look what i have been making ...

ART BLOCKS

your favourite original painting on a beautiful 

solid wood block!!!

each block is 100mm square and stackable.

these would look awesome in a group on a mantlepiece, bookcase or just on their own. 

they can also be wall mounted to create a little 3D art feature in your home.

these are available to order from me by email 

and they will be for sale at the 

POP UP SHOP 

that Janelle Peterson (from Bam Bam and Sugar) 

and I are opening on  December 11th - 17th 

in the Bay Merchants Building, 

Middleton Beach, Albany.

So much to tell you...

What a full on, inspiring, uplifting and intense month it has been. I have participated in two exhibitions, started a new job, booked a space for a pop-up shop/gallery and caught up with lots of family and friends. To say I have been a little overwhelmed would be an understatement. But, it has been AWESOME too !!!

My last post was all about the 30x30x30 exhibition in Perth. What a blast.

Today I am going to share with you the details of my latest exhibition. I took part in the recent Southern Art and Craft Trail. The Southern Art & Craft Trail is an initiative of Artsouthwa Inc., an organisation formed to promote and market fine art and craft created by artists living and working in the Great Southern region of Western Australia and to assist art and craft practitioners, organisations and galleries with professional and skills development.(sic)

"flutter" collage on canvas - leanne fry

Last year, I exhibited with Justine Gamblin, a very talented textile artist from Walpole in Western Australia.

Justine and I

"ficifolia leaf" - justine gamblin

For this years Trail, Justine and I again joined forces but we were very fortunate to collaborate with Clive and Jenny Kendrick (Turnary Form) who also reside in Walpole. They are a husband and wife team who work together to produce embellished turned-timber art pieces. Their work is available in several outlets, including Aspects Gallery in Kings Park, Perth.

Clive and Jenny Kendrick

Embellished Timber Art Pieces

We exhibited under the title of "Forest Connection" and I was so thrilled at how the exhibition space looked on opening night. It all just came together beautifully. Having the different textures of wood, fabric, canvas, paint and ink, along with an array of forest inspired colours and designs together worked so very well. 

The opening night was an enormous success and such a fantastic night would not have been possible without the generous support of our host/major sponsor DEC. They offered us this beautiful room situated at the iconic Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk. The location is just stunning. Their unwavering support of local artist must be acknowledged and especially the dedication of the Valley's able leader Ms Julie Ross. 

I sold many of my works including paintings on canvas, collage work on canvas, framed acrylic work on paper, framed intaglio and lino prints on paper. It was great to be able to showcase some of the new techniques I have learnt and to share part of my latest journey as an artist. This journey just keeps getting better. I was overwhelmed with the genuine support and encouragement that I received from family, friends and the people of the Walpole, Denmark and Albany communities. 

We received so much interest in our work throughout the week that it was on show and it certainly made Clive, Jenny, Justine and myself incredibly proud of our achievements. 

Thank You all.

WOW

WOW. what a weekend. 
on friday i travelled with my hubby to perth. we met up with my parents and my sister who had travelled from sydney with her baby girl. on saturday more family and friends arrived and at 5pm we headed up to attend the opening of the 30x30x30 artist challenge 
that i was part of in the darlington hills.

i attended a preview for the artists before the doors opened to the general public. 

well, what can i say? it was just beautiful. 
just to see 900 works, all uniform in size, 
in the one venue was extraordinary. it was fantastic to see how much the works varied in design and concept. not only from one artist to the next, but even within each artist's 30 pieces. some approached the challenge by making a "set" of works, while others treated each canvas separately. being selected to be one of the 30 
artists participating in the challenge 
(out of 96 applicants) was a great achievement, but nothing could compare to planning, creating and completing the works that were hanging before me on Saturday night. 
it was awesome. 
AND i was really thrilled to have sold 
26 of my 30 pieces. yay me.

i have learnt so much in the process. perhaps the most important lesson i have learnt is to turn any sort of resistance or feelings of vulnerability into something positive. whenever i felt this way i was determined to explore why i felt like this. what was i so afraid of? 

why was i so scared? lets face it, we are all scared of failing. but when i challenged myself to "push through" the resistance of feeling this way and harnessed this energy in a positive way 
something really cool happened. 

perhaps that little voice inside saying 
"is my work good enough"? might be silenced now. 

did you know that feelings of vulnerability, 
fear and resistance can be used to foster determination? 

something really magical can happen when 
we believe in ourselves. 

joy can replace fear.
confidence can replace vulnerability. 
acceptance can replace resistance.

