Library Heaven
- At January 07, 2019
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
This summer I got to go to Brooklyn with friend and fellow artist Marisa Tsikitas to visit our sketchbooks at the Brooklyn Art Library. It was such a cool place with so many amazing sketchbooks, we could easily have spent all day thereš. Art + Library = Heaven! I gained so much by participating in this project that I signed up again for 2018/19. I am posting pictures of my watercolour rock gardens for the 2019 project on Instagram if you want to follow along.
Little Gems Show and Sale
- At December 03, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
“Letters of Gold” – will be going up the VACs Little Gems show and sale at 1800 Store Street, Nov 28 – Dec 21.ā To celebrate Victoria Arts Council’s 50th anniversary there will be 50, 10″ x 10″ canvases all priced $150Ā on the theme of GOLD ā Happy Anniversary Victoria Arts CouncilĀ ā
The Yellow Bird Paintings
- At October 24, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
The Yellow Bird Paintings
I just finished a small series of paintings that all feature a yellow bird in some way. They are all hanging together at Victoria International Airport until Mid Jan 2019. Close up pictures are posted in the Gallery šĀ
We Should Come Here More Often
- At September 20, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
We Should Come Here More Often
Imagine a garden soaked in light drizzle, the trees and shrubs radiate green as they bask in the moisture but the colour is muted by the mist that hangs in the air. Every leaf and blade of grass is spattered with tiny droplets of water. There is a soft hush all around from white noise of the light rain and the sound dampening fog. The grey is comfortable on your eyes and ears. You breathe it in and remind yourself to come here more often.
Thriving with Fellow Artists
- At August 20, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
Back in May I became part ofĀ Thrive Mastermind. Thrive is a group that provides community, accountability andĀ supportĀ to female artists. We meet monthly in Victoria and talk about what we are working on, what we have learnt, our achievements and share any useful resources we may have discovered over the month. There are also online discussion forums, podcasts and tutorials to help with every aspect of being an artist. Studio work can be lonely, it has been so good to meet and talk with other women artists about the highs and lows of a creative life. It has encouraged me to set goals for myself and think about all aspects of my art making practise. I would recommend the Podcast – you can listen to them here: Thrive Podcast
Pink Power
- At July 06, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
Using YouTube tutorials, I have been teaching myself to bind my own sketchbooks. I signed up again to the Sketchbook Project; you can re-bind or alter your sketchbook any way you want so long as it stays within set dimensions. I knew this time I wanted to use watercolour paper to open up more possibilities in the type of media. I tried my hand at binding one hard cover book with glued spine and one method without spine or glue using Coptic stitching. The stitching was a little tricky at first but now I have the hang of it, it is definitely something I will be doing again. Shop bought bound watercolour sketch books are so expensive and this way I can be as creative as I want with the covers because who doesnāt love neon.
The Sketchbook Project – Update
- At May 14, 2018
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
The Sketchbook Project
The sketchbook project is over : (Ā it is winging its way over to the Brooklyn Sketchbook Library. I canāt tell you how much I enjoyed participating in this project. Originally I decided that I would use the lyrics from a Jack Johnson guitar tab book to inspire the project but this turned out to be just the launch pad. Once I got more into the project I realised that there were things I wanted to try out so I went with it. I played with collage, gouache, abstract drawing and watercolour. There is even a pop up page. I had so much fun doing this; it has made me approach my sketch book in a whole new way. A little book of ideas and experimentation just for me. I have decided to keep this going and signed up to the 2018/2019 project!
The Sketchbook Project
- At September 25, 2017
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
The Sketchbook Project
I have recently signed up to the Sketchbook Project. The goal is to fill a small sketchbook and submit it to the Brooklyn Art Library where it can be viewed by visitors or online. When I signed up to the project I really had no idea what theme I would use to fill the pages. I was browsing in Value Village and found a book of Jack Johnson sheet music for his album Bushfire Fairytales. Although I didn’t know his music I bought it, thinking that the pages of sheet music might be good for collage. I discovered the beautiful imagery in the lyrics and decided to make them the inspiration to fill my sketchbook. I am really enjoying thinking about and making the pages, it just feels like unadulterated play.
