New year, new city and a new start

Well it has been a long, long time since I have posted anything and I felt I was very overdue. 2011 was a great year personally and artistically with several exhibitions and commissions a new house and the great big pivotal decision to leave my wonderful teaching job in Sydney to move to the sunny city of Newcastle to be with my one and only.

So a quick overview of 2011's achievements:

In October I was fortunate enough to be involved in the 'Artisans in the Garden' exhibition at the Royal Botanic gardens Sydney. This enchanting exhibition brought together 30 artisans and artists in the stunning Royal Botanic Gardens and the Lions Gate Lodge. The show had thousands of visitors over the week long exhibition and I received some great feedback from the show (plus i sold a few pieces - which is always great).

I currently have some pieces in a salon show at the painters gallery in Mona Vale organised by the lovely and talented Rachel Carroll . This exhibition allowed me to reconnected with many artists that I have not seen for a few years and it was great to see how they have all grown and developed.

I have worked on some fantastic commissions in 2011 and seem to have had a run of pieces that were commisioned as wedding gifts.

It is a real honor to be trusted with the task of creating a special personalised gift for a newly married couple. I love this kind of work and i always try to work closely with the clients and create the perfect gift for the couple.

Koru - new growth was commissioned for a young couple and the client wanted to include aspects of the grooms New Zealand background. We settled on the symbol of the 'double koru' which is a Maori symbol for change in life and the bringing together of two people. The design was filled in with my signature filigree designs. I really enjoyed working on this piece and was delighted to hear back from the client to tell me that the couple loved the piece.

Another wedding commission from the year used the calligraphy signature from the couples wedding invitation with a bit of additional filigree flair. This linked in with the couples existing wedding motifs while still creating a new, unique artwork for the couple.

2012 is looking to be an exciting year with many artistic possibilities. I am looking forward to having more time to spend on art and creating while getting in touch with Newcastle's extensive art community. Right now I am finding daily walks on the beach relaxing and inspiring. A few exhibitions are in the works for the year so watch this space for new work and shows.