CHRISTMAS REPETITION BY ANN DYKES

Good morning folks, 

I hope the festive season has been treating you all well and that you are filled with love, magic and creativity!  

The lovely Ann Dykes has submitted already for this month's theme of 'Repetition' - yeah for Ann!  

Here is what Ann wrote:

"In the middle of all this crazy busy season, I took these photos of the Christmas quilt I made a few years ago.

I thought it fitted with the theme of repetition and seeing as it is Christmas I thought it was appropriate. Love Ann."

Thanks Ann!

It's true that this month is crazily busy with all things festive and merry.  Hope you have a fun time with loved ones, and stay safe wherever you may be in the world.

x

'REPETITION'. MONTH 16

Hello Art Clubbers!

I hope you are well and enjoying the lead up to Christmas?  

This month's theme has been chosen by Issy Oddie, who is a Melbourne gal, currently living in Vietnam.  Repetition is her chosen theme...a good one, hey?!  Could be visual, musical, sculptural, performance based?  What things do you repeat on a daily basis?  

Get your creative chops around it and enjoy.  Submissions are due by January the 4th 2014....next year!

Have fun!

x x 

'PAINTING IS THE GOOD LIFE' BY GILLIAN NIX

This month's submission is a self portrait painted with oil on A3 board.  For me, the simple and joyful act of painting has been the epitome of the Good Life this month.  I have had very little experience with oil paints and just last week I attended an oil painting session for teachers who want to work with oil paints in the classroom.  It sort of gave me the urge to do a little bit more, and this week I have had a go at a quick self portrait.  This took me about an hour.  It was a lovely hour and I enjoyed every minute of the time.  My dream of 'The Good Life' would be all day, every day making Art and being creative.

Hope you like it!

Gillian 

 I've given myself a very long nose and a strangely large eye on one side...

I love the colour and texture of oil paint...

'HIGH LIFE COPYRIGHT' BY MICHAEL JOHNSTON

Thanks to Michael Johnston for his submission under 'The Good Life' theme......

High Life Copyright by Michael Johnston, made with grey lead pencil on A4 paper.

"This piece is a little play on the theme of the good life using well know copy rights and themes. Who knew Micky would end end up with such a fab rack! Enjoy, hahah!"

THE WEB OF A GOOD LIFE BY ANNA DIXON

Thank you to the lovely Anna Dixon for her first ever Art Club submission.  And to think, this amazing lady is currently studying for exams at Uni!  

My contribution is a photograph and a caption.

• "The web of a good life is a mingled yarn, good and ill together. We all know this, though Shakespeare said it most prettily. We know it by the stories we read - who ever enjoyed a book devoid of failure or toil or frustration? Most of all, though, I think we know it when we feel that fearsome fragility – that strangely heavy joy - of loving with our whole beings.

  I can see how this photo would fit in someone’s picture perfect version of the good life. Through another’s eyes, it’s a shot of carefree summer days, to be included in a montage involving beaches and vegetable gardens.

  The photo also epitomises the good life to me. But it’s more than that: it’s the good, perilous, aching, precarious life. The best umbrella term might be “the wholehearted life” -- something beyond contentment. So it goes with real families I guess."

PAINTED PHONE BY DAVID DUNCAN

A big hooray for David Duncan who has submitted his 'Device Vice' themed artwork!  Dave was the 'picker' of the theme last month, here's what he has to say about his artwork...... 

"In the end my attempt to oil paint onto phone accessory packaging

didn't ever surpass the concept drawing, but here they both are, a

little sheepish."

THE GOOD LIFE....MONTH 15

Dear Art Clubbers,

For this month's theme I have decided to jump in and decide on the theme myself!  Here goes....

Ronald Fischer, Bee Keeper, 1981

A few months ago I caught up briefly with a colleague at work over a cup of tea in between parent-teacher interviews.  She was telling me about how she is studying for a masters course at nights and weekends on top of her regular, full time teaching load (wowzas!).  For one of her assignments she had been asked to write a response to the question, 'What is the Good Life?'.  The colleague gave me a very brief description of what she wrote and about how a large part (about 50% - there were figures and %s but I have no idea as to how they were achieved) of leading a happy life was acceptance of what you have and of who you are.  She had researched different cultures across the globe and throughout history and we chatted about different situations and different people, and how often it seems to be people with very little that say they are happy.  Why then, in our Western and very lucky world are we all not happier?  This conversation all happened in under 5 minutes but the theme has really stayed in my mind over the last few months and I have been thinking about acceptance a lot.  

