B-Grade Opening Night

Go Genre Everything, playing up a storm.

nice crowd

Mr Benjamin Webb contemplating his work

B-Grade

I'm not sure if you would have noticed but horror movies are not in my usual repetoir of subject or inspiration. So it is kind of strange that I am now in the middle of curating a show based on them...

The idea came from chatting to a guy I know. He had been raving about the Peter Jackson group of very b-grade horror movies that he'd made before he shot to super director stardom with Lord of the Rings. Now I had been thinking for a while that movie night at Brunswick Arts would be a great way to get people into the gallery, and so as he talked about it I had visions of b-grade horror movie nights at the gallery. They could run their bar, I'd make popcorn. It'd be great! Then it seemed quite natural to have a group show with the same theme to go with the movie nights. A convaluted and back-to-front way to come across an idea for a show, but there you go.




Curating a group show is a very strange experience. In putting together a solo show I am used to being in control of the whole process, knowing exactly how the works are coming along, how big, small, good, bad, what colour, shape and size each of the works is and how they will all fit together. With this thing I am left with artists telling me they are doing well, the works are coming along and it'll be great, but I have no idea how they will all fit together, I don't even know what some of the artists are making... some of them don't even know yet!!! I won't know til the day they all show up at the gallery with works ready to be installed!

But I can't imagine it could be too bad, I mean the show is based around the b-grade... bad is good... remember??!?!

At the markets

Lately I have been so busy that I haven't had any time to actually paint... also I have not had any looming deadlines so my thoughts, time and energy get directed to more immediate tasks. I don't mind this, it is part of the ebb and flow of an artists life. I don't think I could paint all day everyday anyway, that takes an aweful lot of stamina! (I know people who do it though!)

At the Sunday Arts at the Convent there is another stallholder, Elise Hurst, who brings her paints along and does some beautiful work while there. She sets up and starts a fresh painting each time and will often finish it on the same day. I have tried sketching and writing and all sorts of other menial tasks at the markets, coz there is usually a fair bit of time between interaction with customers. I always thought I'd get self conscious and distracted and weird if I tried painting in front of people, and it is a lot of fuss and bother to set up and pack up again at the end of the day. But last month at Rose St and then at the Convent I gave it a go... and it was great~!

I think I had been a bit starved of painting time in the studio due to things like moving both my house and studio, having the red balloon show and getting a few more hours a week of gainful employment. So when I set up I was straight into it and loving it. It made the day at the market pass so much faster and feel so much more productive!





These are pics of me revisiting an image I painted a couple of years ago. I had been commissioned to paint an elephant for a special occasion and it was a real pleasure to play with this image. In fact it had been one of my first successful elephant paintings. The original painting has a story attached that I might try and share sometime soon. I've used the image of the original as a card and it is always a popular one. I was surprised at how easily I blocked everyone out and how much I was at ease with people viewing my shambolic process and half finished work.

I will be doing that quite regularly at the markets. People love to watch, though some get quite shy about talking to me... I hope that it doesn't scare people away from buying stuff!!!

If you come to the markets don't be bashful, I still love to talk to people!
:)

since last I wrote

It has been a while since I last posted to this blog.

The main reason is because I have been consumed by the not insignificant task of moving both house and studio. Me and my cat have moved to the north and the new studio is just slightly to the west.

Before I indulge too much in rapturous details of new studio and living situation I think I should debrief about the red balloon show...

It all went smoothly, opening night was great, red balloons flying around and people having fun with the balloon man. I sold a respectable amount of work and was very happy with the out come...


some setting up shots:


This is how the gallery looked...






I had the upstairs gallery, which worked really well, as it increased a feeling of being up in the clouds with hundreds of red balloons floating around you. I hadn't thought about it before hand but was pleased with the effect.

As the gallery is down a little lane way I put some red balloons on the yellow bike the guys use as advertising for the gallery... I thought it was beautiful!

All sorts of stuff

I have been painting like a mad woman for this show. I'm really loving the red balloon theme!

Its funny coz the colour red and I have had a checkered history. I have tended to avoid it a bit as too much of it has the capacity to make me a little anxious. This show has proven to be a good way for me and red to become friends, such a whimsical and innocent application and surrounded by and large by friendly blue skies.

I think it would be worth doing a bit of highly rigorous and academic research (on wikipedia) into the psychological impact colours can have on people, particularly the colour red. (That will have to be the subject of another post!)

It will be a totally different opening to the elephant show earlier this year. For a start the venue is different. fortyfive downstairs is an awesome gallery with a reputation as a great inner city gallery that is accessable, dynamic and well respected as a hub for theatre, forums, performance as well as visual art. Brunswick Arts is a funky artist run space down a dodgy lane way in our favourite grungy suburb of Brunswick. Run by a group of young artists it is a lot more experimental and cutting edge. As opposed to the elephant show, which I had been working on for a couple of years and have long term plans in the future of, my plans for this show were to just have fun and break out a bit.

I am having all sorts of fun things going on... like a professional balloon man who makes animals out of balloons, lots of real balloons, a projected slideshow of images and probably access to the blogsite for Project Red Balloon. Oh yeah, also oil paintings and 99 little watercolours :)

I have decided to postpone the Thailand Elephant trip til March next year. I was being a bit unrealistic to think I could fit it in this year... with this balloon show in August, and another show I am curating in November and all of the rest of life and living as well. Yup, planning it for March is instantly less stressful and much more sane!

Red Balloons Show Coming Up

Hi
It has been a little while since I last blogged on this site... I have been working a lot on my new endeavour "Project Red Balloon"

The idea is to create a cyberspace equivelant of a helium balloon release. I painted 99 individual watercolour balloons and emailed each one to a different person. The idea is that people will forward them on and I'm asking people to let me know when they get one so I can track where they go. So far there have been some really fun and creative responses.

The real world, physical space manifestation of this concept will be presented at a great artist run space in Brunswick, Melbourne. Amongst other things there will be 99 little original watercolours on the wall, there will also be oil paintings, video and installation work....

Where:
Brunswick Arts www.brunswickarts.com.au
2a Little Breese St, Brunswick, 3056 (Melbourne, Australia)

When:
1-16 August 2008

Opening night:
1st August 2008
6-9pm

Gallery Hours:
Thu - Sun 12-5

Come one, come all!