Settlement and fragments

On Wednesday I was taken to a marvellous exhibition at the QUT gallery that is really worth a wander through should you work near there or be in the general vicinity. It is by a Phillipino husband and wife team, Alfredo and Isabel Aquilizan and was made with many collaborators including their five children and various community groups.
This show,"Fragments- Another Country",  has it all, my people. There is crochet, vintage everything, handmade objects, recycling, clutter and culling and a great deal of thought provoking loveliness.
It is about the ordeal of relocation and  immigration and what we humans think is important enough that we would keep in our  lives should we have to choose.

One room was filled with walls of intricately made aeroplanes all made using recycled and found objects like the rest f the exhibition.

The boys I went with were most taken with this lairy modded bus/car.

 These cupboards are made from a rare kind of oak only found in Queensland but packed with every imaginable bit of ephemera from the owners' past lives in the Phillipines. One boy pointed out a Sarah Vaughan CD. I was impressed that a fourteen year old even new who Sarah Vaughan was!

Then there was a colossal sculpture reminiscent of a ship or the barricade from Les Mis.

It filled an entire room with struts and sails made of crocheted rugs and vintage knitting needles. Yes! Vintage knitting needles! I was in Heaven, I tell you.

Then there were wonderful assemblages made of old cardboard and twigs. Pull yer socks up there, boys!

At the end we got to make our own special objet that we would choose to keep should we have to give up everything and leave our homes. The boys labelled them with names and where they were from and reasons why that was their chosen item. The twinettes were, as usual, chalk and cheese. One wanted to take his bed so that he could always have a comfortable night's sleep. The other made an abstract lucky charm molecule thing to bring luck in his new home. I made a ring to symbolize my family, because like most of us, that's what I value most.

Then we mailed them on a huge pile of treasures made by all the other visitors.

It gave food for thought about people who have to abandon homes and come here with nothing hoping for new lives and those who are already here and lose everything in sudden catastrophic events like the awful bush fires in New South Wales. May they be safe with their families too.

Looking for Angels- Part 1 (Susan's House)

This is Susan. We have known each other for a couple of decades and kind of encouraged each other to follow the art trail away from the less suitable jobs we found ourselves in back then. We hadn't seen  each other for a while- babies, travel, babies, house moves, babies... We kept in touch though and recently I took some of the children to see her last exhibition. She came around for lunch a couple of times and I finally got out to her new(ish) place today. Here she is surrounded by some of her artisticus Suse-icus. She said I could show you around.

Their house is seriously out in the bush. All you can hear in the front is the occasional whip bird.

Whilst  Susan was still on her way and Shorty slept in the car, I scouted the perimeter. Of course there is ceramic art everywhere as she is an accomplished and passionate artist in this medium.

I think these little fellas are jellyfish, just blobbing around on one of the decks.

The first thing she showed me was a cushion a friend had made out of printed fabrics and stitched indigo coloured cotton. It is a Japanese craft adapted to some modern Australian furnishings and fits into Susan's home beautifully.

Here is the man of the house in a self portrait with dog. It seems only creative people live in this house. Watch out Bill Robinson!

Susan's grandmother's furniture has been well loved and used. It all sits on a practical concrete floor which they are still deciding on a covering for. I kind of like the concrete!

Around every corner, pieces of Susan's voluptuous organic forms sit within their home like pot plants or umbrellas sit in most others.

The work is on on walls, tables, benches, nooks and crannies. I'm only showing you the tip of the iceberg here, people! Do you love these robust lotus pieces!

                                              

After eating, chatting, drinking tea, negotiating the teething, stroppy toddler, we went down to her STUDIO (yes, the lucky possum has one!), and I got some serious shed envy. These marching mangroves were favourites of mine at the exhibition. I love how they are popping their heads out of the paper as though they are growing toward the light in the window.

I'm not sure what she has planned for this little 'vinaigrette' of goodies and cast offs. It's unknown future appealed to me.

By the window was a great tablescape, a cornucopia of mouth watering found and made objects, many from her last series of installations.

Just as I was going toward the car she led me down a narrow space between the kiln shed and the studio.

And there he was! Painted by Susan's son, there was yet another angel, albeit a very funky one.

                                       I tell you those suckers are EVERYWHERE lately!!!

The Gifts that Keep on Giving

Lovely Dr J. who took Lefty to 'live on a farm', told me some more tit bits on Friday which put me in a bad mood for Saturday. She says pathology is the "gift that keeps on giving".

I can think of some much nicer gifts. 

They give you lots of reading material when you have the big 'C'. It is like Cancer 101 in one of those condensed courses.

They even have booklets on gift advice for your friends and family. Mine must have read all the literature before me because they ticked all the boxes.

Their suggestions included-

Flowers from your garden:
There were copious, luscious flowers both at the hospital and still arriving here including all my favourites. The tulips only lasted a day or two but were worth every minute!

Some came from as far afield as New Zealand without so much as a wilted zinnia!

Hugs: 

I have received wonderful gentle hugs from all and sundry, even my dentist and the childcare ladies, the wonderful women who keep bringing food and my sweet friends, family and over zealous children.

Hand, foot or whole body massage:

Thoughtful friends have bestowed me with a couple of great foot and shoulder massages and reapplication of rainbow toes. The gifted eye pillow provides a lovely eyeball massage for the new bags that are developing. That must be a side effect!

A treasure box for cards and letters:

 I can't decide what to title it...'C' is also for cookie .....2012......the 'C' files...? Any suggestions welcome!

A journal:

The Cancer Council gives you lots of journals to write in but I have you lot and my old 2012 diary. Friends have been more inclined to give me canvases and sketchbooks. I like that a lot.

A painting from a child:

There has been art work from several children, a lovely Ellen Giggenbach print, 

carvings from Samoa, op shop goodies from my brother and a wood block painting from the lovely Lairy godmother's collection.  Look! It's a hospital vinaigrette!! The jewellery has been most inspiring too. As well as the ceramic dove.....

there was rainbow jewellery for all the sisters distributed by one and a lovely resin bangle from another.

A sweet treat;

These came in the form of liquorice, lollies, cookies, cakes, special tea, 

sorbet, cheeses, wines and loaves. All pretty sweet to me!

                                                      

Novels or magazines:

Reading material included of lots of lovely house mags, art mags, small tomes on philosophy and journeys and this Dawn French book which I have yet to finish but am enjoying in small instalments.

Anything that will make her laugh:

This gorgeous bit of frippery came direct from the Samoan bra factory to my hospital room. There should be one in every care pack at the cancer unit. It hung in glorious cheek on the wall of my room to amuse me constantly.

If you have one, offer your holiday house for a break: 

If you ignore it, it will come..

Meanwhile here's a gift back at you. Anyone that knows MMMC, knows her friend, actor, raconteur and day time talk show host, Horsey. Is it possible he was a male model in the early years before he had his ears done? Horsey, tell me the name of your surgeon!