A gorgeous evening...

So many beautiful pieces. So many versions of the female spirit. So stunning!

If you have a chance to check it out and support, please do!

Sisters

For my Sister.
I love you.
xo

Because I am a Girl

Tonight is the Opening Night for the "Because I am a Girl" Fundraising Exhibition and I am really excited to see all the work and be apart of something very lovely...

‘Because I am a Girl’ is Plan’s global campaign designed to fight gender inequality, promote girls’ rights and lift millions of girls out of poverty. Across the globe, girls are at the bottom of the social ladder, deprived of the same opportunities as boys. For example,research has shown that girls are more likely to suffer from malnutrition; be forced into an early marriage; be subjected to violence or intimidation; be trafficked, sold or coerced into the sex trade; or become infected with HIV.

The campaign is based on a series of reports titled Because I am a Girl: The State Of The World’s Girls. To be published between2007–2015 from Plan International, these reports examine the rights and needs of girls throughout their childhood, adolescence and as young women – and how they are uniquely placed to break the cycles of intergenerational poverty gripping many people in developing countries.

Six of the eight Millennium Development Goals – the goals set by the world’s governments in 2000 to halve world poverty by 2015 – are unlikely to be achieved unless there is a greater international commitment to the fight against gender discrimination.Plan recognises that we have to address gender discrimination as a priority if we want to tackle the root causes of child poverty.Therefore we have made the commitment to ‘address gender inequality and the numerous ways in which the rights of girls and women are particularly denied and violated’ (Plan Program Framework, 2009–2013). This is the focus of the ‘Because I am a Girl’ campaign and will better enable Plan to achieve our overall mandate as a child-centred community development organisation, committed to child poverty eradication and all children accessing their rights. via becauseiamagirl.com.au

I'll be one of the 30 female artists involved and 50% of price of all artworks sold will be donated to the Plan's Because I am a Girl campaign. How exciting is that?!

Anywho, hope to see some of you tonight @ Smartartz Gallery over in South Melbourne!!

Some small scale sketching...

I have been working on small sketches lately. Mostly A5 and under. 

It's nice to just get them out of my system, but am almost ready to start going bigger again.

Also, just a reminder - the Because I am a Girl Fund-raising Exhibition will be opening this Wednesday night at SmartArtz Gallery in South Melbourne. Hope to you see you there!

Sisters - Sneaky Peeky!

The painting is totally finished. Varnished. Scanned. And whatever else you can do when you finish a painting! I'm so happy. It's one of those paintings I thought I would never do. Until now, I've always sat outside myself when I draw and paint. But this has been a really hard process for me.

I'm just so happy it's finished. Yesterday, I thought of it being sold at the gallery (trying to send out those good vibes, you know how it is...) and started to cry.

It's like letting go of so many old feelings and being free.

It was rather odd.

Upcoming Exhibition - Girls and Sisters

I know, it's been a while since I've posted. Sorry! I still love you! Honestly!

Anywho, I've been working on a painting for an upcoming show over in South Melbourne at the Smartartz Gallery. The opening night is the 13th of April and runs until the 29th. Please go check it out, it's all for a good cause - check out the website for Because I am a Girl for more info on the campaign.

I'm really excited about the painting. It's been a long and slightly painful journey for it, but it's nearly finished.. I know - I'm cutting it fine... It's titled Sisters.

When I was going through ideas about what it means to be a girl, I kept coming back to the weird connection women have with other women. That strange thought processes and mental connection we have with other women that are close to us still astounds me.

The painting relates to the connection I have with my sister. We grew up together in a fairly small, secluded town called Sterling. There was never much to do there, since the population then was probably less than 3,000 people, so we would wander through the woods and rely on our imaginations to stop the boredom from driving us mad.

The painting I've been working on relates to the adventures and hardships that my sister and I went through together. I don't know how my life would have ended up if I didn't have my sister. Now that I live thousands of miles away, I feel in someway, we are still connected. As sisters, as friends, and as women.

I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the show and see what 30 other women think about being a girl. Hope to see you at the Opening Night!

xoxo

I love the library...

image via ImagesbyClaire

Not any particular library, but just most every library there is.

I've been hitting up one close to my work lately and its fantastic. I've only been there twice and have come across books that are exactly what I was looking for. Kudos to the Yarra-Melbourne branches! I think more businesses need to work like libraries actually.

Anyways, I'm very happy about the announcement of this exhibit opening at the State Library of Victoria the 3rd of Decemeber... I've been in love with a lot of the illustrations in children's book lately and this will hopefully kick start me into something good. Fingers crossed!

So, what are you reading? 

On my night stand at the moment :

Local Girls by Alice Hoffman 

(thank you Richmond Library!)

*it's been a long time coming ....

It's Official!

I will be exhibiting work at the Brunswick Street Gallery along with Aida Sabic this September!

I've been working on a bunch of portraits lately, mostly colour pencil work. They are based on the female protagonists in some of my favourite books. Catherine from Wuthering Heights, Mina Harker from Bram Stokers Dracula and on and on...

I will admit something though. I have not had any work on display since I was about 18 years old. My senior exhibit at NFA was my last one... back in 1994!!!!

So needless to say, I'm a little stressed out and a lot nervous!! I'm trying to cover all the bases of what I have to do, and thanks to Jacob and Aida, I think we'll be ok!

Anyway – more details coming up as it happens!!

Also, on a silly note – I am so excited for Saturday!! We have tickets to the All Blacks vs Wallabies game!! I will probably end up without a voice, but that's part of the fun!!