Fog Bank
- At October 22, 2016
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 1
Fog Bank
āFor a moment he seemed impressed with the speaking loneliness of the scene, or rather with the complete abstraction from all its compass of the sights and sounds of man. Human shapes, interferences, troubles, and joys were all as if they were not, and there seemed to be on the shaded hemisphere of the globe no sentient being save himself; he could fancy them all gone round to the sunny sideā Thomas Hardy ā Far from the Madding Crowd
Fog Bank is a piece I have been working on over the last month. I submitted it for a call out titled “Boxed Sanctuary”. The exterior is made from reclaimed wood and the interior is a collection of miscellaneous objects and poured acrylic paint on clear sheets of plastic.
The call out asked the artist to address what sanctuary means to them. When I think of sanctuary, I think of the fog. It arrives in August and it is the antidote to the bright, bleaching, high contrast colours of summer. Colours become muted, they start to merge together; it is a soft blanket for my eyes. It dampens sound and comes with its own murmuring shush.
Fog Bank asks you to look inside, away from exterior distractions and cast yourself adrift in the shapes and colours that reside there.
The Proposal….a guide for proposal/submission writing
- At April 04, 2016
- By Amber
- In Studio Journal
- 0
I recently went to a couple of free workshops, one by artist and author Nancy Crawford on putting together your portfolio and one by the good people of the Fifty Fifty Arts Collective, Open Space and the Ministry of Casual Living on Proposal Writing. Both covered putting together your Biography, CV, Artistās Statement and portfolio images.Ā A BIG thank you to both for providing these workshops,Ā as someone who is largely self-taught they were so helpful in sorting out in my mind the purpose of all of the documentation that goes with your work when you make a submission.
I thought that as I found it so helpful maybe others would too, here is summary of what I learnt….
CV
- Include education, relevant employment, curatorial projects, exhibitions, residencies, talks and panels, publications and reviews, awards, auctions, collections
- List exhibitions from most recent to older, include where, when and duration
- Programs ā who did you work with? What did you get from the experience?
- Be clear and concise
- Keep formatting consistent
- No more than 3 pages
- Include your name and address on all pages
- Remember this is part of a package, do not duplicate information
- Indicate if shows are Group/ solo/ permanent / Juried
- List a couple of your references
- Your CV is not the space to get creative
Proposal
The proposal document is a layout of your proposed show, time line, media and logistics
- This is what I want to do.
- This is how I am going to do it.
- Explanation of your practise ā why did you /or why are you going to make it?
- Tailor your proposal to the gallery space; let the curators know that you have considered the space, which pieces would you put where? Consider including a floor plan.
- Use direct language, be confident.
- Reference work in your portfolio to tie everything together in your submission package.
- Edit ā do not include everything you have ever done, keep it relevant.
- Let the work speak for itself; donāt tell people how to read the work.
Artist Bio
- This is all about you ā Where are you from? Who are you? What have you done?
- It is a profile, a brief CV.
- About 250 words
- Include photos of you, your studio space or yourself working.
Artistās Statement
The Artistās Statement is specific to the work in your proposal.
- You can be creative with this – use poetry and quotes
- Talk about your inspiration and evolutionary journey
- It should be about 3 paragraphs long.
- What is your medium/ dimensions etc.
- Why did you make it?
- What does it mean to you?
- This is to help the viewer understand your work but be careful not to over explain.
- Do not anticipate someoneās reaction to your work.
Portfolio Images
- Most proposals will specify their image requirements.
- If you are including photos of paintings do not include the frame or surrounding area. Crop the photo to exactly the size of the painting.
- Most submissions require the images to be 72 dpi max. This can be adjusted on Photoshop.
- Images should be in RBG color mode
- Use a common format like a jpeg
- A portfolio should consist of between 10 ā 40 images of your strongest works.
- Include images that show details of a piece.
- Each ImageĀ should be labelled with the title, size, medium and year
It may be appropriate to include letters of recommendation ā What is it like to work with you? Are you reliable? Include one letter that deals with you as an artist and one that deals with your character.
When you are submitting a proposal or application consider how you can make it easy for the administrator/adjudicator/curator to copy your submission and identify all parts of your package. If you are unsure about any part of the process donāt hesitate to contact the co-ordinator for clarification.
I hope this helps ā I think I have some work to do on all my documentation!