Peace from Fiona Dempster and Barry Smith

Fiona Dempster and Barry Smith send Peace into the world every year for the International Day of Peace
Their generosity of spirit inspires hope for our beautiful broken world
old and new weathergrams at the front door
and out the back
with deep gratitude
Peace & Love guide the way!

Jane Bodnaruk’s pennant holds the spirits of place

Jane Bodnaruk’s beautiful pennant just arrived to join The Gathering
eco-printed eucalyptus leaves speak so strongly of the Sydney bushland
beautifully stitched on the most delicate silk
catching the wild beauty of gum leaves in the wind
the way they dance & twirl
singing on the breeze
shimmering
the other side
Jane’s work speaks with such deep love for our ancient land and the quiet power and perseverance of women
see more of her stunning work at
Epock Textiles
Under Sail (Parts 1 & 2) inTransit Untethered Fibre Artsits ATASDA 2017
Rope Journey Ebb & Flow Untethered Fibre Artists ATASDA 2016
Faded and Leaves 1 Future Past ATASDA 2014

namaste

‘The Spell of the Sensuous’ and ‘Becoming Animal’ by David Abram

‘The Spell of the Sensuous’ and ‘Becoming Animal’ by David Abram
Trace Willans of Soewn Earth sent me these two books recently, they had been on my wish list for years
here’s an excerpt that resonates deeply;
“With the first hint of dusk in those high valleys, various flying insects launched into the air, including large flies that would bedevil me where I sat cross-legged, usually on a boulder, watching the light fade from the upper ridges. It was during those crepuscular hours that I discovered a useful technique for disbursing such unnerving, whirring beings when they disrupted my quiet contemplations. (It’s a technique I still use to this day, although only when I’m off in the back country, since it requires a focused clarity and precision tough to muster in the middle of town.) Whenever a fly’s feverish orbit around my head begins to unravel my poise, tearing apart with its buzz the simple calm of my mountain ponderings, I search my inward awareness for any small but annoying thought whose unpleasantness matches, in some way, that monotonous sprite buzzing again and again past my undefended ears. Oddly, such an irksome thought always seems easy to find at such a moment – as though the fly’s buzzing had already drawn forth that nagging notion from the depths of my awareness. Once I’ve become conscious of that thought, I shift my attention to the air just in front of my face, watching that near space through which the fly weaves, again and again, trying to catch its trajectory in my gaze, waiting patiently for the serendipitous moment when I will manage, for an instant, to focus my eyes upon the fly. As soon as I do so, in that split second of visual contact, I offer my vexing thought to the insect. At which point the fly – to my considerable amazement – buzzes away! Sometimes my eyes have been able to follow the fly as it departs into the distance before me, becoming smaller and smaller until it dissolves. I am left sitting on the rock, unburdened of both bug and bothersome thought, released into the ringing silence.”
from page 121 of ‘Becoming Animal’
there is such deep magic caught in this notion
I will try it with mosquitoes this summer!
Sea Urchin IV in process
felt pod by Bronwyn Hunter stitched with Deb Lacativa’s magic thread and Glennis Dolce’s indigo dyed silk
getting back to basics with Braille for the Soul
I have been busy this month applying for grants for the project, one of the good things about the process is it gets me organized  with writing an artist statement–
Mo Orkiszewski’s forthcoming exhibition Braille for the Soul (scheduled to take place at Artsite Gallery in March 2019) explores the restorative powers of love and community via the sense of touch. Sewn and knotted, beaded and feathered, these votive vessels, pennants and talismans are bound with love and deep intent for mending our beautiful broken world stitch by stitch. The major work ‘I dream of a world where love is the answer’ is a collaborative project bringing together a worldwide circle of 70 art and craft practitioners with the purpose of making connections, communicating a sense of how we belong to our earth, that each person has value, each moment of reaching out has potential, collectively lighting a beacon of awareness and respect for our planet Earth.

understanding the purpose of the work–
The purpose of this project is to make art as agency for change, to shift the dominant paradigm from planetary exploitation to a restorative one of kindness and repair. The central work is a collaborative installation inviting a worldwide circle of 70 makers to dream of a world where love is the answer, encouraging a sense of community and caring by thinking globally and acting locally. As the humanitarian aid worker Carl Wilkens wrote “When we make something with our hands, it changes the way we feel, which changes the way we think, which changes the way we act.”

and working out a budget and a production schedule-
Production Schedule for Braille for the Soul exhibition Artsite Gallery March 2019

July to December 2018
finish binding armature for the main installation “I dream of a world where love is the answer” that will carry the 70 pennants and talismans
finish & frame wall mandala Sea Urchin III
finish votive vessels

December 2018
deadline for receiving the pennants and talismans contributed from makers all around the world

December 30 2018
Artist Statement and CV, high res images of all work, catalogue details, confirm opening speaker & guest artists for talks and associated activities for promotional material

January 1-February 14 2019
assemble main installation “I dream of a world where love is the answer”
prepare materials for visitors to make votives in the gallery
place ad with Art Almanac (deadline February 1st)

February 2 2019
contact newspapers, council’s What’s On & radio stations
post snail mail invitations
photograph and document work for publication on issuu.com

February 25th 2019
deliver work to Artsite Gallery for installation
post invitation for the opening on social media & blog

March 2 2019
Preview exhibition
post online catalogue on issuu.com

March 3 2019
Official opening of exhibition
3-5pm

March 10 2019
artist talk & votive making

March 17 2019
guest artists talks & votive making

March 24 2019
Close exhibition

with deep gratitude to everyone who is contributing their pennants and talismans for our beautiful broken world
namaste

Deb Gorr’s talisman of love for our beautiful broken world

Deb Gorr‘s talisman of love for our beautiful broken world just winged it’s way across the Pacific
cloth & thread from Deb’s great grandmother & grandmother stitched together
with this noteDeb is mending our beautiful broken world with conscious intent, recycling old cloth, knitting her daily observations and treading lightly with a beautiful garden
you can read more about her work at Bee Creative
namaste

Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours

this beautiful little book just arrived in the mail
the title page
love the analogies
a good book is such a treasure
Werner’s greens for Marti

Michael Leunig is a national treasure

Michael Leunig is a national treasure!

Burning with Love by Bronwyn Berman

Bronwyn Berman’s pennant is burning with love!
‘love is the answer’
bound with golden thread to the root of a river she-oak
exquisite edges
the point

the other side
floating letters knotted with golden thread
the burning edge of the back of the seam
the other side of the point
Bronwyn’s pennant is burning with love meeting the gathering
thank you my fabulous friend!