SCG 'Celebration' Exhibition

The Sydney Comics Guild (SCG) group show has now opened. It's at the Artshine Gallery in Chippendale, and I have a few of my Guimelpod watercolours in there.

It's on for three weeks and the gallery is in a very accessible area. There's lots of lovely artworks - so check it out!

Below is a photo that Robbie took during the opening. Each artist got to speak a little bit about their art, and this photo is of my turn. Thanks Alex and Vinh, and great show everyone :)

Wonderfully Madison Booklaunch

Over the past month I have been enjoying hearing from people who have found Wonderfully Madison on the shelves of bookstores or bought it online. Wonderfully Madison can be found and bought at Koorong, or via the cepstore website. Here's a photo from my friend Tal who found it recently:

Oh the thrills of being published! Well, it gets even better: there will be a book launch for Wonderfully Madison on Tuesday the 23rd of June, 10am-12pm, at Menai Anglican church. It should be pretty fun, too, and I'll be there!

Proximity opening night

It was a happily buzzing evening last Tuesday at Kudos Gallery. The artworks looked great and it was always good to bump into old friends and catch up on what they were doing, not to mention talk about the show! 

The artists in the exhibition were: Melanie Beresford, Sarah Bovis, Minét Brits, Zachariah Fenn, Santina Ingui, Matthew James, Clare Maxwell, Lorna Macritchie, Simon McGrath, Aaron Moore, Jonathan Oppel, Simon Swadling, Louise Zhang and myself.

Here are some pictures I took:

Simon McGrath, House of God, 2013 

Jemima Trappel, People they have known, 2013

Simon Swadling, Presence, 2013

Lorna Macritchie, All the thorns are softening because of how much you love me, 2013

Jonathan Oppel's Untitled series, 2013

Santina Ingui, Life in Parts, 2012

My portrait of Keith (2012). I made this work for the Archibald last year and then gave it to the Salvos in Surry Hills in December as Keith comes from that community and I wanted them to have it. They let me borrow it for the show. 

Proximity Group Show opening soon!

This is a group show I'm in with some other people from FEVA, most of whom are students at COFA. The art works will be exploring the theme 'Proximity' from a number of different angles... proximity in time, proximity in space, proximity in relationships, proximity with God.

Below are some drafts of a work I'm planning to install for the show, which involves string and explores, among other things, brokenness in human relationships. 

It's called, 'People they have known'.

100 x 100 exhibition.

I did a couple of portraits recently for the FEVA 100 x 100 exhibition. The first is titled '18 months', and is of my nephew Sampson. I did one of him last year too, when he was only 6 months old. How he has changed! The second is of his dad, and is titled '25 frames a second'.

My second solo show in Surry Hills

After a very intense month, I have finally slowed down enough to realise I really should put some pictures up from my show a couple of weeks ago - Faces from Surry Hills. This was a community viewing of all the animation portraits I have been making and...it went quite well (I think)! It's always very exciting having a solo show (which it was) and interestingly enough it was also held in the same hall where my first one was in 2009.

Joyce and her preferred sketch (the more detailed one on the top)

My first solo show!

More than just faces - this exhibition was my first solo show! And quite a significant show too for a number of people, one of them being Davina (above, with her portrait, 'Together we can make a difference'), who was really very touched by the fact I painted her and couldn't stop telling people about it. Other people too were pleased by their portraits. When Jim saw his on a poster he couldn't stop grinning! Will came up to me during the first breakfast when the artworks were up on the walls and said he thought it was great, while Lianne gave me a big thumbs-up (as she can't speak). On the second Saturday Dallas came in to get a photo of himself next to his portrait. It was quite funny as his head in the painting was about three times larger than life-size.

I have explained what the project was about in an earlier post, so here are some photos of the opening night and the following Saturday. Despite there being less people attending than I anticipated, the show was certainly a success - particularly in one of it's aims, that of raising funds for the free breakfast, Bread of Life. 12 out of the 13 paintings were sold, and around $5000 raised through both the sale of artworks and very generous donations by a number of people. I think that should keep baked beans being served for a good while longer!

Will (close-up)

Above, part of my wonderful team of helpers (family and friends) who made the show happen! A number of people very generously donated their time and money to make the exhibition look and run as well as it did and I am very grateful!

Dallas

For 20 years (right)

John Paul

Mich and Charlotte

Lianne

Giovanni

COFA Annual

The COFA Annual opened tonight and there were a lot of people. By a lot, I mean about a thousand or so, swarming through the various levels of F block and the other parts of COFA. I had three works in it, from my project with the people from Bread of Life, and the general response seemed really positive. However while this was good, I'm really looking forward to my first solo exhibition this Saturday (28th of November) which features the rest of the portraits - lights will need to be installed in the hall as it's not yet set up to be a gallery space, but it's looking like it will come together well.

Kudos Award

Some news! My concertina book, Ivy's leaving: a conversation in the kitchen, has just been selected to be part of the Annual Arc Emerging Artist & Designer Award exhibition. This will run from October the 13th-24th, and the opening night is from 5 - 7.30pm Tuesday 13th October, at Kudos Gallery, which is at 6 Napier st, Paddington. I don't know yet if I've won anything but I do know my work will be in the exhibition! All will be revealed on opening night...