new blog design and challenge COMPLETED

hi all, i have had some fun today changing the background and colours on my blog to give it a fresh look for spring. i have used one of my mono printed papers as the background and am really happy with the result. let me know what you think. do you prefer the old design or the new one???

i have also attached a photo of the stacked up canvases i have just completed as part of the inaugural 30x30x30 artist's challenge for the Treetops Montessori School in Darlington, Western Australia. it opens on the 15th September and i can't wait. not only am i looking forward to seeing my work adorning the walls again, 

but i am super excited to see all 900 works....

that's right...900 of them!!!! 

all the same size. rows and rows of them. 

this really appeals to the Virgo star sign/control freak in me. 

i think it will look awesome. 

photos galore coming your way after this one. 

guaranteed.

happy tuesday everyone ...

so, i have started the 30 day artists challenge and it is going really well. i cannot believe how inspired i am feeling. not only am i enjoying creating little collage pieces but i am also using the collage papers to make lovely paper maiche bowls. 

i love how when i create art it opens to door to new possibilities.  using new colour palettes. making new things and 

discovering new favourites ♥

happy tuesday everyone.

i hope you get to discover something new today.

the time has come .....

well, the time has finally come. it is the eve. of me commencing the 30x30x30 artist challenge for the Treetops Montessori School in Perth, Western Australia. i am nervous, excited, pumped, happy and a little over-whelmed (all at once). i felt ok until i unpacked the canvases and looked at the "stack" in front of me. 30 of them. wow. 

how am i going to keep the ideas flowing? have i got enough paper, glue, paint, time, energy, brushes, meals in the freezer, space, ideas, enthusiasm? 

But you know what? i am going to MAKE IT HAPPEN. i have faces many interesting challenges in my life so far. this is just a new type of challenge for me. because i am putting myself out there through my art it feels a little less frightening. i feel like i can let my art talk for me. i can express myself through the use of colour, texture, photography and my own, unique style. how cool. how liberating. how great, to be experiencing new and exciting challenges at the age of 41 ! BRING ON TOMORROW. 

this chic is ready to create, create, create. 

30 times to be precise. 

good times xx

printmaking class...

okay. so as some of you may already know, i have been studying Visual Art and Contemporary Craft full time since the beginning of this year at the Great Southern Institute of Technology in Albany. i have completed units in drawing, painting, art history, installation, printmaking and digital media. it has been awesome. not only have i learned alot through art practice but i have worked along side some great fellow students and been lucky enough to have very dedicated, talented and awesome lecturers.

every wednesday i have been participating in a full day of printmaking. 

what can i say?

 this has changed the way i look at EVERYTHING. i immediately fell in love with the entire printmaking process.

"vintage dress" intaglio print

we started out with mono printing, moved on to making lino prints, then intaglio and collograph work. WOW. the process of hand drawing an image and carving/etching was something i found very therapeutic. but. it was once the ink was applied that the real magic began.

"dragonfly" intaglio print

what i found SO exciting was placing my plate (all inked up) into the press and savouring the anticipation whilst hand rolling it through the beautiful vintage press and awaiting the result once it came out the other end as i lifted the paper off to reveal the freshly produced print. MAGIC.

"dragonfly" intaglio print on tissue over mono printed background

i also really loved the energy that came from working in a class environment for printmaking. seeing the gorgeous colours everyone was mixing to apply to their plates. watching others work steadily on their work and seeing the fabulous, beautiful, detailed and exciting prints that were produced. we were all sharing a real sense of achievement.

"artichoke" intaglio print

"artichoke 2" intaglio print

these two images above are of my "artichoke" intaglio prints. they are my favourites. i have also gone a little further with these. i scanned my images and played with them in my digital media class to enhance/change some colours. then i printed them out onto archival quality paper and i have made a new range of greeting card and gift tages incorporating this new design.

i think this is what i was born to do, to take my original work and use it to create beautiful cards and pieces anyone can afford. that way i get to create the prints/paintings, people can purchase the originals, but the images can live on as an edited version of the original piece for others to enjoy. sounds good to me. what do you think of that idea??

"artichoke" series of handmade cards

below are images of my collograph work. the top image is my plate that i made from a piece of cardboard. i glued silk, lace, fibres and ribbon onto the card and then sealed it several times with shellac. this enabled me to use the plate for printing as the dried and "shellaced" (is that even a word?)  plate would now be able to be inked up without absorbing any of the said ink.

collograph plate

this first print is an example from my first run using the plate above. i love the denim-look i have achieved by using this great ink colour in combination with the textures i had on my plate. 

collograph print in denim blue

here is a black and white version of the collograph print. i am still not sure which way around i like it...

