am I kidding? Why am I bothering!

Take lino and print making for example. I wanted this to ‘be my thing’. I love the graphic qualities of print making. I love the technique. I love the feel of the tools in my hands. I love the results. And yet, when I see fellow student's results - their detail and their imagination - I compare myself to them and I am inadequate. I paralyse myself into inactivity.

Self imposed pressure rests on my shoulders every time I pick up a pen, a paintbrush, a tool to carve lino. If it was someone else having these feelings of doubt, I would reassure them they were doing ok, to keep going. And yet I can’t seem to give myself the same freedom... the same reassurance. I am trying, trying, trying to shake off these self doubtss and focus on my own art and no-body else's, but it is a constant battle. It's like riding a roller coaster.

Page One, New chapter...

What a day.

Great group of teachers and students.

The teachers are all working artists and incredibly enthusiastic about the course. They were lots of fun and managed to keep everyone entertained.

The group of fellow students are all women - something I was not expecting, but it has it's advantages and I hope it will become a strong support group. Ages range from in the 20's (one or two) to in their late 50's. They come from a range of life experiences which will definitely colour the experience for everyone.

We spent the day getting to know each other, looking around the facilities and then wandering around Melbourrne exploring some of the lesser know smaller galleries. Really interesting.

Tomorrow it's time to get our hands dirty.
Painting all morning and then drawing all afternoon. I expect it to be a pretty full-on day.

Have a good day everyone.

Saying the right thing at just the right time...

I start my course tomorrow... the one I applied for in the first week of November... the course which now seems like it's never going to happen even though tomorrow it begins. It's an arts course which includes painting and drawing, art theory, visiting artists in their studios and hopefully some classes in print making and sculpture.

I will be at school 2 full days a week. Thursday and Friday. I am going part time at work which I consider will be a move in the right direction, though financially it will take a bit of adjustment. New challenges are just around the corner. I am stepping outside the comfort zone once again, which always fills me with a combination of nerves and excitement.

And so, as the day draws nearer and the excitement grows, so too does the doubt. It's the nerves talking, I know it's crazy, but I can't help it. What if I am hopeless? What if I have no talent? What if no-one likes me? What if I don't even like the course? So many doubts swimming round in my head.

I admit only two aloud to Mal.

What if I am no good?
You'll be fine... comes the reply.

"Or worse than that, what if I am the worst in the whole group?"
And the reply? ... "Then you'll be most improved."

That was a pretty cool response. It was a positive angle I hadn't considered.

And there you go, he said just the right thing at just the right time. Put it all in perspective somehow. And I am still nervous and I still have (a few) doubts, but it will all be fine. Of course I know everything will be OK, but it's nice to hear it from some-one else sometimes.

Now... where's my pencil case?