On the 13th August, I will be on board with Emily Fong and Joannah Underhill at their awesome six-week workshop, Urban Art Binge at Jugglers Art Space in Fortitude Valley.

I signed up to do the first six-week block in February this year after having experienced the 'taster workshop' where I was delighted to find a group of like-minded creatives looking to harness their inspiration and turn it into something beautiful. My reason for going was to re-discover my inspiration. Having been 'creatively dry' for the past year, it was time for me to take on something that would kick-start my business in 2012.

Having found my inspiration to push through and paint paint paint! ... I'm happy to share that I'm creating a body of works for the BARI Festival in October and a few more to enter a few art prizes.

Six months later, these girls are still inspiring new crowds of people and, I've been asked to share my techniques and observations with the group for this block!

Visit the Urban Art Binge blog, where you'll find testimonials, photos of everyones' work and information on how to join up to the coming six-week block. 

 

A weekend at Gatton

 

In early July I took a drive down to Clifton to meet my friend Larissa. We had decided some weeks ago that we would meet and venture into the landscape in her camper. An experienced countryside traveller, Larissa has given me even more inspiration to explore with canvas and paint.

When we travel through this country, (I’m usually the passenger, which is nice), I’m planning in my mind to stop here and there to take photos, and to paint ‘en plein air’ the many varieties of gums alongside the road at Gatton, and this weekend was intended to be only a taste of what is to come. Aside from the many photos I now have for future works, I took home with me a sweet reminder of how inspiring the Australian landscape is.

Some of you are aware that I have been planning for at least a couple of years, to take a journey across Australia; my vehicle of choice either a DR 450 or an XT. This is still at least a year away as I need to get the money together to first buy a bike and to kit it up, so that I can take my art materials and the basics I need to be comfortable on my journey (the bare essentials). I imagine the first part of my journey will entail a trek around Queensland, just to get into the swing of things. And I’m sure that I’ll need to request the assistance of some knowledgeable others to show me how to keep a motorcycle in top form when I’m out on the road (nudge nudge wink wink)... In the meanwhile, let me share my weekend at Gatton with you.

Some of the photos I took reminded me of when my partner and I rode down to Sydney and back to Brisbane in 2010. This is really when I first had a real sense of how I might undertake my journey and of what images I’d like to create. 

Our first stop for the weekend was Queen Mary Falls Circuit. The glowing trees reminded me of Hans Heysen’s work, particularly Mystic Morn, however it was afternoon and it was just starting to drizzle.
'Twas a mystic drizzling afternoon.

 

Keeping the camera dry was a task itself, however I made it my mission to capture the afternoon sunlight through the fine rain past the trees. I'm very inspired to paint at this point. As I was walking I was devising a way to paint in this climate. A large umbrella and a flask of hot sweet billy tea I'm sure would get me through.

And as we move on, it gets colder and wetter. If you ever go these falls, I recommend you spend time at the bottom. Such an incredible feeling. The force of the water pushing the air against your face is really amazing. On a hot summers' day I'd really like to get closer to the water.

 

That night I had the pleasure of fire duty, all to myself. Thanks to the teachings of my beloved, I can keep a fire going all night. It was Larissa's duty to keep the fire warm with tea lights. ?

And for breakfast I was spoilt with hot porridge, muesli on top with apple.

Lunch time special. We had moved camp, closer to the river, thanks to a French couple who had also generously donated their firewood to us. Following the success of our roast pumpkin dinner the night before (which was a delicious compromise after a long and unsuccessful mission to find spuds on the roadside), we had more for lunch. 

I also roasted the seeds... YUM! This will be on my list of roadside recipes for sure.

And after ‘much adoe’ about everything unrelated to art-making, I spread myself out and began to draw. I came home with one drawing and an unfinished watercolour, so plans are already made for another art-venture in the near future! 

 

And another morning of mouth-watering goodness; hot porridge and muesli; this time with chunks of orange and juice...

 

... and a generous drizzle of honey.. WOW. Highly recommended.

Time to go home and draw up a plan for the next weekend away...

Now, in testing my skills on keeping my blog up-to-date, this month I had almost failed the test. I assure those of you who have been on my case about this *cough Arjuna and Melody cough* can now withdraw your disappointment and get busy reading; for inspiration is not yet failing me, and I do have a lot to write about. And paint about.

And in concluding this blog I share with you the final drawing which is now in Larissa's loving hands.
Happy Birthday xxx

Greater Heights WIP

(reference photo)

The idea for this painting came to me late March, when I was brimming with inspiration after having spent the day with fellow creatives in a visual exploration at Fort Lytton, through the Urban Art Binge workshop, supported by Jugglers Art Space.