"press" collograph print in black

and here is my favourite collograph image using a variety of colours. i can just imagine this printed up onto canvas to make a beautiful cushion. the possibilities are endless !!

"press" collograph print in a variety of colours

who knew life could be this beautiful ♥

"artichoke" prints

I have been REALLY busy studying full time. one of my favourite day's this last semester has been Wednesday. because we have printmaking class ALL DAY (and because Offspring is on TV).

today, i have decided to share with you two of the prints i am most proud of. they are drypoint intaglio prints of my hand drawn artichoke. the sepia one was the first one i created. then, with the second (multi-coloured) one i tried an inking method which is traditionally called a "dolly wipe". during this process different coloured inks are rubbed into the plate and then removed gently by wiping the ink back and leaving certain colours in certain areas of the design. i think you will agree...this was a great success. i love my little artichokes. especially they are now framed.

autumn inspiration ...

today i have decided to share with you all some images of the work i have been creating whilst studying Visual Arts at the Great Southern Institute of Technology in Albany, WA.

i have been taking classes in drawing, art history, installation art, painting, printmaking and digital media. i must say it has been a pretty wild ride. i am continuously inspired by both my lecturers and the students i am working alongside. so far, the printmaking class has definitely been my favourite....what an awesome way to spend 6 hours on a wednesday!! 

our lecturer is the "uber talented" indra geidans whose work can bee seen on the turner galleries website (just click on tis link to have a peek). we first started in Indra's class by inking up some fabulous mono prints. i have posted a few images of my mono printing works below.

then, since learning mono printing techniques we moved onto using the fantastic presses at the Albany campus (which enable us to produce beautiful lino prints). learning the lino printing process has been so fulfilling, rewarding and challenging. it has given me a new focus and i find the actual cutting/carving of the lino plates very thereputic. there is nothing more satisfying than taking one of my original drawings or sketches and transferring it onto the lino plate to commence carving out the design. getting my head around how to cut the lino so that the areas where the ink sit are the printed parts and that what i am carving out is actually what will be revealed as the original paper beneath has been a real challenge. it is almost like you have to view everything as an old style "negative" of a photograph to get it right. below is a sample of one of my lino cut designs...

i will leave you all now with these lovely printmaking images to look at. if you find these intriguing, go online and have a look at some of the amazing work that is out there by artists from all around the globe. 

i am sure it will draw you in, just as it has me. 

happy browsing folks :)

exciting news for Leanne ...

As some of you may already know I have been chosen as one of the 30 artists to take part in the Treetops Montessori School's inaugural 30x30x30 challenge!!!! 

they chose the artists from just over 90 applicants, so you can imaging just how thrilled and honoured I am to have been 

invited to participate. 

click on this handy link to learn more about the challenge

I have included a "blurb" form the challenge website for you to read, but please check out the website and blog through the links I have created in this post to learn more. make sure you read up about the 30 artists who are taking part. some people are established artists and others are just emerging. I am super excited about the concept and am especially looking forward to the opening night to see all 900 works on display (on my hubby's birthday too). i think this is shaping up to be a  professional highlight for me in 2012 :)

here is the "blurb" form the people behind the challenge:

The Artists

Thirty (30) Artists, or art groups, will be challenged to complete thirty (30) works in thirty (30) days. The thirty (30) day period for the project shall be nominated by the Artist to suit their schedule, yet shall be within the period, 2nd March and 3rd September 2012. Artists are encouraged to step out of their comfort zone, try out new styles, experiment with materials, explore a new subject, take risks, work quickly and let the ideas flow. The art works do not need to be thirty (30) stand alone, finished pieces. They can be a collection of ideas, a record of an experiment in process, a study of a subject or technique, a story / narrative to share with others.

All Artists will be supplied with thirty (30) canvases (8 inches by 8 inches) on which to work, or on which to present works. The works can be of any medium including acrylic paint, oil paint, pastel, pencil, watercolour, mixed media, textile, jewellery, printmaking, photography, quilting, glass and ceramics. The only constraint is that all works shall be presented on the canvas ready for hanging. There are many options to display work to meet this criterion, such as temporarily fixing 3D objects like jewellery and textiles, or block mounting photographs and works on paper. If works are best framed at a later date by the purchaser, then they can be temporarily fixed to the canvas for display purposes only. 900 works, uniform in size but infinitely varied in content will be hung together at our unique and exciting exhibition.

Taken from www.30x30x30.org.au