So, creative people, your challenge this month is 'The Good Life'.  Please interpret and create as your imagination and talents see fit!  Due date is the 19th of November.

Gillian x

DEVICE VICE BY CHRIS NIX

So, I had finish mine a while back but just to lazy to put it up - it's true. This is my little spin on device vice. The angry looking fellow in the illustration is David Draiman, frontman of heavy metal group Disturbed, but also of industrial metal group Device. The vice comes into play from the fact he's sporting a salmon t-shirt and white jacket like that fashionable character Don 'Miami Vice' Johnson. So that how I got there.

NO WI-FI BY BELINDA ASHE

'Yes this is stolen from someone else but it's exactly what I wanted to say'. 

POCKET MURDERER BY GILLIAN NIX

Hi everyone.  As you know, this month's Art Club theme was 'Device Vice'.  I have to be honest - I struggled to think of what to do this month.  Somehow I got onto the idea of Axe Murderers - the device being an 'axe' and the vice being 'murder'.  A long shot I know, however, this idea lead me to find out about Henry Lee Moore who was an American serial killer in the early 20th century.  He was rather viscious with an axe, and killed his very own mother and grandmother, along with an entire family.  You can read more about him here.  Out of all of the axe murderers that I could find online, Henry Lee Moore had the most interesting face and hair!  This recent interest in axe murders combined with another recent urge to try painting a 'pocket friend' on stones lead me to making a pocket murderer.  My submission this month is a very miniature artwork.....hope you like!

Making some pocket friends...

Without hair...

Some other little lovelies!

Gracie isn't too sure about them!

'DEVICE,VICE' MONTH 14

Hello folks, 

I hope everyone is surviving winter and staying cosy somewhere!  If you are in the northern hemisphere I envy you...please send summer our way down under!?

Alright then, Art Club has been hibernating a little over the last few months and I've been missing it if I'm honest.  Just tonight, Mr David Duncan emailed me through a theme (go Dave) and has officially awoken Art Club, yay!  Thanks to Dave for coming up with next month's theme, 'Device, Vice'.  

Submissions due 16th September.  Email through submissions to Chris or myself as usual.

x

WILD ONESIES BY CHRIS NIX

So I finally got my submission done - I promise it was almost finished before the deadline. But saying that, I seem to be the only one who has completed this months theme. For shame. I think I deserve some kind of prize. Maybe a onesies...

WILD...MONTH 13

Hello folks, 

Next up on our monthly themes is 'WILD', which comes from the lovely Christopher Nix.  

It's official...Art Club gives you permission to 'go wild' this month, rargh!!!

Submissions due on the 1st of July 2013.

Some little things to get you thinking wildly...

NIGHT FALL BY MICHAEL JOHNSTON

Here is the latest submission by Michael Johnston, titled 'Night Fall', for the 'Evening' themed month.  

Beautiful work, thanks Michael! 

'Night Fall'
40x60inch
Acrylic and Ink on board

NIGHT DRIVE BY CHRIS NIX

'Night Drive' could be a romantic moon light drive or a horror film waiting to happen... 

I guess I like the idea of long travels to far away places and used this as a bit of inspiration. 

I used charcoal and a rub back technique as a medium, something I haven't done in a long time. It's nice to revisit styles you're not used to using. 

WHEN THE DAY IS DONE BY CHRIS BOYD

Here is the first submission from the lovely Chris Boyd from Glasgow, Scotland.  Thanks Chris!

Here goes with my 'Evening' themed piece. I used a lyric from the Nick Drake song 'When the Day is Done' which popped into my head when I thought of 'evening' and I was keen to do something with typography. I have put in half a dozen images to show the process I went through but just use what you want. Had my printing inks a bit on the sticky side so things weren't flowing as they should have been. Still good fun though even if the results are not quite what I was aiming for.

Cheers, Chris

 

EVENING BY GILLIAN NIX

 This is a portrait of my lovely husband, Chris in bed asleep.  Every evening I get to fall asleep beside him, making me one lucky girl!  

For this month's project I decided to have a go at making a portrait using lino - something which I hadn't done before. I also trialled making a multi block print in this artwork for the first time.  I carved out 2 separate pieces of lino and printed them ontop of each other to create the final artwork - one in grey and then the other in black.  

The artwork is printed onto A3 paper and the lino blocks measure 20 x 20cm each.

Night.

x

These are the separate prints laid on on my floor....