I came across a yard of red cranes for hire, looming over me against a blue sky, at an industrial site in Wynnum. The sight was impressive, and as I noticed an airplane ascending in the background, an analogy came to me loud and clear; we are striving for greater heights; in business, finance, in the workplace, our building developments, in our advancements in technology, etc., but these heights are most commonly placed within our own preoccupations; those which are often a distraction from any greater picture.

Our reach for greater heights is often driven by common interests; power and money. This painting attempts to give a visual analogy for a distraction in our methods. And in retrospect, this analogy can be interpreted in many different ways, or applied to various circumstances and is therefore open for independent analysis. Death to the Author I say!

The method

Composition

The intention of my message is to draw focus towards ‘something greater’ than our common most preoccupations, so I gave two-thirds of the surface to the blue sky, over the red cranes. I chose to use the clouds from an image I took at Mount Coot-tha, during another Urban Art Binge venture. Being at a high vantage point allowed me to capture the effect of ‘looming clouds’. This element will be used to create an intensity in my image.

Transferring the preliminary drawing to the painting surface proved difficult at first, as initially I had not adhered to specific measurements and ratios. I often realise at this point in my process, that I should not underestimate the importance of mathematics when designing an image. In my opinion it is one of the most valuable skills that I have as an artist, albeit it being at a very basic level. And giving thought to this still does not allow me to reiterate every  instance where this skill is used in my techniques. Yet as I’m sure that other artists; painters and especially sculptors know what I mean when I say that one is continually referring one point to another when creating a work that requires a sense of proportion. 

Colour to create depth

The next step in my method is to consider the use of colours in the image to create a sense of depth (well it's actually one of my first steps, but this is when it becomes explicit). Depth is another important factor in this image, as it gives a sense of expansion, so I keep the cool colours to the background, and the warmer colours to the fore. And, when considering the contrast between the two complementary colours red and blue, the red is bound to stand out very nicely. 

Application

I choose to use Acrylic for my underpainting as it is cheaper and dries quickly, so that I can keep painting over it to achieve the tones I’m aiming for. I usually only use one colour, simply to create a tonal underpainting. However in this case I have some paint left over from the Jungle Safari backdrop (which I will post images of soon), so I’m using these colours without great control, to create a depth in colour. As I’m sure most will agree that the more you observe something, the more information you discover, so the more I observe clouds the more variations of hue I’m aware of; depending on the time of day of course. 

And this is where I’m at at the moment (it's not the best photo I know, and I'm working on this!). I’m re-considering the placement of the cranes, and planning to re-organise those in the middle as they’re too close to each other. 

Here’s to another rainy day inside writing about what I should be doing!

Formalising the creative process

Welcome! I have been stewing for some time over the seemingly arduous task of creating this blog.  Thankfully I have a whole rainy day to sit here and explore any hidden talent I might have for talking about myself; specifically about my creative aspirations. In days to come we will see whether I have the capacity to maintain this blog.

It has taken me some time to build enough confidence in my work to give it the attention that it deserves. Without being too sentimental to the reader, I'll say that I have been too easily distracted by 'less exciting' endeavours which have left me uninspired and disinterested.

I have had eight years experience as an artist. Having studied art for six years, and completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2010 at the Queensland College of Art in Brisbane, I am now participating in NEIS (New Enterprise Incentive Scheme); an incentive which has provided me with accredited small business training, business advice and mentoring, as well as financial support for one year.

I am currently at the Norman Park Studios, thanks to Juggler's Art Space at Fortitude Valley. My services are offered to those wishing to purchase original works of art. Alternatively, I am available for clients wishing to commission a unique work of art.

If you wish to be notified of upcoming exhibitions, or if you wish to contact me in regards to commissioned work, please email me at: meldavis_fineart@hotmail.com

To view my work online, please visit 'Mel Davis Fine Art' on Facebook. This is a public page so you do not need to be signed up to Facebook, unless you wish to comment on my work.

This blog will be part of what I hope will be a fruitful career, and I hope to share my skills and techniques to those who are interested. And if you're not interested in the 'how', then I will do my best to accommodate the appreciators and the critics.

Mel Davis Fine Art on Facebook

Please check out Mel Davis Fine Art on Facebook. As this is my new blog, I am yet to post any great images on here. I am currently at Norman Park studios, thanks to Jugglers Art Space Inc., at 103 Brunswick Street at Fortitude Valley. Here are two of my current works in progress.

These works among others are intended for exhibition in October this year. To receive updates about upcoming exhibitions, please subscribe to my blog. If you have any questions, please ask!