popped art 2

alter-ego 3

monkey year

Thank God it's the Year of the Monkey - I think that's good anyway. The Year of the Sheep was really hard - for a lot of people it seems. 2015 didn't go quietly though - last week I finally succumbed to the enormous stress I have been under for months, possibly years, and developed a stomach ulcer. It's been the worst summer surfing since I started 'cutting sick' (that's a joke) 14 years ago. The surf was shit so it probably didn't matter that I injured my back last week as well. I've been impatiently waiting for my fortunes to turn and today they have. For now at least.

Last Monday I was notified by the design school I am studying with that I won a competition. We were asked to submit 5 works and I sent in my hand/digital illustrations. The best 3 were chosen by industry mentors (I think) and then whoever got the most 'Likes' won the headphones. I assumed the field must have been small but apparently not. Turns out this old girl swept the field of young guns. I'm stoked and feel somewhat vindicated - not that others thought I needed to be. Just feeling may age sometimes. 

So I've been nursing a sore gut, a bad back and a serious case of feeling sorry for myself while sitting on this news since last Monday - waiting for Tractor to announce the winner officially and the Chinese new year to start. Things seem to get stuck in a time-warp between the Western (solar) and Eastern (lunar) new years. This year they were more stuck than usual.

Today I rearranged my study so I am actually doing a part-time load. I was supposed to be doing that since I started in 2014 but things got moved around and I ended up having to do units in 8 week periods which was just too difficult. My sore gut is thanking me already. 

Today I took Robin's 7' 6" Firewire around the bay and got some sick waves - one vertical head high takeoff. The water was green and cool in the 39 degree heat and there were only a couple of surfers where I was.

Let's hope this Monkey year continues to be kind.

 

Qwerk

2016 - another year. They roll around so quickly now. 2015 was a mixed bag - lots of triumphs and some tragedies. It's been a long and exhausting year - lots of work, too many changes and little security. I am glad to see the back of it and I get the impression many others are too. Maybe we are all picking up on the same restless zeitgeist.

I'm at a bit of a cross-roads - between many things, in limbo. I want to take a step forward but I don't have too many options - well none that are practical anyway. It's been a struggle to keep my job and part of me wonders how much longer I should keep trying. My graphic design course has yielded some great results, but I regularly ask myself whether it is worth persevering. Moving into commercialism seems about 20 years too late. 

Another year and another business name - I think that's the fourth in as many years. Art_Geek wasn't doing it for me, so I've registered Qwerk Designs - because I'm quirky, the letters are unusual, the numerology works and it will look good on a T-shirt. It's a branding thing - I figure my best selling point, or 'point of difference' as it's known in the industry, is my 'rugged individuality' (as one person expressed it). I really wanted to use 'Munted Doll Designs' but I doubted many people would get  it - my ironic sense of humour is too obscure for most of them.

My real fantasy is to get some work as an illustrator.  I wouldn't expect to make a living from it but it would be wonderful to do some editorial illustrations, or drawings for a small book. It's probably just a pipe-dream but I'll keep moving in that direction.

Illustration: detail of a work in progress for 'Square' - a 2016 group exhibition for the Great Southern Festival (part of PIAF)

comet girl

I am revisiting some of my old oil paintings and turning them into digital images. I never finished this one in its original state but had done most of the figure. I am now using it as a reference for this new work.

It is an adaptation of a dream I had fairly recently, so it is 'autobiographical' (although I have taken a fair bit of artistic licence).

Digital painting suits me so much better than traditional media. It is still time consuming but less frustrating because I can change things more easily if they don't work. Also, because I construct an image in layers, I can move things around for better composition, like the comets for example - or create an entirely new background for the figure. 

I think I was born too early because this technology wasn't around for most of my life. I didn't touch a computer until I was 41. Better late than never I guess - at least I have had the opportunity to learn to paint with digital media.