Catfacehorse

This is a ring that Owen bought me for my last birthday. It was designed and handcrafted by Dan McGill, a gifted local jeweller. I adore this ring and wear it nearly every day, and I have had it for over six months now. (Check out Dan’s website for some amazing photos of his work, my poor little photo doesn’t do it justice).

Each time I look at this ring I have two thoughts: ‘this a beautiful object’ and ‘Owen gave me this’.  If you think making beautiful things is frivolous, then this is my disproof. Every day for six months I have got pleasure from this object, it has improved a small part of my world in a tangible way.  I deeply appreciate having beautiful things around me, and have started to realise that this isn’t frivolous. In fact, listening to a podcast from Inside Story a while back, I heard Denis Dutton explain how art has been a key part of our evolution (listen here). He argues that the aesthetic urge developed right at the birth of our species and has persisted universally through human cultures.  Whether or not he is correct, it is a good reminder for me that aesthetics are a necessary part of life.

For a few glorious weeks I have been borrowing my sister’s made-in-this-decade Janome sewing machine. It’s actually only a few years old and runs like an absolute dream. My sister was given it for her 21st (I got a Persian rug, so I’m not complaining) and I babysat it for a few weeks while she was moving house. I went into a never-before-seen sewing frenzy;  I sewed two bags, a scarf,  seven bibs and a little baby quilt, which is more sewing than seen in the last five years combined.  There was no swearing, the bobbin stayed where it was supposed to, and even sewing hemp to raw silk the stitches were strong and even. Bliss.

My sewing machine is a refugee from a 1970’s north-western Tasmania home economics class. My grandmother rescued it when they were all getting replaced a few years ago.  On the upside it has a lovely solid feel, no-nonsense metal levers and dials that are satisfying to twiddle. On the downside, the bobbin has gone dodgy again, and the tension never stays right. Which is a recipe for swearing and giving up. With a machine that works I can actually contemplate trying a few more complicated things. I know ‘a poor workman blames his tools’, but at least with my sister’s machine I had a fighting chance of finishing things that stay together! My plan now is to find someone with a neglected new-ish machine sitting guiltily in the corner that they are willing to get rid of for a reasonable  price.

In the photos above are the most recent fruits of my sewing labour - a little baby blanket stitched together for my new neice, and a raw hemp and hemp silk scarf for my lovely Owen’s birthday (funny story, neice arrived three weeks early, on Owen’s birthday - her middle name was very nearly ‘birthdaythief’). (Also good reason for sewing, avoiding being bankrupted by double birthdays!) I actually enjoyed sewing these pieces together, sigh, missing the Janome already.

I have moved over from my home at The Sanity Project with my lovely Owen, to a blog of my own. Owen’s photography is now at Night Apes Dream, and we are still encouraging each other as much as ever. We both just thought at the same time that it might be more fun to have blogs of our own.

I will be sharing some painting, and plenty of inspiration to feast the eyes upon. (Because it can be hard to paint after a long day’s work!)

Today’s visual nourishment came courtesy of the National Gallery of Victoria’s international collection (and a convenient public holiday).  There was an incredible bamboo sculpture in the gardens; Five elements - water by Tetsunori Kawana. Made entirely out of bent bamboo and twisted wire, it was like standing right in front of a massive wave in the surf just as it is about to crash. It was beautifully linear, but had so much movement. The other standout for me was a video installation by Bill Viola, Ocean without a shore. I found it deeply moving, quiet and  powerful. It took me a while to shake off the feeling,  which for me is a very good sign. The beauty is of course, that both these pieces are in the general collection, and are free to go and see.

Thanks for dropping in, and please leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you.