Maeve online magazine

Our lovely little studio was recently shot by photographer Lauren Bamford for an online magazine called Maeve. If you click on the link, go to the very end of the magazine under 'Still Life Series' and you should find the shots. Lovely.

photography: lauren bamford

styling: sarah trotter

Some new works...#3

With Open Studios snapping at my heals recently, i found myself in a flurry of new work production. With no brief or boundaries restricting what i made, the output became quite random and diverse, which was quite nice and confusing at the same time. Here's an attempt (in a 3 post series), to organise some of the work, though by no means did these pieces necessarily come about in this order, but they did all occur roughly within a two month time frame. Phew! Now it's full steam ahead getting the last of my pieces ready for the upcoming exhibition... stay tuned!

Some new works...#2

Some new works... group #1

Journeys with timber...

After numerous conversations at open studios regarding the seemingly endless variety of materials i utilise, i got to thinking about where i began with my work and how it's travelled. One material that i truly love is timber. I started experimenting with timber half way through uni and it has continued to cropped up in various guises in my work over time. Having no true knowledge of timber and how to work it, my treatment of it has it has always been quite experimental, naive and unorthodox. Some might think i'm quite the butcher with my heavy handed and brutal linishing, carving and joining, but i can't help but be drawn to it, it's forgiving nature, it's warmth, and it's subtle insistence to stay true to itself. No matter how much i torture and colour it, it always remains timber.

With so much of my work exploring the animist belief that inanimate objects can be imbued with a spirit or soul, i found timber to be a perfect material for communicating this notion as i discovered that each piece i worked with harboured it's own characteristics and personality.

Here is a little retrospective of my timber journey from some of the first piece through to now...

2007. Archane Landscape. Neckpiece. Timber, copper, enamel.

2007. Sad Eyes. Ring. Timber, oxidised copper.

2007. Companion Brooch. Timber, rubber thimble, copper, plastic.

2007. Hidey Hole. Ring. Timber, copper.

2007. Secret Garden. Brooch. Timber, fine silver, enamel.

2008. Adventure Playground. Neckpiece. Timber, copper, paint, cord.

2008. Beastie. Neckpiece. Timber, oxidised copper, paint, cord.

2009. Gone to Seed. pendant. Timber, glass beads, oxidised sterling silver, silk cord.

2009. Forest for the Fences. Neckpiece. Timber, paint, cord.

2010. Climbing Trees and Scraping Knees. Neckpiece. Timber, oxidised silver, shark vertebrae,

rhodochrosite, job's tears seeds, glass beads, pink coral, acrylic, paint.

2010. Untitled. Timber, oxidised silver, glass beads, job's tears seeds, paint.

2010. Untitled. Neckpiece. Timber, paint, silk cord.

Open Studio madness!

Another 'Open Studios' has been and gone and what a turn out it was!! Despite the miserable weather, hundreds of dedicated art, craft, design enthusiasts marched through the 9 floors of winding corridors and in and out of the many studios open for viewing, business and chit chat.

Karla and i received an overwhelming sea of foot traffic with many people stopping for a good old chin wag and shopping. I managed to uphold tradition and lost my voice again as i did last year, making me think that many folks must think i must sound husky all the time.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by, we have accumulated a wonderful new mailing list which we will use to keep folks updated on all things karla and natalia (independent and joint news alike).

Here are some pics. Excuse the blurriness, but it does reflect the pace of the 2 nights...

OPEN STUDIO!!!

It's that time again, the annual Nicholas Building Open Studio event.

For those unfamiliar with the Nicholas Building, it's a rare beast in Melbourne. Placed bang smack in the centre of the CBD on the corner of Flinders Lane and Swanston Street, the Nicholas Building is 9 wonderful floors almost entirely devoted to housing creatives of all dominions, from jewellers to painters to graphic designs, architects, sound producers, milliners, cobblers, the list goes on.

Open Studios is a two day event that opens up the doors of many different studios giving the public an opportunity to see where the magic happens and view and buy work directly from the makers.

Karla and I will be opening our doors up for both nights, so come by, have a chat, drink some wine and check out some of the work we'll have available for show and sell.

- Hint. This event gets quite packed, leaving the one operating lift a little hard to catch. Try and make your way to the top floor straight up before you have a drink as it's much easier to make your way down the stairs after a few glasses than it is to climb 9 floors.

Click on the image to enlarge, or, if you're in town, head over to the Nicholas Building to pick up some invites from inside the lifts.

Open Studio.

19th - 20th August

4-9pm both nights.

We're on the 5th floor, studio 9.

See you there!

RMIT Gold and Silversmithing Auction

: This post has directly highjacked from the G&S auction blog: http://rmitgoldandsilversmithingauction.blogspot.com/

Go check it out and scope out some of the amazing work going up for auction.

RMIT Gold and Silversmithing Annual Jewellery Auction 2010:
Snap up the work of contemporary jewellers and silversmiths!

The RMIT Gold and Silversmithing auction is just around the corner – only four days to go!
An annual landmark within the jewellery community, collectors and the public, this event is a great opportunity to spot emerging jewellers and silversmiths, and to purchase original handmade pieces by established and up-and-coming artists.

The work will be auctioned by the legendary jewellery expert Mr Ronnie Bauer of Klepner’s Fine Antique Jewellers, assisted by our own Alysha Batliwalla. A fundraising tradition, all proceeds go towards the end-of-year graduate exhibition and catalogue which highlight the exceptional talent this course nurtures and develops.

Come along, have a wonderful night and show your support by bidding on some outstanding jewellery pieces!

Wednesday 11 August
Previewing of work from 6.00 pm
Auction begins 7.00 pm

The auction venue is just opposite RMIT Storey Hall, upstairs:

The Order of Melbourne
Level 2 /401 Swanston Street

Food & drinks available at the venue
Credit card and EFTPOS facilities

- Image is of my donated piece. photograph courtesy of Shea Bresnehan Photography