Australian King Parrot

Australian King Parrot (Alisterus scapularis)

watercolour, 250 x 150mm

This watercolour was a challenge in terms of recreating those magnificent colours on paper.

Last Class for the Term

This week was our last week for Term 2. Term 3 will start in the week of the 12th of July.

It's great to see that some take on a great challenge with an outcome that is really beautiful and increases the students confidence. Stepping outside your comfort zone can be really rewarding!

On the other hand there are also students that go trough a rough patch. This is normal though and every artist, writer, etc will have to go trough this at some stage. The challenge is to find way's to get trough them, to recognise them. Keeping a visual diary is a great way to achieve this.

Exhibition Work

We are nearly at the end of our 2nd term and some beautiful works have been produced. There is certainly paintings that can be hung for the exhibition planned later in the year. Look after them well and perhaps you can start thinking about framing your favourite ones.

Also keep studying the masters and even by copying them, you can learn lots.

Again some beautiful works produced in the previous 2 weeks. Painted in class and at home.

I am really starting to see the progress of those students that have been part of the course for more than 6 months. Personal styles are being developed, and the confidence being shown at the moment compared to starting the course is huge. It is great as a teacher to see this happening and is making teaching even more enjoyable.

Included are images of work made over the last 2 to 3 weeks.

Mirror of the World: Books & Ideas

This exhibition showcases many of the rare, beautiful and historically significant books held in the Library’s collections. Located in the galleries overlooking the magnificent La Trobe Reading Room, this exhibition celebrates the unique place of books in our hearts and minds.

Mirror of the World: Books & Ideas provides an overview of the history of book production, design and illustration, with a display of fine examples from the Library's collections dating from the Middle Ages to the present day. The title of the exhibition is taken from William Caxton’sMyrrour of the Worlde (1490), one of the first illustrated books published in England.

The exhibition is divided into five major themes:

• Books and ideas - outlines the early history of books and printing.
• The book and the imagination - looks at the way books and texts have been created out of the imagination, while at the same time acting imaginatively upon us.
• Exploring the world - investigates how books have been used to explore and document the world, its landscape and topography, its inhabitants and its flora and fauna.
• Art and nature - looks at how botanical illustration unites two worlds - the scientific and the artistic.
• The artist and the book - highlights the art of the book and the role of the artist in its production.

Helen's eucalyptus leaf painting tip 7

For those students that like a more spontaneous approach to painting with watercolours I have posted this video. I think it's a great way of showing how to work wet in wet and produce a painting within a reasonable time.

Botanical Art Greeting Cards

Although I don't ask my students to do any home work, some do and come up with great results as you can see from the images.

It's great to see the students try out different techniques to create Botanical Art. Stepping outside their boundaries and just having a go at it.

The Greeting Card project went excellent with some beautiful results. It's fun to do and and certainly will make most recipients of the cards happy.