City.

View of the city from the NGV Australia at Federation Square. I saw the Long Distance Vision photo exhibition yesterday. Really inspiring - the snapshot-style photos are exactly the sort of photographs I want to take. Get along to see it if you can - it's free and runs until 21 February.

Australian War Memorial.

While I was in Canberra recently, I visited the Australian War Memorial. I went there a lot when I was young, but it's safe to say that as an adult, and as a student of Australian history, I saw it through completely different eyes.



I didn't actually get to see a lot of the museum, because there was a power failure and we all had to leave! One of the displays that affected me most, though, was a series of seven etchings by a British artist named Percy Smith. The Dance of Death was inspired by Hans Holbein, and Smith has reworked the theme in stark modern tones. One of the prints, Death refuses, depicts a soldier, surrounded by his dead comrades, reaching out to Death, who has his back turned as if to say, "Sorry, it's not your turn yet." It's completely heartbreaking.


Percy Smith, Death forbids, 1919.

I've been searching online for more information about Percy Smith, and I've been having no luck at all. I'd love to know if these prints have been republished since their original run - they're just incredible.

I'm staying up late for a secret mission at approximately 0305 hours, so I'm cleaning my house and wasting time on the internet. Here's a cute thing I stole from Pip of Meet Me At Mike's.

This past week, here's what I've been...

Making: owl mittens.
Cooking: chocolate and almond torte for my mother's 50th birthday celebrations on Sunday.
Drinking: rotgut red wine with a new friend, and Cascade Green with an old friend.
Reading: Cafe Europa by Slavenka Drakulić - a series of essays on life in post-Communist Eastern Europe.
Wanting: a holiday.
Looking: at the pretty night sky in the street behind my house.
Playing: McDonald's Monopoly with my housemate.
Wasting: time sweating the small stuff.
Sewing: a missing button onto my work shirt.
Wishing: and hopin', Dusty Springfield style.
Waiting: to buy my own copy of Love Of Diagrams' new album Nowhere Forever.
Wondering: where the twists and turns of the past week's romantickal events are going to lead.
Loving: the photos of my friend Tim with a huge snake draped around his neck.
Hoping: I get into art school next year.
Marvelling: at the little things that tell me spring's JUST around the corner.
Needing: a small practise design in preparation for my big project that I'll be beginning soon.
Smelling: my cocoa-butter moisturiser. Yum!
Wearing: clothes from Australia, Brazil, Korea and Italy.
Following: Mamma Spaghetti on Twitter. She's hilarious!
Noticing: the snuffles that my cat is making right now in her sleep.
Knowing: that everything will be okay.
Thinking: about what I can say on the radio at 3 in the morning that will make any kind of sense.
Bookmarking: this recipe for dill pickles. About the only thing cucumbers are good for, in my opinion!
Giggling: with my BFF this afternoon.
Feeling: a bit ordinary, but enjoying the small details.

Hobart

I went to Hobart a few weeks ago, and was blessed with glorious weather the whole time I was there.


Hobart has some gorgeous buildings and some REALLY ugly ones.




The Aurora Australis.




Having fun in TMAG.


Tom at TMAG.


There was an exhibition in the courtyard at TMAG of works by school students, made from salvaged and recycled materials. This one was titled Death by television.


St David's Park used to be a cemetery. When it was turned into a park, all the headstones were stored away and, later, set into walls.

A mystery, and the beginning of a new project...

I was all set to post about the piece that has inspired my newest project, but I can't for the life of me find the article! I was sure I'd bookmarked it, but clearly not.*

Anyway, lately I've been thinking a lot about turning one of my images into a cross-stitch piece.



Here's the beginnings - if you click on this image, and enlarge it, you'll see that I've pixellated it and put a grid over the top. My next job is to work out what colours to use - there's about 25 in there.

I'll keep you all posted on this project - I'm pretty sure it'll take a while!

xxx

* Recently I read a blog featuring a graffitied wall that an artist had turned into a cross-stitch. If any readers know what I'm talking about, please please link me up!

Exhibitionism.

I have veryvery exciting news - one of my photographs is going to be shown in an exhibition!

And you're ALL invited.



The show is being held at Immersion Therapy, 420 High St Northcote. The exhibition runs from June 12 to July 5, and there will be an opening event on Saturday June 13, from 1pm.

I hope you'll be able to check out my work, and the work of the other six artists featured in the show. See you there!

E xox

Still alive!

Ciao!

Just a quick note to let you know that I'm still alive and well and in freezing cold, drizzly Milan.

I was abandoned by the tour group this morning as they head back to Australia, by way of Dubai, and I've just spent a frustrating and fruitless couple of hours at the central train station trying to locate the lost property office - I left my red leather Columbina mask on the train from Venice yesterday! I was told "Down the stairs and to the right" by many different station staff, but it must be invisible or something - it's definitely not there! I wll go back with Rita or Mia in tow tomorrow and they can help me break through the language barrier. One phrase I will definitely not forget now is "dov'è l'ufficio di bagliato perduto?" Argh!!

I'm feeling quite at home in Milan though because they have trams, just like in Melbourne! I am spending three more nights here before flying off to London very early on Monday morning.

What else is news? Since I last posted from Rome, we've been to Sorrento (spending the day at Pompei in the pouring rain), Orvieto (Google it - the duomo in particular is just AMAZING), Florence (David! The Uffizi!!) and Venice. The day we arrived in Venice was the day it flooded - the highest acqua alta in 50 years! We arrived at the station at 12.00 and weren't able to get into our hotel until the water dropped at 16.00. Venice is so gorgeous though, I felt the most at home there than any other city so far. I'd really like to go back there (once I've finished paying off this trip!) and spend a semester or two studying at their university.

I did some serious shopping in Venice too - I bought a pair of gorgeous, soft, cashemere-lined red leather gloves, a red leather mask (now trapped in the non-existant Ufficio di Bagliato Perduto...grrr), a print of my favourite painting in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, and a cute navy blue leather purse from a shop I just happened to stumble into on my roamings through the lanes and streets.

I'm sorry for the lack of pictures, too - I'm in an internet cafe, and my USB cord is in my suitcase back at the hotel. I'll post photos soon, I promise!

Here's a photo of the print I bought at the Guggenheim, though - it's called Solidità Nella Nebbia (Solidity Of Fog), painted by Luigi Russolo.



Until next time....

xoxoxo

Zoom-zoom.

1. Come fly with me, come fly, let's fly away...
I forgot to mention yesterday that I booked my flights to London and back! I'll be flying Milan-London in early December, and London-Pisa a month later. So exciting! This whole trip is getting more and more real with each passing day. Only 41 sleeps to go!

I'll be spending a month in London with a very tight budget - anyone got any tips for things to do for free? Obviously I'll be visiting all of the many galleries and museums! I can't wait to visit the British Museum, and in particular I want to visit the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons. I've just finished reading a biography of pioneering 18th-century surgeon John Hunter, and it'd be wonderful to see all of his specimens in the, er, flesh.

Obviously, visits to markets, vintage stores and H&M are a must, too! I'm taking the minimum of luggage with me so I can stock up while I'm away!

2. Speaking of H&M..



I spotted this in a shop in Northcote Plaza this afternoon, and it made me laugh out loud! Here's the real H&M logo...


OK.. it's getting late and I have to get up at 5am tomorrow! I hope everyone's weekends are lovely, and I'll be back on Monday!

xxx