the traveller

Lately, I have been seeing what I can make out of scraps of collage material, namely, the neverending collection of bird tails I seem to accumulate. Each tail piece is a little bit loose at the end, giving it a nice papery flutter. Mmm!

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the disguise

When I was a kid, my dad went to Perth (maybe - memories from long ago tend to have a slightly invented aspect sometimes) for work (or something - I thought his full time work was 'to make presents, mostly', so what do I know). Anyway, he brought me back a cassette tape (because we used those back then) with a read along book of Aesop's Fables. I practically memorised those stories. This image reminds me a lot of A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, and has brought back all of those memories! (The cassette is long gone I believe, but I still have the rather crumpled and soft paperback in my treasured selection of picture books!) Bless.

x

sketchbook

Lately I cannot stop doodling. It's fantastic! So good to get some brain clumps out onto paper and not worrying about the consequences. As a result, it's been great inspiration for more developed works, as well as a break for my pathetic little wrist from all that cutting. (Some detailed collages still to come!) It all feels very girly, especially with the pink page (which is no longer just pink), but sometimes it's nice to feel like a girl don't you think?

20th century sex education

I can honestly say that I giggled like a schoolgirl the entire way through creating this work. 'And the man pulls a special lever and then all the babies come out!'

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für deutschland

So, I think my my surroundings are subconsciously leaking into my work. What with lounging around my bed, parks and cafes of Berlin, reading material like The Book Thief and Neither Here Nor There (both with much undertones of Germany, wait, not undertones, how about one book is set there and oh right the other book travels all around it.) is all clearly rubbing off. I didn't even realise the suggestive colours of this lady until Kent pointed it out. (I believe being a zombie with a cold has influenced my lack of attention to anything much at the moment!)

The lady in this image was also found at the Mauerpark flea markets, I think circa 1940s. (I didn't find it in the 1940s, that would be impossible. But I think the photograph was taken around then.) I still feel a bit strange about using old photographs for my work, somehow encyclopedias are much more fun. Goodness!

x

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Geheimnis Pilz (Mystery Mushroom)

Another mushroom man for the collection (which I no longer have) - it's nice to have made this one - there is something so merry and creepy about them that I just go 'ooooh!' when I see it! (At least internally.) Because this Mushroom Man has travelled from Melbourne to Berlin with me, it seemed appropriate to give it a German name. Eeee! You can also see the other Mushroom Men here, though they now reside in Sydney, Australia!

are you a man? or are you a mouse?

It sure feels good to be composing again! I love it when components of the craziness that is the contents of my (makeshift) desk, come together in a happy (or bizarre) harmony. I swear those chicken legs were made for that woman. No comment on the lasers.


See? I am amazed that anything comes out of these piles upon piles. The other night I had a dream where I opened a store where I sold collage material by weight. What an omen - a divine one at that.

x

busy with birthdays

So one of the main reasons I haven't put much up lately, is that I've been getting some things together for Kent's birthday! What with being on the road, and then living in the same room together (I had to banish him to the bathroom while I did some things last night) has proved challenging in terms of being secretive! Anyhoo, it has been a fantastic excuse to have an almost virtually handmade birthday - you can see more of the bits I made on anecdote, but here are my two favourites - the birthday card and an IOU voucher for Kent's preferred drawing pens. I quite like the voucher - I might continue this!

(And a very happy birthday my darling! xxx)

sketches

getting back into doodle land - it is a sweet and warm place. There is nothing quite like sitting at a window with fresh flowers in front of you.

ideas of late

Sooooo I believe that this is a slight cop out post, destined for my sketchbook page, but I just couldn't help myself! My sketchbooks are so important for developing work, and there is something about all that paper and pencil that just makes me go 'ooooh!' with a little shiver of joy.

I've been spending days and days cutting birds out for an epic collage (which may have to be constructed fully in Melbourne :s I still haven't figured out the logistics of it all) and am amazed at the sheer mass of them! That and painting up some big bandit birds of spring and flags for our next adventure to the streets! (Aren't I link crazy? It's like a drug I swear.)

Until then, I hope some scrappy notes and doodles will whet (is that even the right word?) your appetite.

x

takin' it to the streets

Hello! I just wanted to include a few recent images of my latest adventures in the streets of Prenzlauer Berg. Kent and I have had our first mad dash by night to paste up some goodies for the locals - or for us at least!

This one is part of a series of 4 (though I hope to grow this over time) that is loosely labeled 'laser ladies of the night' and is currently being exhibited along the railroads of Schönhauser Allee (yes my tongue is so far in my cheek right now).

This particular one is on the side of a charity bin (I think? When you are a pasting virgin you tend to get quite panicky of every car that drives past, so there is much gluing and hurrying away, like it is perfectly in your business to be carrying a large shopping bag and a giant tupperware container filled with sludge and a paintbrush stuck in it.)


This is one of my favourites - the bandit bird is collaboration with Kent, and the flags are part of my current love of all things merry, with text taken from a Rilke poem: more and more i feel. I have an appropriately German language version in the works.

Anyhoo, if you would like to see the full post of our shenanigans, with loads more pictures, you can on our shared blog, anecdote! More bandit birds are on the way - until then,

x

laser babies in your letter box

well that sounded a lot creepier than it sounded - but then again maybe the images below will confirm this. these are all from old photos I found at mauerpark flea markets near where I'm living. personal photos feel very different to images from books, as they seem to be embedded with a much deeper personal history, and I'm still not sure how I feel about working with such things! luckily these ones are in postcard format, so who knows, they could just end up in your letter box. (So creepy.)





Wanna see some more laser family members? You can see them here, on my other blog which I write with my husband Kent! We did a whole bunch of sneaky paste ups in the streets of Prenzlauer Berg just last night!

sketches

sometimes I draw things.

things are changing at the warming room!

this is a good thing - trust me! just wanted to send a message out there to anyone who may (or may not) be reading; that I am updating the blog in all kinds of glorious ways.



even though this is super glorious, it is also super time consuming - so please bear/bare (bear? shit!) with me in the meantime! it's all about to get awesome. i think. i hope. eeeh! keep your eyes peeled for MORE links to awesome sites that you really should check on a regular basis, more information about me (if you're interested), more PICTURES (!!!) and an online shop where you will be able to buy prints and original artworks at the handy 2am-style click of a button.

until then,
tschüss!
x

Only the Wind