BROKE BODY BY MICHAEL JOHNSTON

Hello folks, 

Michael Johnston is a very lovely chap!  He is super fun, very handsome and has a very adorable border collie called Frankie.  Ontop of that, he paints!  Here is Michael's 'Body' submission titled 'Broke Body', measureing 40x40 inches, made from ink, acrylic and charcoal on canvas.  Tremendous!

Thanks Michael and welcome to Art Club!

x

MONTH 12...EVENING

Inspired by the recent changing of the clocks last weekend for Daylight Saving in Australia, 'Evening' is our next theme! Evening seems to be with us much quicker at the moment in Melbourne and Autumnal weather is well and truly here...whether we like it or not.  

Hope that this month's theme inspires you.  Due date is the 14th May - happy creating!

x x

BODY BY AMANDA PRIEST

I have always liked to photograph nudes, I have not had the chance to photograph nudes for a long time and had this shoot a few weeks back with a lovely model who wanted to capture her body as it while she is young. 

The shoot turned out great and I have to say it will be a lovely keepsake to look back on for her. 

Its one of those things, you rarely appreciate it at the time and then when you look back a few years on (or a few kids on) you think.. I did look great back then. We always put so much pressure on ourselves and our looks and keeping trim - For me, I have always had body issues - so it is nice to just stop and appreciate the one body you have. I was happy to see a young woman so comfortable in her own skin.

The first shot is studio lit and the second one is natural light. The difference in the photographs is amazing. One is classic soft lighting, soft edges and rather romantic feel, where as the second one is natural light and came up very raw, sharp and a bit more startling.

See what you think. (I have the models permission so no worries there)

Cheers,

Amanda

PICTISH WOMAN BY GILLIAN NIX

I came across this image in a book at work a few weeks ago.  The book was titled 'The Decorated Body' by Robert Brain which immediately caught my eye because of this month's theme, Body.  

I found the image above with the following information:

"A romanticised sixteenth-centuary view of a tattooed Pictish woman, by Theodore de Bry after John White.  According to Julius Caesar the ancient Britons were tattooed with animal patterns, and it is possible that the word 'Briton' is derived from a Breton word meaning 'painted in various colours".

  How very interesting!  Apparently, Pictish women were valued much differently compared to today.  They were the royal heirs, they fought in battles and the most interesting of all is that it was common for female Picts to have their bodies fully tattooed.  I love the idea of women being completely decorated with animal patterns and floral tattoos which immediately gave me some visual ideas for this month's project.

This month I have been running some life drawing classes for senior students at work.  A few times when I wasn't too busy helping students, I was able to do a few quick sketches of the life models.  This particular pose I rather liked, and chose to develop the drawing for this idea. This is a relief lino print.  (I'm sure that you are fully aware of my slightly obsessive relationship to lino - I love it!) 

I had a few difficulties when I was printing this lino.  The irregular shape and fine lines gave me many headaches, but I got some prints that I am reasonably happy with.  Hope you like it!

Gillian 

Here is the carved piece of lino...

The original life drawing sketches...

MONTH 11 ' THE BODY'

Thank you to the very lovely Michael Johnson for choosing this month's theme....'The Body'.

Due date is 20th March 2013.  

As usual, you can submit your ideas in any format or way and email it thorugh to Chris or I.

Good luck and have fun with your bodies!!!!

x x

'COLLABORATION FACES' BY CHRIS & GILLIAN NIX

Okay, so this is very late....sorry!

Chris and I started or 'Collaboration' project last month but many things got in our way and we only just got the time to print our lino carvings last night.

Hope you like them....

We got the idea for this project after seeing some online images from an exhibition called 'The Rituals', including the work of Melbourne based artist/designer Beci Orpin.  

We completely ripped off their idea of each artist having to make an image centred around the eyes.  We began our process by finding a head template (see below) and we both came up with a design for our own 'face'.  

Chris's face is a development of one of his characters - he has tonnes of them doodled in sketchbooks and on scrap bits of paper.  I'm a little bit obsessed with patterns at the moment, and this particular pattern is one from a mug that I have at home, and is an 'Octopus' pattern someone told me once.  I don't know for sure, but I like it.

Inking up...

We used a different print press than normal.  This one is a bit like a spongey sandwich toaster and you squeeze the lino and paper together for an even print.

"SQEEEEZE!"

The magic reveal...

"SQUEEEZE.....!"

I wasn't very happy with the alignment, ha ha!

We tried a few different colour variations...

All the prints lined up and drying...

Our favourite print...

The original templates that we used to create our faces...